Why does it matter that they have discovered “2 ^ 74207281-1″, the longest prime number to date – Venezolana de Television

Caracas, January 20, 2016 .- Mathematicians had long sought him, but it was a computer that finally got the result.

A computer University Central Missouri, in the US, found the longest prime number (to date)

And that’s saying something. has more than 22 million digits (very difficult to read, of course) and five million times larger than that found previously

The prime numbers are very particular. discovered by Euclid in 300 BC, can be divided only by themselves and 1. For example: 2, 3, 5 and 7. A list is endless

And the discovery made in Missouri is crucial to the world of computing. a figure well-so long, complex and irregularly may be key to encrypt and protect computers personal and financial data.

Experts consider primes long are very important for the future of computing.

The new figure was found as part of the initiative Great Internet Mersenne Prime Search (Gimps), a global search to find a particular type of prime numbers long.

This is the Mersenne primes, which are named after a French monk who studied in the .

XVII century are those that arise from the following equation. N = 2n-1, where N and n are both primes

It is a relatively easy calculation for computers that exist today, but not always results in a Mersenne prime.

El Longer cousin has 22,338,618 digits

In fact, these numbers are extremely rare. . So far, including the newly descubierto- only known 49

The new cousin is written as: 2 ^ 74207281-1. This means: 2 multiplied by itself 74,207,281 million times, less 1

In the last 20 years, the project has been estimated Gimps 15 primes longer known.. And the possibilities seem limitless keep finding more.

Why the big cousins ​​used?

These figures are essential for online services such as banking, shopping and private messages.

Currently, encryption using prime numbers hundreds of digits, not millions.

“At the moment, the new figure does not have a practical value, but surely will in the future” says a statement Gimps project.

2 ^ 74207281-1 by Dr. Curtis Cooper was found, of the University of Central Missouri.

While a computer He did most of the work, generally considered to be a prime number was discovered when a man he notes. / CLAA.