Number theoryDifficulty 4.9AIMEProve itUnited States
Problem:
Let x be an odd positive integer other than 1. Prove that one can find positive integers y and z such that x2+y2=z2.
Solution
Solution:
Let y=2x2−1andz=2x2+1. Because x is odd, x2−1 and x2+1 are both even and therefore y and z are integers. Moreover, because x is more than 1, x2−1 and x2+1 are more than 0 and thus y and z are positive. Finally, the desired equation x2+y2=z2 is equivalent to x2+(2x2−1)2x2+4(x2−1)24x2+(x2−1)24x2+x4−2x2+1=(2x2+1)2=4(x2+1)2=(x2+1)2=x4+2x2+1, which is true.
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Source: MathNet,
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