# Does the Gauss' Trick Really Belong to Gauss?

We all have heard the story of the young Guass, summing 1 to 100 by writing the sum backward below the original one.

In this article, just two books are referred for the trick. I looked at both of them but the story was just mentioned briefly without any firsthand reference.

Is this story true and reliable? Is there any good reference proving this?

Thanks.

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Formulas for the sum were known for a very long time before Gauss was born. Are you asking if the story of school-child Gauss is true as a biographical fact about him? –  zyx Nov 8 '13 at 22:22
no idea how to find out with any reliability. I believed a story about young Milnor for decades. Somebody finally asked him, it turns out it happened to Dantzig some decades earlier; and that is relativley recent. –  Will Jagy Nov 8 '13 at 22:23
There is a part of the story that is usually not told, partly because I made it up. When Gauss showed the teacher the answer, the teacher, irritated at having his rest interrupted, took a very large ruler and $\dots$. –  André Nicolas Nov 8 '13 at 22:23
@zyx Yes, that's what I'm asking for. –  Behzad Nov 8 '13 at 22:26
I only remember what I wrote. If I had more details I would have provided them. –  zyx Nov 8 '13 at 23:08