Prime Numbers Day - November 13

Happy Prime Numbers Day!



Prime numbers are quite possibly the favorite set of numbers in mathematics. They consist of natural numbers greater than 1 that are not a product of 2 or more smaller natural numbers. The table below shows the prime numbers less than 51.


Interest in prime numbers goes back to ancient times. It's long been proven that there are an infinite number of prime numbers, for example.

It's long been controversial whether the number 1 should be included in the primes. Though my initial instincts would be to include it, there are reasons to exclude it.

If you want to pick a fight with a mathematician, refer to prime numbers in the past tense.

We celebrate prime numbers today because the date can be represented as 11/13, the largest consecutive prime numbers that represent a valid date.

 

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