Get to Know “The Square Root Boy”

Remember the video that went viral showing a boy answering the square root of different numbers? Definitely, you will not come across a person who can easily answer such math equation every day. You will be amazed at how Gerald Tamayo, a 10-year old street kid, provided the answers instantly without using a calculator or even using his hands to work out the problem. He can also identify numbers that are perfect square from those that are not. Gerald  is seen loitering around Dapitan, Manila.  

The video was taken by a student at the University of Sto. Tomas, Chelsea Mae S. Luzanta, when Gerald approached her together with her friends, begging for coins while offering that he can answer math equations regarding square root in exchange. And because the group of Luzanta got curious about the child’s capability, they have thought of testing Gerald and had given him several numbers to solve. To their surprised, Gerald had answered the equations effortlessly. Luzanta had decided to share the video using her Facebook account and it had spread out rapidly. Gerald never kept the knowledge he had learned from civil engineering students in USTE for himself, instead he decided to share it with his two friends, Joel and Archie.

Gerald doesn’t go to school anymore when his books got wet in Eastwood. His life was featured in a various television shows, where he had explained why he had stopped schooling. Gerald and his two siblings were abandoned by their mother, which is why their grandmother is the one who takes care of them. Because of poverty, their grandmother cannot sustain their education and just asked Gerald to sell sampaguita in the street.

Whenever Gerald saw children going to school, he can’t stop but envy them. One TV Program which featured the boy had offered help to Gerald by providing them a small business as a source of their income together with various items that they can use from day to day.

And because the video was viewed by the netizens, institutions as well as media networks are willing to assist Gerald in reaching his dreams of becoming a civil engineer someday. Gerald, who is now known to be the “Square Root Boy”, “Batang Square Root”, “Math Wizard” and other aliases that people had called him, now have the opportunity to go back to school where he can develop his knowledge and have a secured future.

Contributed by Jobelle Velasquez-Gabilan