unforum

[locqust]

yet we proved we have the card by entering the unique code on the card itself to bring up the answer box.

[European Chris]

Quite a few answers to cards have been found in popular science books. I'm currently reading 'music of the primes' a book released a few years ago which is all about this.

I'm would be prepared to put money on that the answer is in the book. I'm on pg150 and nothing has struck me as being right. However it doesn't really help when you're not sure what the question would be.

Incidently it's a very good read-doesn't bombard you with absurdly difficult maths but explains the 'story' of a branch of well complicated maths in a very enjoyable way that even the thick kidz would get.

Anyway, get to Waterstones or get it here:


http://www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/ASIN/1841155802/qid=1137693927/sr=8-1/ref=sr_8_xs_ap_i1_xgl/203-5081981-1649506

And I just sent the author an email...who knows.

[European Chris]

Well he clearly does:

[Mrwilf]

What about the corresponding prime letters of the alphabet (A, B, C, E, G etc) and the order they appear in the prose?

I'm off out to the theatre doncherknow so haven't got time now - got the idea from the seat tickets

[ramsfan]

I mentioned Sufjan Stevens album Illinoise in Differently Lethal cos there were some people in Illinois numbering crystallography. I joked that since the album covered all in't state it might give us the answer. One of its tracks is about Chicago and has a verse about White City. Being parochial, I'd thought of the London Olympics. Seems White City, chicago was quite the place, with premature babies being exhibited in incubators. Also Chicago has the same number of letters as Riemann and that largest prime. Don't think it helps, but it's interesting.

http://chicago.urban-history.org/sites/parks/w_city.htm

[locqust]

Ok well we do seem to be closing off all these possibilities and coming right back to the fact this is an "unsolvable" card. Lets face it that can't be right.
EuropeanChris what did this contact mean by "crystallographic diffraction pattern"?? Any idea what that has to do with Riemann?

[RoyalRumble]

I was looking at the card again and noticed the following.
The last sentence isn't about the riemann hypothesis anymore. It says: "There are many equations ... that have been solved on the assumption that the hypothesis is true...". So maybe the proof is one of those equations.

Now I am definetely not an mathematician. I can't think of any of those equations. Tomorrow I have a little more time, so then I will google for some of those equations. Maybe it's an equation concerning the proof of the riemann hypothesis.

You never know!

[European Chris]

[locqust]

Ah ok did wonder

[bertyb]

Thinking about this - the guys at perplex city must have an answer for this as when somebody does get it right it will come up with correct answer.

With regards to the Riemann Hypothesis, it has never been proved fully, and with no dis-respect to the guys at Mind Candy I doubt that is what they have done.

So I think we need to read between the lines a bit more on this one and see what it is actually asking us to do. The fact that the website is on the card could point to an answer on there somewhere.

The other thing I have noticed is that it says on the card that the longest known primes number is however many digits long. The name for this number I have found is mersenne41 - which was found back in 2004 - since then 2 longer prime numbers have been found - admittedly one of them in Dec 2005 which would have been after the cards were in circulation. Could they be asking us to prove the length of the number on the card, or prove that there is a longer number out there.

What confuses me is the size of the box on the solve page as it is bigger than any other I have seen - and also asks to show your workings - which means for it be recognised as a solve - there must be some workings somewhere that we need to copy.

As with other cards before, I wonder if there is more than 1 accepted answer due to the nature of this card.

[fretty]

I mensioned earlier about a connection being on the website and still support the theory, but I think that the answer is something small (regardless of the size of the box) as the answers would be too difficult for the site to check and too difficult for us to enter correctly. Just to tie up loose ends, this picture that was refered to earlier seems to have a little drawing in the middle, does anyone know what it is apart from the signature:
http://forums.unfiction.com/forums/files/escher_715.jpg

Has anyone tried entering the fermat statement (wont fit in margin etc) in either english or in latin (the original language). This would tally along with the hint from the email (check our notes in the margin).

[dazza]

fretty, the drawing in the middle of the picture says:

V'56

MCE (done as squares)

Escher's signature

No. 3/47, followed by a small roman numeral II.

I don't think it helps much.

[travelling, performing]

Juxta, I really do believe i have the solve for this card. Ok my first post was arrogant and obnoxious, but i think its far easier than you would think, and my idea hasn't been posted here (which is suprising actually), so i'm... 70% confident i have it.

I will get the card. If im right then i'll post the solve.

[ryandrew]

You solved it eh? Well I know where the cube is. I am 70% sure. I just need to find it.

[European Chris]

TP-I'll PM you the code I have for this card-and give it to you at the meet- if you bet me a tenner on you being wrong.

Free card and a tenner, not bad for a 70% chance.