Heidelberg Laureate Forum
Mersenne Primes, GPUs, and a Number With 41 Million Digits
In October 2024, mankind found a new prime number, which was also the largest prime number, featuring a gargantuan 41,024,320 digits. The number was special for another reason: It was discovered through a GPU-driven workflow. But why does finding this number matter? Weiterlesen
Heidelberg Laureate Forum
The Internet Chronicles – Part 9 of 12: RSA and Prime Numbers
The internet still needed a way for anyone to send a secret message to anyone else without first agreeing on a shared secret. It needed a way to sign digital documents and prove identity; a lock that could be made public without giving away the key. That lock was RSA. Weiterlesen
Heidelberg Laureate Forum
The Collaboration Paradox
Paul Erdős is undisputedly the most prolific mathematician to ever have lived. He published over 1500 papers while he was alive, and worked with over 500 collaborators. It is perhaps the number of collaborators which stands out even more so than the number of papers published.
Though it may seem paradoxical, most people have fewer collaborators than their own collaborators do on average. This is known as the “friendship” paradox and is normally framed as your friends having, on average, more friends than you. Weiterlesen
Heidelberg Laureate Forum
Hyperschall: Numerische Strömungsmechanik auf Abwegen
Es ist schon eine ganze Weile her, da wollte die europäische Raumfahrtagentur ESA ein eigenes „Space Shuttle“ bauen: einen Flugkörper, der mit einer Rakete in die Erdumlaufbahn geschossen wird und im Gleitflug zurückkehrt, so dass …
Heidelberg Laureate Forum
The Mathematician’s Essay: An Old Format for a New AI Era
At a time in which AI is revolutionizing the practice of mathematics – in some areas overtaking human capabilities – mathematicians are turning to the old-fashioned essay to express their thoughts on where humans could and should fit into the equation. Weiterlesen