Chika Ofili, a 12-year old boy from the UK has made a significant mathematical discovery. He has unearthed a new formula that makes the study of math much easier to understand than ever before.
Chika, who attends Westminster Under School in London, made the discovery while completing a homework assignment given to him by his teacher, Mary Ellis. She gave him a book called “First Steps for Problem Solvers” while on break. The book contained several division problems that required him to determine if various numbers are divisible by 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8 or 9 before completing the full problem, but his math book didn’t contain a memorable test for dividing by 7.
Chika created a new method that consists of taking the last digit of any whole number, multiplying it by 5 and then adding this to the remaining part of the number to get a new number. He found that if this new number is divisible by 7, then the original number is also divisible by 7.
The method was backed with algebraic proof, and it has successfully changed the way math is understood all around the world.
Chika was receieve a prestigious award for his history discovery back in November at the TruLittle Hero Awards, which recognizes youth ages 7 to 16 for their outstanding achievements.