World In Progress

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WIP (World In Progress) intends to show all the positive progress going on in the world. It includes progress in technology, medicin, climate etc and not personal uplifting news.

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Two High Schoolers Found an 'Impossible' Proof for a 2,000-Year-Old Math Rule—Then, They Discovered Nine More | Smithsonian Magazine (www.smithsonianmag.com)

submitted 3 months ago by [email protected] to c/[email protected]

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[–] [email protected] 32 points 3 months ago (2 children)

In the article they state:

Using trigonometry, they had to create a new proof of the Pythagorean theorem, the 2,000-year-old rule that explains the relationship between the lengths of sides on a right triangle. No one told the teenagers that mathematicians had long considered this task “impossible.”

and THEN casually mention:

Two people had previously proved the theorem using trigonometry: Jason Zimba in 2009 and Nuno Luzia in 2015.

WTF?

[–] masterofn001 11 points 3 months ago

Well, hate to do this, but all the phrasing is in the past tense.

Considered, long thought, etc.

But, they created a NEW proof. And considering it took 2 thousand years for 2 others to do it...

So there is that.

[–] [email protected] 5 points 3 months ago

I was just wondering the same. Plus, what kind of high school if high school offers prize money on a bonus assignment that's THOUGHT TO BE IMPOSSIBLE