An
animated geometric
proof of the
Pythagorean theorem, which states that among the three sides of a
right triangle, the square of the
hypotenuse is equal to the sum of the squares of the other two sides, written as
a2 + b2 = c2. A large square is formed with area
c2, from four identical right triangles with sides
a,
b and
c, fitted around a small central square. Then two rectangles are formed with sides
a and
b by moving the triangles. Combining the smaller square with these rectangles produces two squares of areas
a2 and
b2, which must have the same area as the initial large square.
Image: Joaquim Alves Gaspar