The Basel Problem, named after Leonard Euler’s hometown of Basel, Switzerland, is the solution to the infinite series \(\sum_{n=1}^{\infty} \frac{\pi^2}{6}\) Euler was the first to publish his solution one year after having solved this problem in 1734. Since Euler’s solution, many alternative proofs have been offered, using complex analysis, symmetric polynomials, and so on. These alternative proofs are more rigorous than Euler’s liberal use of infinite polyomial tails, but Euler’s solution is perhaps the most elegant. This is the outline of the proof.
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