Fields Medal Winner Manjul Bhargava On the Pythagorean Theorem Controversy

prajendran writes There were a lot of controversies generated at the Indian Science Congress earlier this month, including claims of ancient aircraft in India, the use of plastic surgery there, and ways to divine underground water sources using herbal paste on the feet. One argument that could be tested using some form of evidence was the assertion by Science Minister Harsh Vardhan that the Pythagorean theorem was discovered in India. Manjul Bhargava, a Princeton University professor of mathematics and a Fields Medal winner describes why the question is not defined well.

Comments

Finally

[Ol Olsoc]

Science that global warming deniers can accept!

Umm, no.

[DanDD]

An Indian website hosts an article about an Indian mathematician who asks, "Did India discover Pythagoras theorem? A top mathematician answers" Gee, I wonder what his conclusion will be?

It seems the cradle of western civilization isn't close enough to India's back yard for most Indian's tastes. Given the opportunity, they'd re-write history. Anti-American sentiment, along with anti-western sentiment, runs deep, and maybe for good reason. But whatever that reason, Indian's perpetual desire to re-write history ad nauseam is growing a bit old. What next, an article about how an Indian, not a Greek documented and used calculus in the 3rd century BC, long before Newton?

It would be delightful if India could point to an original Indian version of Euclid's Elements, the oldest continuously used textbook in history. Such books shape minds for, well, eons, by teaching logical & rational thought. Seemed to work well for Abraham Lincoln, he carried around a copy in his saddle bag and studied it while traveling.

Instead of self-glorifying episodic re-writes, how about discussing continuous, progressive and well reasoned contributions to culture and civilization?