Fermat had a habit of challenging Europe’s best mathematicians with problems and puzzles, but this was Fermat at his most infuriating. While his own words suggest that he was pleased with this “truly marvelous” proof, he clearly had no intention of writing out the details for anyone else.
Fermat had a habit of challenging Europe’s best mathematicians with problems and puzzles, but this was Fermat at his most infuriating. While his own words suggest that he was pleased with this “truly marvelous” proof, he clearly had no intention of writing out the details for anyone else.