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A comment on A visual proof that a^2 – b^2 = (a + b)(a – b). Parent comment

Re:A visual proof that a^2 – b^2 = (a + b)(a – b) by thaumasiotes on Sunday December 15, 2024 @01:15PM (#42424925)
If you're bothered by the idea of negative-area rectangles, there's no need to justify the assumption that b < a, because that's the only way you can assign any meaning to either side of the equation.
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Re:A visual proof that a^2 – b^2 = (a + b)(a – b) by FartyMcFarter on Sunday December 15, 2024 @03:16PM (#42425674)
The equation isn't about rectangles at all, so I disagree. The rectangles only exist for the purposes of this proof. Any resulting complications are on the proof, not the reader's burden.
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