Calcea Johnson and Ne’Kiya Jackson.Photo:Janine Rubenstein / People
Janine Rubenstein / People
It’s all adding up for New Orleans natives Calcea Johnson and Ne’Kiya Jackson.
The two recent high school graduates are riding high after working together tofigure out a new way of proving the Pythagorean Theorem, a 2,000-year-old math concept that hasn’t been expounded upon since.
During the recent Essence Festival of Culture in New Orleans, the pair were honored as part of AT&T’s Dream in Black programming, centered on connecting the Black community to greater possibilities with the help of technology.
While distributing 200 free laptops to New Orleans locals in partnership with community organizations, AT&T also put a spotlight on Johnson and Jackson’s accomplishment, gifting the pair new electronics and gear as they head off to college and work on submitting their new proof for official recognition.
“This is just all very shocking to me,” Johnson tells PEOPLE. “I didn’t expect our work to go anywhere. Then all these people started picking it up and wanted to interview me and wanted me to go here and there. I’m just like I didn’t expect any of it.”
AT&T Device Distribution in New Orleans.Courtesy AT&T Dream in Black / STEM NOLA
Courtesy AT&T Dream in Black / STEM NOLA
Back in December Johnson and Jackson were just two high school seniors from New Orleans’ St. Mary’s Academy, hard at work on a school math contest.
“There was a bonus question that was to create a new proof of the Pythagorean Theorem,” Johnson says of the mathematic cornerstone that helps find the missing side length of a right triangle.
“Ne’Kiya and I were the only two to do the bonus question in the whole school," the student adds.
Calcea Johnson and Ne’Kiya Jackson with AT&T executives.Courtesy AT&T Dream in Black / STEM NOLA
Jackson says they spent “3-4 hours a day” working on their calculations and discovered a way to prove the theorem using trigonometry, a feat being touted as a mathematic breakthrough.
Adds Johnson, “Our teacher said ‘this is really great. This is something that other mathematicians need to see.’”
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Pythagorean Theorem.Andrii Zastrozhnov / Getty Images
Andrii Zastrozhnov / Getty Images
Since sharing their findings with local news, the girls’ story took off and evenMichelle Obamareached out with her congratulations. “My mom showed me and my jaw fell,” recalls Johnson. “I was like, ‘How did the First Lady see what we did?'”
Next up, college.
“It’s starting to hit me that I’m not in high school anymore,” says Johnson. “I’m moving on. My next step is at LSU Ogden Honors College studying environmental engineering.”
“My next step is at Xavier University," says Jackson. “I’m majoring in pre-pharmacy chemistry.”
Calcea Johnson, AT&T executive and Ne’Kiya Jackson.Courtesy AT&T Dream in Black / STEM NOLA
And while they’re enjoying summer break and newfound fame, the popular Pythagorean pair is also hard at work, submitting their findings to be officially recognized and accepted into a leading mathematic journal.
“It’s a very arduous process,” says Johnson. “We have [our calculations] in presentation form but now we have to write it in a more extensive form with a lot of technical math terms. It’s a little like a new learning process, translating it into more concrete stuff.”
Complicated math conundrums aside, the two were excited to have a break and enjoy the festival celebrating Black music and culture in their hometown. “I’m looking forward to Megan Thee Stallion,” Jackson said of the headliner, “and all of the free hair products.”
source: people.com
