12M Digit Prime Number Sets Record, Nets $100,000 232
coondoggie writes "A 12-million-digit prime number, the largest such number ever discovered, has landed a voluntary math research group a $100,000 prize from the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF). The number, known as a Mersenne prime, is the 45th known Mersenne prime, written shorthand as 2 to the power of 43,112,609, minus 1 . A Mersenne number is a positive integer that is one less than a power of two, the group stated. The computing project called the Great Internet Mersenne Prime Search (GIMPS) made the discovery on a computer at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) Mathematics Department."
Man, oh, man... (Score:5, Funny)
I'm way late to this thread (Score:2, Funny)
(2^43,112,609 - 1)th post!
Re:Sounds cool, but... (Score:5, Funny)
n00b
Re:so? (Score:5, Funny)
Great,everyone starts using the new largest known prime number in their private key! That's like SUPER secure!
Re:Sounds cool, but... (Score:3, Funny)
Call me a n00b, but I'm unsure there are any ways to use this newfound information about prime numbers.
Next time good ol' (2^43,112,609 - 1) comes up in conversation, I'll make sure to impress everyone with my new knowledge, but other than that, I feel no smarter for having read this article.
You think you feel bad? Talk to the guy who just signed that $100,000 check for this...
Re:Man, oh, man... (Score:1, Funny)
the prime number 641 should be high enough for everybody
Re:Actually the 47th (Score:3, Funny)
Hmmmm.
Will knowing these numbers help me procreate before I die?
Re:Actually the 47th (Score:5, Funny)
Hmmmm.
Will knowing these numbers help me procreate before I die?
I don't know about the three or the seven, but the two certainly will... after all, it takes two to tango.
What a wasted opportunity (Score:5, Funny)
They could have made the reward $100,003 instead...
I'm pissed! (Score:4, Funny)
Re:What a wasted opportunity (Score:5, Funny)
They could have made the reward $100,003 instead...
yeah, brilliant idea. next day's headline would be "Five Mathematicians Slain in Argument Over Division of Prize Money"
Re:Actually the 47th (Score:2, Funny)
Re:Actually the 47th (Score:5, Funny)
Unfortunately, I'm afraid that knowing these numbers will prevent you from procreating before you die.
Thank goodness it's voluntary (Score:5, Funny)
"Voluntary" math research group? Is there any other kind?
I'm trying to imagine an "involuntary" math research group, and all I'm getting is scenes from dystopian science fiction ... or possibly a scene from the life of Léon Theremin [wikipedia.org].
Re:Actually the 47th (Score:5, Funny)
It is the second largest prime: Both of all primes and Mersennes.
Wow, does that mean we're close to discovering the largest prime?
Re:Actually the 47th (Score:3, Funny)