What do Newcomb’s Problem, Sierpiński Numbers, and Chaos Theory have in common? According to “The Math Book”, they are each one of history’s 250 major milestones in mathematics.
The Math Book notes for Sierpiński Numbers that, “As of February 2008, there were a mere six candidate numbers that had not been eliminated.”
“If mathematicians are able to find a prime of the proper form for all the remaining k, the Sierpiński problem will be solved and the [over] 50-year quest ended.”
So how can we hasten the end of our quest? I suggest people start crunching SB really hard again — for at least the next couple months. Why? Because now is a “lucky” time! No, really! This is historically the luckiest season for SB finding primes:
- 64% of the primes found by SB have been found between Thanksgiving and New Years, including the first 7!
BONUS: I currently have 6 copies of “The Math Book” and will be mailing a signed copy to every discoverer of the next 6 primes. So get crunching! Let’s make another brilliant end of year find!
See on seventeenorbust.com
