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Author Topic: Humungous Prime Number Discovered  (Read 379 times)

Offline DREDIOCK

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Humungous Prime Number Discovered
« on: September 27, 2008, 08:18:37 PM »
Humungous Prime Number Discovered AP
posted: 6 HOURS 9 MINUTES AGOcomments: 64filed under: Science NewsPrintShareText SizeAAALOS ANGELES (Sept. 27) -
 Mathematicians at UCLA have discovered a 13-million-digit prime number, a long-sought milestone that makes them eligible for a $100,000 prize.
The group found the 46th known Mersenne prime last month on a network of 75 computers running Windows XP. The number was verified by a different computer system running a different algorithm.
"We're delighted," said UCLA's Edson Smith, the leader of the effort. "Now we're looking for the next one, despite the odds."
It's the eighth Mersenne prime discovered at UCLA.
Primes are numbers like three, seven and 11 that are divisible by only two whole positive numbers: themselves and one.


I've wondered this for years.

Why do we care?
Is there any useful purpose for knowing prime numbers?

Would someone kindly answer either of these questions please.
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Offline Newman5

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Re: Humungous Prime Number Discovered
« Reply #1 on: September 27, 2008, 08:26:29 PM »
Quote from: DREDIOCK on September 27, 2008, 08:18:37 PM

I've wondered this for years.

Why do we care?
Is there any useful purpose for knowing prime numbers?

Would someone kindly answer either of these questions please.

They have to do something with all that tuition money they receive from students.   :D
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Offline Meatwad

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Re: Humungous Prime Number Discovered
« Reply #2 on: September 27, 2008, 08:27:35 PM »
Finding immense unusable prime numbers is what math nerds have wet dreams over
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Offline AquaShrimp

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Re: Humungous Prime Number Discovered
« Reply #3 on: September 27, 2008, 08:45:48 PM »
Prime numbers are used in security codes.  I had a math professor explain how they were used, but I have since forgotten the details.
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Offline Wayout

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Re: Humungous Prime Number Discovered
« Reply #4 on: September 27, 2008, 08:46:43 PM »
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Offline ridley1

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Re: Humungous Prime Number Discovered
« Reply #5 on: September 27, 2008, 08:47:44 PM »
Mersenne? what is mersenne?
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Offline Wayout

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Re: Humungous Prime Number Discovered
« Reply #6 on: September 27, 2008, 08:50:41 PM »
Quote from: ridley1 on September 27, 2008, 08:47:44 PM
Mersenne? what is mersenne?

Mersenne numbers consist of all 1s in base-2, and are therefore binary repunits  (a base-10 repunit is a number like 11, 111, or 1111 - numbers that contains only the digit 1).
The first few Mersenne numbers are 1, 3, 7, 15, 31, 63, 127, 255...
« Last Edit: September 27, 2008, 08:55:33 PM by Wayout »
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Offline Druss

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Re: Humungous Prime Number Discovered
« Reply #7 on: September 27, 2008, 09:20:21 PM »
Quote from: DREDIOCK on September 27, 2008, 08:18:37 PM
Humungous Prime Number Discovered AP
posted: 6 HOURS 9 MINUTES AGOcomments: 64filed under: Science NewsPrintShareText SizeAAALOS ANGELES (Sept. 27) -
 Mathematicians at UCLA have discovered a 13-million-digit prime number, a long-sought milestone that makes them eligible for a $100,000 prize.
The group found the 46th known Mersenne prime last month on a network of 75 computers running Windows XP. The number was verified by a different computer system running a different algorithm.
"We're delighted," said UCLA's Edson Smith, the leader of the effort. "Now we're looking for the next one, despite the odds."
It's the eighth Mersenne prime discovered at UCLA.
Primes are numbers like three, seven and 11 that are divisible by only two whole positive numbers: themselves and one.


I've wondered this for years.

Why do we care?
Is there any useful purpose for knowing prime numbers?

Would someone kindly answer either of these questions please.

I got an even more puzzling question! Who would care enough to off a $100,000 prize for this little gem of data?   :uhoh
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Offline Hangtime

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Re: Humungous Prime Number Discovered
« Reply #8 on: September 27, 2008, 09:23:55 PM »
somebody that wants an uncrackable security system for his porn collection.
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Offline eskimo2

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Re: Humungous Prime Number Discovered
« Reply #9 on: September 27, 2008, 10:18:09 PM »
13-million-digit prime number for only $100,000!  What a bargain!
I want one!
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Offline Newman5

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Re: Humungous Prime Number Discovered
« Reply #10 on: September 27, 2008, 11:08:25 PM »
Quote from: eskimo2 on September 27, 2008, 10:18:09 PM
13-million-digit prime number for only $100,000!  What a bargain!
I want one!

Yeah, and I was thinking, how much time and money did they spend trying to figure out this number?  I know 100g's isn't going to cover it.
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Offline Holden McGroin

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Re: Humungous Prime Number Discovered
« Reply #11 on: September 27, 2008, 11:33:40 PM »
Quote from: ridley1 on September 27, 2008, 08:47:44 PM
Mersenne? what is mersenne?

That's the French national anthem.
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Offline stroker71

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Re: Humungous Prime Number Discovered
« Reply #12 on: September 27, 2008, 11:36:33 PM »
Quote from: Druss on September 27, 2008, 09:20:21 PM
I got an even more puzzling question! Who would care enough to off a $100,000 prize for this little gem of data?   :uhoh

Another math nerd that made millions some how being a math nerd!
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Offline bcadoo

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Re: Humungous Prime Number Discovered
« Reply #13 on: September 29, 2008, 01:22:44 AM »
Quote from: Wayout on September 27, 2008, 08:50:41 PM
Mersenne numbers consist of all 1s in base-2, and are therefore binary repunits  (a base-10 repunit is a number like 11, 111, or 1111 - numbers that contains only the digit 1).
The first few Mersenne numbers are 1, 3, 7, 15, 31, 63, 127, 255...

A more succinct definition: In mathematics, a Mersenne number is a positive integer that is one less than a power of two.



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Offline rpm

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Re: Humungous Prime Number Discovered
« Reply #14 on: September 29, 2008, 02:23:49 AM »
Quote from: DREDIOCK on September 27, 2008, 08:18:37 PM
Humungous Prime Number Discovered AP
posted: 6 HOURS 9 MINUTES AGOcomments: 64filed under: Science NewsPrintShareText SizeAAALOS ANGELES (Sept. 27) -
 Mathematicians at UCLA have discovered a 13-million-digit prime number, a long-sought milestone that makes them eligible for a $100,000 prize.
The group found the task made them forget how to Rip and paste properly. A secondary investigation discovered they carpeted their garage ceiling.

Why do we care?
:O
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