Product numbers

Vikranth, Vishak (2020) Product numbers. At Right Angles (6). pp. 40-41. ISSN 2582-1873

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Abstract

The ‘balancing problem’ asks us to find a pair of natural numbers m, n (with m < n) such that the sum of all the natural numbers from 1 till m−1 equals the sum of all the natural numbers from m + 1 till n. (We can think of this as a kind of balancing problem. The number m acts as a point of balance.) This problem was first published in the English magazine Strand in December 1914. It was solved by P. C. Mahalanobis by trial and error; Ramanujan came up with a general solution.

Item Type:	Articles in APF Magazines
Authors:	Vikranth, Vishak
Document Language:	Language English
Uncontrolled Keywords:	Product number, Strand Magazine, Mahalanobis, Ramanujan, Balancing problem
Subjects:	Natural Sciences > Mathematics
Divisions:	Azim Premji University - Bengaluru > University Publications > At Right Angles
Full Text Status:	Public
URI:	http://publications.azimpremjiuniversity.edu.in/id/eprint/2312
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