"Two students who discovered a seemingly impossible proof to the Pythagorean theorem in 2022 have wowed the math community again with nine completely new solutions to the problem."
In a new peer-reviewed study, Ne'Kiya Jackson and Calcea Johnson outlined 10 ways to solve the Pythagorean theorem using trigonometry, including a proof they discovered in high school.
@KPED I love how casually "they outlined 9 additional proofs..." was tossed out there.
Damn! Good job!
This is the way it often works in math: once a tiny window is opened into a new trail of thought, a flood follows… very cool!
@KPED thank you! for anybody else that wants to skip directly to the paper!
https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/00029890.2024.2370240#d1e136
Everything about this story is marvellous.
One of these solutions is going to be the key for solving the Collatz conjecture in a decade or two.
@KPED
"Jackson and Johnson came up with their "impossible" proof in answer to a bonus question in a school math contest."
Who came up with this bonus question that put the idea into these young minds?? That was a brilliant idea!!
@KPED I have to go to my tutoring job tonight and this gave me the boost I needed to get my enthusiasm up (I'm worn out working my restaurant job, though enjoying learning it). I've had so many students not caring about what they're doing lately and thinking school is useless and they don't need it. I guess because they're so young and don't see the point. The lack of curiosity in a lot of young folks made me want to quit working with them up until last week. This gave me my mojo back.
Well, young people can teach the older folks a thing or two if they put their minds to it, and find new things that make the world a better place or easier to work with at least. These students could do it, and bravo. I WISH I was better at math, honestly, so my hat's off to them and I hope they keep that desire to discover with them all their days. I'm sending this article off to my boss and printing it out to keep at my table with me this week.
@KPED Makes one wonder: how many brilliant minds have been lost to racism and sexism over the ages?
As they say: the second best time is now.
These two students are another proof that human capacity is not linked to any physical characteristic, whatsoever.
They are a cornerstone of human ability. Their demonstration was in the abstract field of mathematics.
Another important cornerstone was Barbara Harris. She was the first woman consecrated Bishop in the Episcopal Church.
If a quarter of humanity (male, white) is considered worthy of talking to God & discovering human reason, these are those at the other end.
@KPED definitely sharing this with my classes tomorrow! So many students feel like they just aren't good at math. This is inspiring!
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