A Hindu Square Root Algorithm
- Author:
- Susan Addington
Think of a number N as the area of a square. The square root of N is the length of a side of the square.
This method starts with a square with area bigger than N, and slices off two strips of equal width at each step, creating a smaller square. The object is to make a square with area N.
To use the applet, type the area N and your first guess in the shaded fields. Choose a guess bigger than the correct answer. Then the applet will show six steps. Zoom in around the upper right corner of the smallest square to see the later steps. Depending on the first guess, the process often takes only a few steps to get very close to the exact square root value.
See the applet Cutting Strips from a Square and the Google spreadsheet A Hindu Square Root Algorithm for details.
How is this algorithm related to the Babylonian Square Root Algorithm?