Terminus
Posts: 41459
Joined: 4/23/2005 From: Denmark Status: offline
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quote:
ORIGINAL: rtrapasso Actually, IF the equation had been true (it is not), it would disprove probably the most famous (only just recently proved) theorem in mathematics: Fermat's Last Theorem, that for any exponent greater than 2, there are no nonzero whole numbers a, b, and c where a^n + b^n = c^n (the "^n" means raised to the nth power). The equation was still unproved when the show came out... and if you plug it into your calculator, the equation will in fact balance. However, it is a trick that takes place due to rounding errors in your computer/calculator. Turns out many of the writers on the Simpsons are mathematicians, scientists and computer scientists and apparently hide little mathematical puzzles and jokes in the show. Well, whoopie... I'm an economist, not a mathmagician... (catch that one?)
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