Re: prime numbers and African artifact

Erik Wahlstrom (erikw@bat.engr.sgi.com)
13 Jul 1995 00:47:59 GMT

In article <3tukas$28m2@bubba.ucc.okstate.edu>, David Ullrich <ullrich@math.okstate.edu> writes:
> caj@tower.stc.housing.washington.edu (Craig A. Johnston) wrote:
> >In article <henryDBK686.Ev4@netcom.com>, Henry Polard <henry@netcom.com> wrote:
> >>In article <3tso8h$giu@netaxs.com>, Michael Hyman <mikeh@netaxs.com> wrote:
> >>>Rick Hawkins (rhawkins@iastate.edu) wrote:
> >>>: >> Prime numbers are those numbers which can NOT be divided evenly by
> >>>: >> another whole number... 1, 2, 3, 5, 7, 11, 13, 17, 19, 23, 29, 31...
> >>>
> >>>: >Hurrah!
> >>>: But only half- credit, since it's the wrong answer. 1 is not prime.
> >>>
> >>>On a related topic, the binary system has the interesting property that
> >>>all numbers which end in 1 are prime: 001, 011, 101, 111, ...
> >>
> >>Going further, the next number that ends in 1 is 1001 = 9, which is
> >>3 times 3, and therefore not prime.
> >>Perhaps you meant to say that in the binary system, all numbers
> >>that end in 1 are odd?
> >>
> >
> >Um, this is the same troll, in binary. Lemme help you with that hook...
> >
>
> What's the easy way to show that 254365465431652436514232 is not
> prime again?
> Anon

Check the last digit, It's an enen number, Therefore not a prime.

Cheers Erik