SMRTR Science & EngineeringJan 21, 2025Scientific American

Math Puzzle: Build a Square

SMRTR summary

This puzzle challenges readers to divide a T-shaped figure into three parts that can be rearranged into a square. The figure is made up of 25 small squares, with a target square size of 5x5. The solution requires cuts that don't follow the grid lines, using diagonal cuts with a length of 5 based on the Pythagorean theorem. The puzzle encourages creative thinking and spatial reasoning skills.

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