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It's true that's a common error, but if we're going to be really pedantic: the article doesn't say that multiplying all known primes and adding 1 results in a p
by teraflop 6y ago
It's true that's a common error, but if we're going to be really pedantic: the article doesn't say that multiplying all known primes and adding 1 results in a prime number, it says it's a way to find a new prime. (In fact, all of the result's prime factors are primes that weren't in the list you started with.)
- Someone 6y agoBy that logic, picking random integers is a way to find new primes. But yes, the all part is a good way of being pedantic.
- saagarjha 6y agoPicking a random number isn't guaranteed to help you find a prime number. However, doing the "take all the prime numbers and multiply them and add 1" always produces at least one prime number; either the result or the factors of the number.