The story of the cubic equations is another great example: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cubic_equation

Dudes straight up used to hoard solutions to equations and use them in math battles.

Right, the point is we're trying to avoid reverting back to such practices.

Showing my ignorance, but the only thing I can picture when I hear 'math battles' is akin to the 'street Countdown' scene from the IT Crowd