Solved cryptogram
The diagonal of a square cannot be written as a fraction of its side, and the Greeks proved it.
Mathematics Facts, sourced to Wolfram MathWorld.
Or go to the puzzle’s own page first.
What it means
Assume it can, in lowest terms, and a short argument shows that both the top and the bottom of the fraction must be even, which contradicts the assumption. The discovery was a genuine shock to a school of thought built on the idea that all quantities are ratios of whole numbers, and the story that its discoverer was drowned at sea for it is almost certainly a later invention.
The claim comes from Wolfram MathWorld.
- SourceWolfram MathWorld
- CollectionMathematics Facts
- Difficultymedium
- Length75 letters, 21 unique
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