Prime number

Prime numbers are those natural numbers that are divisible by only 1 and itself. The only even prime number is 2. There is no upper limit to the quantity of primes, but there is no known formula for deriving the nth prime. Euler commented "Mathematicians have tried in vain to this day to discover some order in the sequence of prime numbers, and we have reason to believe that it is a mystery into which the mind will never penetrate".

The Prime Numbers

1, 2, 3, 5, 7, 11, 13, 17, 23, 29, 31, 37, 41, 43, 47, 53, ... are prime numbers.

The Largest Known Prime

The largest known prime is 2^32582657-1.

Mersenne Prime

A Mersenne prime is a prime number M that is of the form M = 2ⁿ − 1, where n is some natural number. As of April, 2007, only 44 Mersenne Primes have been found. The largest known prime 2^32582657-1, is a Mersenne Prime.