Algoritmo chinês para o cálculo da raiz quadrada

Abstract

The calculation of the square root is a mathematical operation that accompanies all school levels, it proves to be a great challenge for students and teachers, as students face the difficulty of understanding the operations and teachers have difficulties in finding the appropriate methodology, facilitating to teach the calculations of finding exact and non-exact roots. Throughout the history of mathematics, several algorithms have been developed that make it possible to calculate, approximately, square roots. The Chinese method consists of adding or subtracting the consecutive odd numbers, starting with the number 1 until you get the desired number and then counting how many steps you need to reach the final result. Thus, the objective of this work is to present knowledge about the Chinese Algorithm, and its usefulness in calculating the square root. The development of this work was carried out based on a qualitative bibliographical research, which is defined as the modality of study that proposes to carry out historical analyzes of studies or processes, having as material for analysis written documents and/or cultural productions mined from archives and collections published in books, scientific articles and Internet pages. In Chapter 1, we explored the common concept of square roots, the most common algorithms we teach in our classrooms, and geometric methods for finding square roots, which were combined with what Descartes presented in his Geometry. In Chapter 2, a historical approach is used to derive some techniques of root extraction at different times in the history of different peoples and civilizations. In Chapter 3, presentation of the new method for square root extraction The construction of knowledge requires new methodologies and differentiated learning environments, as each room is formed by a heterogeneous group of students. The study of the Chinese method brings information that facilitates the understanding of the square root.