Tag: Conclusion: Reconciling Intuition with Formalism

Blog 13 Min Read

What’s the Intuition Behind the Equation 1 + 2 + 3 + ⋯ = −1/12?

At first glance, the idea that the sum of all positive integers, an obviously increasing sequence, could equal a negative fraction like −112-\frac{1}{12}−121​ seems absurd. It defies intuition and appears to contradict basic arithmetic. 1+2+3+⋯Yet, this result is more than just a quirky curiosity in mathematics; it has deep connections…