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In a prison cell near Seattle, a man serving a 25-year sentence taught himself advanced mathematics and ended up publishing a groundbreaking paper from behind bars.<\/p>\n
Christopher Havens, a high school dropout, found himself with a lot of time and a desire to change his life. He decided to dedicate himself to studying math.<\/p>\n
He got his hands on some basic textbooks and started from the beginning. He quickly worked his way through algebra, calculus, and then into much more complex fields.<\/p>\n
His self-study led him to a very old mathematical puzzle involving something called continued fractions. It was a problem that had stumped professional mathematicians for some time.<\/p>\n
Working alone in his cell with just pen and paper, Havens managed to find a solution. He figured out a way to discover new patterns in a whole class of numbers.<\/p>\n
He wrote a letter to a mathematics journal, hoping someone would look at his work. That letter eventually made its way to mathematics professors in Italy, who were stunned by what he had done.<\/p>\n
After a rigorous review process, his work was confirmed to be correct and original. In January 2020, his paper was published in the journal *Research in Number Theory*, a major accomplishment for any mathematician, let alone one who is self-taught in prison.<\/p>\n
Christopher Havens’ story is a powerful example of how a person can find purpose and achieve something remarkable, no matter their circumstances.<\/p>\n
Sources: Popular Mechanics, Scientific American<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
In a prison cell near Seattle, a man serving a 25-year sentence taught himself advanced mathematics and ended up publishing a groundbreaking paper from behind bars. Christopher Havens, a high school dropout, found himself with a lot of time and a desire to change his life. He decided to dedicate himself to studying math. He … <\/p>\n