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General Forums => The O' Club => Topic started by: DREDIOCK on September 27, 2008, 08:18:37 PM

Title: Humungous Prime Number Discovered
Post by: 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.
Title: Re: Humungous Prime Number Discovered
Post by: Newman5 on September 27, 2008, 08:26:29 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
Title: Re: Humungous Prime Number Discovered
Post by: Meatwad on September 27, 2008, 08:27:35 PM
Finding immense unusable prime numbers is what math nerds have wet dreams over
Title: Re: Humungous Prime Number Discovered
Post by: AquaShrimp 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.
Title: Re: Humungous Prime Number Discovered
Post by: Wayout on September 27, 2008, 08:46:43 PM
Is there any useful purpose for knowing prime numbers]?
Encryption
http://www.cpaadvisor.us/sub/8_encryption.htm (http://www.cpaadvisor.us/sub/8_encryption.htm)
Title: Re: Humungous Prime Number Discovered
Post by: ridley1 on September 27, 2008, 08:47:44 PM
Mersenne? what is mersenne?
Title: Re: Humungous Prime Number Discovered
Post by: Wayout on September 27, 2008, 08:50:41 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...
Title: Re: Humungous Prime Number Discovered
Post by: Druss on September 27, 2008, 09:20:21 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
Title: Re: Humungous Prime Number Discovered
Post by: Hangtime on September 27, 2008, 09:23:55 PM
somebody that wants an uncrackable security system for his porn collection.
Title: Re: Humungous Prime Number Discovered
Post by: eskimo2 on September 27, 2008, 10:18:09 PM
13-million-digit prime number for only $100,000!  What a bargain!
I want one!
Title: Re: Humungous Prime Number Discovered
Post by: Newman5 on September 27, 2008, 11:08:25 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.
Title: Re: Humungous Prime Number Discovered
Post by: Holden McGroin on September 27, 2008, 11:33:40 PM
Mersenne? what is mersenne?

That's the French national anthem.
Title: Re: Humungous Prime Number Discovered
Post by: stroker71 on September 27, 2008, 11:36:33 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!
Title: Re: Humungous Prime Number Discovered
Post by: bcadoo on September 29, 2008, 01:22:44 AM
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.

(http://upload.wikimedia.org/math/d/a/c/daca120785740a88ee3b21d459fef00d.png)

Title: Re: Humungous Prime Number Discovered
Post by: rpm on September 29, 2008, 02:23:49 AM
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