The Pythagorean Theorem - Educational Outreach

Not only has it endured, but the Pythagorean Theorem alsohas expanded in utility and application throughout thesame 40 centuries, paralleling human intellectual progressduring the same four millennia. In modern times, thePythagorean Theorem has found its long-standing trutheven more revered and revitalized as the theorem constantly“reinvents” itself in order to support new mathematicalconcepts.Today, our ancient friend is the foundation forseveral branches of mathematics supporting a plethora ofexciting applications—ranging from waveform analysis toexperimental statistics to interplanetary ballistics—totallyunheard of just two centuries ago. However, with a coupleof exceptions, the book in your hands has explored moretraditional trails. Like the color black in Figure E.1, there ismuch that you, the reader, can yet discover regarding thePythagorean Proposition. The eighteen works cited inAppendix D provide excellent roadmaps for furtherexplorations. We close with a classic geometric conundrum,Curry’s Paradox, to send you on your way: Given two sets offour identical playing pieces as shown in Figure E.2, howdid the square in the top figure disappear?Figure E.2: Curry’s Paradox168