Deep Math
Dr. Loh also
coaches
the U.S.
International
Math Olympiad
team. Under his
guidance, the
team won the
competition
in 2015, 2016,
2018, and 2019.This Guy Found an
Easier Way to Solve
Quadratic Equations
improve the learning experience
for anyone trying to understand
this topic, which is part of the
regular mathematical curricu-
lum everywhere in the world.”
Quadratic equations man-
ifest in precise forms within
education. Students begin
solving them in algebra or pre-
algebra classes, but the lessons
feature spoon-fed examples thatS
OLVING THOSE PESKY
quadratic equations
from high school alge-
bra just became a lot
easier. Dr. Po-Shen
Loh, a mathematician
at Carnegie Mellon
University in Pittsburgh, has
derived an easier way to solve
the classic sequence of squares,
roots, and variables.
Quadratic equations are
often used in business to fore-
cast profits, find minimum and
maximum points, or determine
the trajectory of a moving object.
They include an x^2 , and teachers
use the equations to show stu-
dents how to find two solutions
at once. Loh’s new process, out-
lined in a video on his personal
website, circumvents traditional
methods like “completing the
square” and makes it simpler to
find the solutions in fewer, more
intuitive steps.
Loh, founder of a math-
and-science-focused learning
startup called Expii, said he
came up with the new process for
solving quadratic functions in
September as he pondered easier
ways to break down the formula
for middle school students.
“I was very surprised, as this
method was easier to understand
than what is typically written in
textbooks,” he wrote on his web-
site. “Adding this technique as a
standard method would directlywork out easily, with whole inte-
ger solutions. Schools teach the
Pythagorean theorem the same
way; most examples end up solv-
ing out to Pythagorean triples,
the small set of integer values
that work cleanly into the equa-
tion (like a 5-12-13 triangle).
Quadratic equations are
polynomials, which are strings
of math terms. An expressionPHOTOGRAPH BY ROSS MANTLE// BY CAROLINE DELBERT //3
10 March/April 2020