08.16 Prime Numbers: The Marvel, The Mystery - by Fred Sommer

Last Thursday the Science Buzz Cafe talk was given by Fred Sommer and the topic was "Prime Numbers - the Mystery and the Marvel". He did a fine job of explaining step-by step what they are, how they are useful in everyday modern life and why they fascinate with that sense of urgency that some natural puzzles grip us with. Courageous as he is, he even set out to give a mathematical proof from the days of ancient Greeks, proof that there are an infinite "number" of primes. Even after all these centuries, some people still are not entirely clear. He set out to prove it all right, but I think I saw a couple of people in the audience grimace and cross themselves. This may or may not have had anything to do with his comment that 108 is his favorite number, the number of doo-dads on a rosary. Moreover, 108 is not even prime, it is sub-prime.

Nevertheless, not everyone crossed themselves at the mathematics presented and for you Special Forces types who want more I am including a little mathematical workout forwarded to me by a friend in Bangkok and originating in New Scientist Magazine. WARNING: this magazine uses the primitive British spelling of words that really do not need complicating. However, the comment mid-paper about the "dark matter of numbers" and quantum geometry is quite pithy.

Fred Sommer at Science Buzz Cafe on August 16th, 2007

Fred Sommer & Robert Porter at Science Buzz Cafe on August 16th, 2007