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In mathematics, the Pythagorean theorem or Pythagoras' theorem is a fundamental relation in Euclidean geometry between the three sides of a right triangle.It states that the area of the square whose side is the hypotenuse (the side opposite the right angle) is equal to the sum of the areas of the squares on the other two sides.
The diagonals of a square are (about 1.414) times the length of a side of the square. This value, known as the square root of 2 or Pythagoras' constant, [1] was the first number proven to be irrational. A square can also be defined as a parallelogram with equal diagonals that bisect the angles.
In a right triangle, the hypotenuse is the side that is opposite the right angle, while the other two sides are called the catheti or legs. [7] The length of the hypotenuse can be calculated using the square root function implied by the Pythagorean theorem. It states that the sum of the two legs squared equals the hypotenuse squared.
Pythagorean theorem: It states that the area of the square whose side is the hypotenuse (the side opposite the right angle) is equal to the sum of the areas of the squares on the other two sides. The theorem can be written as an equation relating the lengths of the sides a, b and the hypotenuse c, sometimes called the Pythagorean equation: [6]
To complete the square, form a squared binomial on the left-hand side of a quadratic equation, from which the solution can be found by taking the square root of both sides. The standard way to derive the quadratic formula is to apply the method of completing the square to the generic quadratic equation a x 2 + b x + c = 0 {\displaystyle ...
This crucial step completes a larger square of side length + . Completing the square is the oldest method of solving general quadratic equations , used in Old Babylonian clay tablets dating from 1800–1600 BCE, and is still taught in elementary algebra courses today.
In ancient Roman architecture, Vitruvius describes the use of the square root of 2 progression or ad quadratum technique. It consists basically in a geometric, rather than arithmetic, method to double a square, in which the diagonal of the original square is equal to the side of the resulting square. Vitruvius attributes the idea to Plato.
The square of an integer may also be called a square number or a perfect square. In algebra, the operation of squaring is often generalized to polynomials, other expressions, or values in systems of mathematical values other than the numbers. For instance, the square of the linear polynomial x + 1 is the quadratic polynomial (x + 1) 2 = x 2 ...