Groups | Search | Server Info | Keyboard shortcuts | Login | Register [http] [https] [nntp] [nntps]


Groups > comp.programming > #5719

Re: really? (lame question about primes)

From Richard Heathfield <rjh@cpax.org.uk>
Newsgroups comp.programming
Subject Re: really? (lame question about primes)
References (8 earlier) <4xpFx.791070$sY7.495062@fx30.am4> <ms5bvc$n5n$2@speranza.aioe.org> <9991fe20-bfea-48e1-9c44-3e4ca2f822e7@googlegroups.com> <d8sFx.324164$tz.265438@fx02.am4> <XnsA509C8731C226jamesdowallen@178.63.61.175>
Message-ID <eXCFx.248017$zk7.206821@fx26.am4> (permalink)
Organization virginmedia.com
Date 2015-09-02 14:36 +0100

Show all headers | View raw


On 02/09/2015 13:42, James Dow Allen wrote:
> Richard Heathfield<rjh@cpax.org.uk>  might have writ, in news:d8sFx.324164
> $tz.265438@fx02.am4:
>
>>  Here's a product of two primes:
>>
>>  58240024563391777851261291575917006595873586378340\
>>  06933501482037788347032155265963843106235363953614\
>>  49841148805852200248028532053742301130515851591046\
>>  09780764992214765245952615895162196506824080887010\
>>  84909798795532569027855897144990861217719976822376\
>>  60245183108382607111271438893289345453397044868767\
>>  74937653432105197140786655752847106640293149009133\
>>  49133637852917819933171853595092059610555346845194\
>>  20546782513079321228879093216436059864014065839170\
>>  63336369425428124884924467183572745778186732426767\
>>  31177226131629502125332694404335922836373000524949\
>>  96264733742856842752930777926209786527196791359153\
>>  71
>>
>>  Good luck factoring it.
>
> Now you're just being sadistic.  (And BTW how did you come up with that
> number?)

Pick a number of bits (I chose a thousand, I think).
Round it up to a whole number of octets.
Set the top bit (to make it big).
Set the bottom bit (to make it odd).
Clear or set the rest of the bits at "random" (using a ghastly entropy 
generator that I am too embarrassed to divulge).
While trial division by small primes fails or, failing that, 
Miller-Rabin (20 tests) fails:
   Add 2
Endwhile
Do that all again.
Multiply the two numbers together.
Post the product on Usenet.
We're done here.

> I'll be impressed by whoever is first to factor this number
> 6666666666666666666666666666666664295863450544367679162527001239842359
> (Please tell us how you did it.)

Ben posted his answer before I'd even read the question! It's a shame 
that his embarrassment prevents him from revealing his method, but 
perhaps it's for the best - if he explained, we would say (just as 
Watson said after Holmes had explained a deduction) "Oh, how absurdly 
simple!" So let's just applaud Ben and spare him his blushes.

-- 
Richard Heathfield
Email: rjh at cpax dot org dot uk
"Usenet is a strange place" - dmr 29 July 1999
Sig line 4 vacant - apply within

Back to comp.programming | Previous | Next — Previous in thread | Next in thread | Find similar | Unroll thread


