Primes, Primitives, and Pythagoras

Authors

  • Taylor Wood Miami University
  • Jenna Odom Miami University

Abstract

The authors explore the connections between prime factorizations and primitive Pythagorean triples, investigating special cases of primitive triangles in order to predict when hypotenuse lengths produce more than one distinct triangle. The authors discuss the usefulness of the method in secondary school classrooms.

References

Ericksen, D., Stasiuk, J., & Frank, M. “Bringing Pythagoras to Life.

Hart, Eric W., W. Gary Martin, and Christian Hirsch. "Standards for High School Mathematics: Why, What, How?" The Mathematics Teacher 102, no. 5 (2008): 377-82. Accessed 16 May 2018 http://www.jstor.org/stable/20876381.

Hlavaty, J. “The Nature and Content of Geometry in the High Schools.

http://www.jstor.org/stable/27955837

Moshan, Ben. "Primitive Pythagorean Triples." The Mathematics Teacher 52, no. 7 (1959): 541-45. Accessed 16 May 2018 http://www.jstor.org/stable/27955997.

National Council of Teachers of Mathematics. Curriculum and Evaluation Standards for School Mathematics. Reston, VA: Author, 1989.

National Council of Teachers of Mathematics. Principles and Standards for School Mathematics. Reston, VA: Author, 2008.

National Governors Association Center for Best Practices, Council of Chief State School Officers. Common Core State Standards Mathematics. Washington D.C.: Author., 2010.

Pythagorean triples. Accessed 19 April 2018 http://www.tsm-resources.com/alists/trip.html

Stevenson, F. W. Exploratory Problems in Mathematics. Reston, VA: National Council of Teachers of Math, 1997.

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Published

2018-09-26

How to Cite

Wood, T., & Odom, J. (2018). Primes, Primitives, and Pythagoras. Ohio Journal of School Mathematics, 80(1). Retrieved from https://ohiomathjournal.org/index.php/OJSM/article/view/6502

Issue

Vol. 80: Fall 2018

Section

Articles

License

Copyright (c) 2018 Taylor Wood, Jenna Odom