|
| Your personal background. |
I'm just a simple college student trying to make my way in the universe.
And I wouldn't mind if I found a large prime number I can hang on my wall in the process. |
| Your opinions about PrimeGrid |
The discovery of M49(?) in January 2016 was probably the first thing that inspired my love for pure math. I remember seeing Matt Parker's video about it and being surprised that something new and exciting was happening in mathematics. I immediately sent a fanboy “Congratulations!!!!” email to the discoverer of the prime, Dr. Curtis Cooper. That summer, I begged my dad endlessly to take a two-hour detour from our road trip to visit Dr. Cooper and one of the tiny desktop computers at the University of Central Missouri that made the discovery. I still have the picture of small me posing next to that computer with a crazed expression of wonder and excitement on my face, and I'd like to think I've kept that disposition.
If you’re a pragmatist, you probably define “useless” in terms of immediate impact on the real world. In that case, most discoveries in the field of pure mathematics could be viewed as useless. Admittedly, they usually have little to no tangible consequences. But that’s not what determines the value of knowledge. While record-breaking prime numbers may not directly save lives or revolutionize our understanding of the world, they still push the boundaries of how much we as humans can know. And, in my opinion, that’s far from useless.
"We must know. We will know."
-David Hilbert |
| Your feedback on this profile |
| Recommend this profile for User of the Day: | I like this profile |
| Alert administrators to an offensive profile: | I do not like this profile |
|
|
