"Changing Shapes With Matrices" co- authored with Dr. Noriko Arai
Kodansha Ltd. has sold 5,490 copies of the Japanese version of this book in 8 months!!
This is a very interesting process!
Don received an email on 3/26/01 from Mr. Ozawa at Kodansha Ltd. saying this book will be published on April 20, 2001! See http://www.bookclub.kodansha.co.jp/Scripts/bookclub/blue/blue.idc?isbn=257327-x
Don received an email on 2/2/01 from Mr. Ozawa at Kodansha Ltd. , "..
I am sorry that it's been taking time to prepare publishing the matrix
book.
This is exciting because Don, as usual, does his teaching in a different way than is normally done in schools! He tries to use what children have already done, to do new things. During the week of August 21, 2000, Dr. Arai wrote Don. It seems Don's way of multiplying matrices- a 1x2 matrix [x y], which is natural to young people from graphing points like (x,y), times the 2x2 transformation matrix, is different from the way this is taught in schools in Japan. (See the sample problems from Don's English book ). In Japanese schools, as well as in other countries, students are taught to multiply the 2x2 matrix by a 2x1 matrix, the x above the y. She suggested we have a small chapter to show why the multiplying in this book is different from how teachers do it in Japan. Don wrote this couple of pages and they decided to put it as a foreword to the book.
In June, 2000, Ms. Arai came to the UI for a math conference. She and Don met to organize their book "Changing Shapes With Matrices". The anticipated publication date by Kodansha is "early 2001" !
In March 2000, Don sent corrections and additions to Kodansha. These were received and Kodansha was satisfied that this would fulfill our plans.
Jan. 2000 Don has agreed to make further additions and have his book co-authored by Dr. Arai (she is translating this to Japanese and also making additions).
April 15, 1999: Don received the signed contract from Kodansha that they will translate and publish this book.
Nov.'98-Mar.'99 Don made corrections and additions as asked by Kodansha.
In November, 1998 Kodansha expressed interest in publishing this book after publishing Don's first book, "Calculus By and For Young people (ages 7, yes 7 and up)".