Thread

really? (lame question about primes) fir <profesor.fir@gmail.com> - 2015-08-31 12:07 -0700
  Re: really? (lame question about primes) Richard Heathfield <rjh@cpax.org.uk> - 2015-08-31 23:23 +0100
    Re: really? (lame question about primes) fir <profesor.fir@gmail.com> - 2015-09-01 01:18 -0700
      Re: really? (lame question about primes) David Brown <david.brown@hesbynett.no> - 2015-09-01 11:01 +0200
        Re: really? (lame question about primes) Richard Heathfield <rjh@cpax.org.uk> - 2015-09-01 12:20 +0100
          Re: really? (lame question about primes) Ben Bacarisse <ben.usenet@bsb.me.uk> - 2015-09-01 15:48 +0100
            Re: really? (lame question about primes) fir <profesor.fir@gmail.com> - 2015-09-01 13:26 -0700
              Re: really? (lame question about primes) Robert Wessel <robertwessel2@yahoo.com> - 2015-09-02 02:12 -0500
                Re: really? (lame question about primes) Richard Heathfield <rjh@cpax.org.uk> - 2015-09-02 08:38 +0100
                Re: really? (lame question about primes) David Brown <david.brown@hesbynett.no> - 2015-09-02 14:03 +0200
          Re: really? (lame question about primes) fir <profesor.fir@gmail.com> - 2015-09-01 13:24 -0700
            Re: really? (lame question about primes) Richard Heathfield <rjh@cpax.org.uk> - 2015-09-01 22:27 +0100
              Re: really? (lame question about primes) fir <profesor.fir@gmail.com> - 2015-09-01 15:02 -0700
                Re: really? (lame question about primes) Richard Heathfield <rjh@cpax.org.uk> - 2015-09-01 23:20 +0100
                Re: really? (lame question about primes) bartekltg <bartek@gmail.com> - 2015-09-02 01:22 +0200
                Re: really? (lame question about primes) fir <profesor.fir@gmail.com> - 2015-09-01 17:18 -0700
                Re: really? (lame question about primes) Richard Heathfield <rjh@cpax.org.uk> - 2015-09-02 02:19 +0100
                Re: really? (lame question about primes) James Dow Allen <gmail@jamesdowallen.nospam> - 2015-09-02 12:42 +0000
                Re: really? (lame question about primes) Ben Bacarisse <ben.usenet@bsb.me.uk> - 2015-09-02 14:21 +0100
                Re: really? (lame question about primes) Johannes Bauer <dfnsonfsduifb@gmx.de> - 2015-09-02 17:45 +0200
                Re: really? (lame question about primes) Ben Bacarisse <ben.usenet@bsb.me.uk> - 2015-09-02 18:06 +0100
                Re: really? (lame question about primes) James Dow Allen <jdallen2000@yahoo.com> - 2015-09-03 17:05 -0700
                Re: really? (lame question about primes) bartekltg <bartek@gmail.com> - 2015-09-04 02:18 +0200
                Re: really? (lame question about primes) Chad <cdalten@gmail.com> - 2015-09-03 22:37 -0700
                Re: really? (lame question about primes) fir <profesor.fir@gmail.com> - 2015-09-03 23:49 -0700
                Re: really? (lame question about primes) fir <profesor.fir@gmail.com> - 2015-09-04 00:18 -0700
                Re: really? (lame question about primes) Richard Heathfield <rjh@cpax.org.uk> - 2015-09-04 08:25 +0100
                Re: really? (lame question about primes) Richard Heathfield <rjh@cpax.org.uk> - 2015-09-02 14:36 +0100
                Re: really? (lame question about primes) Ben Bacarisse <ben.usenet@bsb.me.uk> - 2015-09-02 16:49 +0100
                Re: really? (lame question about primes) Richard Heathfield <rjh@cpax.org.uk> - 2015-09-02 17:32 +0100
            Re: really? (lame question about primes) Kaz Kylheku <kaz@kylheku.com> - 2015-09-01 22:55 +0000
              Re: really? (lame question about primes) bartekltg <bartek@gmail.com> - 2015-09-02 01:15 +0200
          Re: really? (lame question about primes) bartekltg <bartek@gmail.com> - 2015-09-02 03:19 +0200
            Re: really? (lame question about primes) Richard Heathfield <rjh@cpax.org.uk> - 2015-09-02 02:37 +0100
              Re: really? (lame question about primes) bartekltg <bartek@gmail.com> - 2015-09-02 11:24 +0200
                Re: really? (lame question about primes) Richard Heathfield <rjh@cpax.org.uk> - 2015-09-02 10:42 +0100
                Re: really? (lame question about primes) fir <profesor.fir@gmail.com> - 2015-09-02 03:01 -0700
                Re: really? (lame question about primes) bartekltg <bartek@gmail.com> - 2015-09-02 12:28 +0200
                Re: really? (lame question about primes) David Brown <david.brown@hesbynett.no> - 2015-09-02 14:12 +0200
                Re: really? (lame question about primes) Richard Heathfield <rjh@cpax.org.uk> - 2015-09-02 13:19 +0100
                Re: really? (lame question about primes) bartekltg <bartek@gmail.com> - 2015-09-02 14:56 +0200
                Re: really? (lame question about primes) David Brown <david.brown@hesbynett.no> - 2015-09-02 15:47 +0200
                Re: really? (lame question about primes) bartekltg <bartek@gmail.com> - 2015-09-02 16:27 +0200
                Re: really? (lame question about primes) David Brown <david.brown@hesbynett.no> - 2015-09-02 16:37 +0200
                Re: really? (lame question about primes) bartekltg <bartek@gmail.com> - 2015-09-02 17:01 +0200
                Re: really? (lame question about primes) David Brown <david.brown@hesbynett.no> - 2015-09-03 10:55 +0200
                Re: really? (lame question about primes) Richard Heathfield <rjh@cpax.org.uk> - 2015-09-03 10:05 +0100
                Re: really? (lame question about primes) David Brown <david.brown@hesbynett.no> - 2015-09-03 11:49 +0200
                Re: really? (lame question about primes) Richard Heathfield <rjh@cpax.org.uk> - 2015-09-03 10:54 +0100
                Re: really? (lame question about primes) David Brown <david.brown@hesbynett.no> - 2015-09-03 13:22 +0200
                Re: really? (lame question about primes) bartekltg <bartek@gmail.com> - 2015-09-03 13:58 +0200
                Re: really? (lame question about primes) Richard Heathfield <rjh@cpax.org.uk> - 2015-09-02 13:34 +0100
  Re: really? (lame question about primes) Robert Wessel <robertwessel2@yahoo.com> - 2015-08-31 23:10 -0500

csiph-web