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St. Mary’s Academy graduates who proved Pythagorean Theorem, prove additional solutions to the impossible math equation

Ne'Kiya Jackson and Calcea Johnson’s solution was solidified by math peers last week and since then the pair have discovered at least five more ways to prove it.

NEW ORLEANS — The two women and St. Mary’s Academy graduates who used trigonometry to prove the 2000-year-old Pythagorean Theorem math equation, had their findings confirmed by the math experts after their discovery was published in the American Mathematical Monthly.

As our partners at The Times-Picayune report, Ne'Kiya Jackson and Calcea Johnson’s solution was solidified by math peers last week and since then the pair have discovered at least five more ways to prove the math equation.

The pair first discovered the solution while in their senior year of high school and in March of 2023 presented their findings to the American Mathematical Society in Atlanta.

In October, Jackson, now a Xavier University of Louisiana student, and Johnson an LSU student had their solution peer-reviewed which was confirmed to be correct by using trigonometry to prove the Pythagorean Theorem, something that until now, was agreed to be impossible because of circular logic.

That same month, they discovered five additional trigonometric proofs of the Pythagorean Theorem.

Jackson and Johnson's discovery brought national attention to their high school, St. Mary's Academy. That recognition caught the attention of former basketball star, Charles Barkley who was so impressed by the young women's accomplishments that he pledged a $1 million donation to the school.

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