Acknowledgements

In the many years I have taught computational science there are many people to whom I am indebted. I will list a few here.

Most important are the many students who experienced me as their instructor. They asked the critical questions and provided valuable feedback about explanations and assignments that proved helpful to them. I have been privileged to hear back from several of these students as they progressed in their careers letting me know about the challenges and successes in applying computational science concepts in their work. All of these communications with students were central to how I wrote this book.

Colleagues at Doane University who helped develop an interest in computational science and offered significant advice on how it should be structured include Tessa Durham Brooks, Susan Enders, Alec Engebretson, Peg Hart, and Mark Meysenburg. Lavi Zamstein proofread several of the chapters and caught mistakes. Remaining errors are, of course, my responsibility.

I greatly benefited from resources provided by The Shodor Education Foundation, in particular, conversations with Robert Panoff, President and Executive Director of the foundation.

Finally, I want to thank my wife, Sally, for her patience and encouragement throughout the writing process, particularly while I was being treated for leukemia.