Pythagorean theorem and its causeI'm in high school, and one of my problems with geometry is the Pythagorean theorem. I'm very curious, and everything I learn, I ask "but why?". I've reached a point where I understand what the Pythagorean theorem is, and I understand the equation, but I can't understand why it is that way. Like many things in math, I came to the conclusion that it is that way because it is; math is the laws of the universe, and it may reach a point where the "why" answers itself. So what I want to know is, is there an explication to why the addition of the squared lengths of the smaller sides is equal to the squared hypotenuse, or is it just a characteristic of the right triangle itself? And is math the answer to itself?Thank you.

Question

Pythagorean theorem and its causeI&#039;m in high school, and one of my problems with geometry is the Pythagorean theorem. I&#039;m very curious, and everything I learn, I ask &quot;but why?&quot;. I&#039;ve reached a point where I understand what the Pythagorean theorem is, and I understand the equation, but I can&#039;t understand why it is that way. Like many things in math, I came to the conclusion that it is that way because it is; math is the laws of the universe, and it may reach a point where the &quot;why&quot; answers itself. So what I want to know is, is there an explication to why the addition of the squared lengths of the smaller sides is equal to the squared hypotenuse, or is it just a characteristic of the right triangle itself? And is math the answer to itself?Thank you.

earendil666h1 · Accepted Answer

It is so because one can prove it. Several proofs can be found e.g. on Wikipedia. Of course one has to &quot;believe&quot; the axioms on which the proofs are based, so if you don&#039;t feel compelled to ackknowledge that e.g. &quot;for every line in the plane and every point not on that line there exists one and only one line though this point that does not intersect the first line&quot;, the proofs won&#039;t work for you (but then also the statement itself may be wrong).

Pythagorean theorem and its cause I'm in high school, and one of my problems with geometry is the P

Answered question

Answer & Explanation

New Questions in High school geometry