so many people and organizations have contributed and continue to contribute to development of wofford college's emphasis in computational science (ecs) and the associate education materials.  we are eternally grateful to each of them.

         dr. dan maultsby, academic dean, and wofford college have been very supportive of the program from its inception.  representatives from the sciences met for over a year to discuss requirements for the program.  chairs of biology, chemistry, computer science, mathematics, physics, and psychology signed the curriculum proposal, and the faculty passed the program unanimously in 1998.

         in 2001, the national science foundation awarded wofford college a ccli proof-of-concept grant (no. 0087979) for the project "enhancing computation in the sciences" to help development of the undergraduate computational science program at wofford, creation of extensive online computational science educational materials, and promotion of computational science education nationally. 

         dr. dan welch, chair of wofford's physics department, was responsible for purchase of hardware and associated software for the formation of a computational science computer network.  he continues to administer the smooth operations of this network. 

         the data and visualization course used dr. steve cunningham's excellent computer graphics materials with its numerous examples in the sciences.  originally developed with nsf funding, the materials are the basis for his computer graphics textbook, computer graphics: programming, problem solving, and visual communication (prentice hall, 2007).  steve generously advised us on the topics to cover for a half-semester introduction to scientific visualization and provided much encouragement for our program.

         before and during the period of grant funding, dr. boyce lawton wisely assisted in project evaluation.

         from existing scientific databases, dr. orlando karam created mysql databases, which students in data and visualization have used extensively.

         dr. sylvia pulliam from western kentucky university was very supportive in class testing our online modules and in reviewing these materials and a draft of the resulting textbook introduction to computational science: modeling and simulation for the sciences.  dr. joe sloan also used and expertly evaluated the online and text modules in courses.  dr. david sykes proofread and evaluated this material carefully and extensively, providing many valuable suggestions.  dr. robert panoff of the shodor education foundation was particularly helpful in reviewing the text and giving insightful suggestions on helping students learn the process of modeling.  dr. rob cole from evergreen state university aptly reviewed physics-related modules, while dr. alliston reid was the inspiration and evaluator for a psychology module.  other, listed in the textbooks' acknowledgements below were also extremely helpful with their suggestions.

         students have been integral participants throughout this project.  besides being class members with constructive suggestions, a number of talented students have implemented this website. charles johnson designed the website for the online modules, determined how to do the javascript for the quick review questions, and placed the first modules on the web.  his design and extensive work have served as models for future online modules.  diana jackson continued his efforts, adding numerous modules to the website even while studying abroad.  bishop ravenel implemented the online review form and associated database. michael baker, trey wall, david harmon, and heidi bostic tested various tutorials and helped to generate the answer files.  daniel harris has done a marvelous job in designing and implementing the website for the textbook and in developing the instructors' password system with database.

         numerous other people, thanked in the acknowledgements for the textbook below, assisted throughout the project.

acknowledgements for

introduction to computational science:

modeling and simulation for the sciences

by

angela b. shiflet and george w. shiflet

this book has been a labor of love, which has encouraged us both to grow as teachers and writers. the development of the text has been fun, though complicated; and we have many to thank for their support, collaboration, and patience.   first, we must acknowledge our colleagues and students from whom we learn every day.  in particular, we want single out one colleague and two very capable students.  professor david sykes was extremely helpful in his extensive review of the manuscript, providing many useful suggestions.  david harmon was an invaluable aid in preparing the glossary and verifying answers to the exercises and tutorials, and jonathan debusk worked very hard to ensure that the references conformed to the proper style for publication.

         we are very appreciative of the sabbaticals that wofford college gave us and of the consistent support and encouragement by dan maultsby, senior vice-president and academic dean.  the financial support provided by the national science foundation for computational science at wofford ("enhancing computation in the sciences," nsf ccli proof-of-concept grant no. 0087979) was essential in the development of the program and supporting materials.

         we are indebted to the following reviewers, who offered many valuable constructive criticisms:

rob cole, evergreen state university

richard hull, lenoir-rhyne college

james noyes, wittenberg college

bob panoff, the shodor foundation

sylvia pulliam, western kentucky university

joseph sloan, wofford college

chuck swanson, university of minnesota

david sykes, wofford college

peter turner, clarkson university

ignatios vakalis, capital university

         vickie kearn, senior editor at princeton, had a clear understanding of the project and provided excellent guidance.  we thank you, vickie, for your vision, trust, and encouragement.  meera vaidyanathan and ellen foos very ably orchestrated production.  dimitri karetnikov worked his magic on our figures to transform them into art. thanks also go to jennifer slater of running dogs editorial services for her accurate and insightful copyediting and to lorraine doneker for the attractive design.

         dr. robert m. panoff of the shodor education foundation has been more than a source of ideas and information for this project.  his passion and generosity are remarkable and have been our inspiration.  bob and his very able colleagues at shodor have and continue to do amazing things for computational science education.

         ultimately we thank our parents, isabell and carroll buzzett and douglas and george shiflet, sr., who throughout their lives have given us boundless love and support.  words are inadequate to express our appreciation.  only isabell remains, and she continues to delight us each day with her wisdom and wit.  obviously, we are where we are today because they were there for us. 

dedication

dedicated to

robert k. cralle, theodore h. einwohner, and george a. michael

lawrence livermore national laboratory

and

robert m. panoff

the shodor education foundation,

whose friendship and guidance we have treasured