
How to Memorize the Largest Known Prime - pseudolus
https://blogs.scientificamerican.com/roots-of-unity/how-to-memorize-the-largest-known-prime/
======
matthewaveryusa
If you find memory tricks like this fun, you should check out the book
moonwalking with einstein which explores the world of memory world champions.
If you use the method of loci[1] combined with a memorized list of words
(optional) [3] that are in the major system[2] you'll be able to remember
quite a bit of stuff with ease.

I have the memory of a goldfish, yet after training lightly for a month I am
now able to remember numbers the length of phone numbers and credit card
numbers as I read them out.

[1]
[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Method_of_loci](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Method_of_loci)

[2]
[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mnemonic_major_system](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mnemonic_major_system)

[3] [http://www.rememberg.com/Peg-list-1000/](http://www.rememberg.com/Peg-
list-1000/)

~~~
aasasd
Like it's not enough that I remember my first ICQ number while having no use
for it.

~~~
jsjohnst
Haha, ditto. I remember so many random numbers like that, but sadly forgot
what many of those numbers were too.

~~~
seandougall
For me it’s my Windows 98 CD key (25 digits alphanumeric). I had to wipe and
reinstall so many times that it saved a lot of trouble to commit it to memory.
And now here I am 20 years later...

------
sudosteph
I guess I must have missed the article "Why to Memorize the Largest Known
Prime".

Memorizing lists of numbers in sequence seems like such a huge waste of time.
We already have computers, and in a pinch, paper and pencils which serve the
purpose of reliably recording large streams of numbers much better. I
understand that there is some appeal in understanding ways to improve memory,
but if you're going to spend that much time training your memorization, why
not at least get pick a subject where you might get something useful out of
it? Learn to memorize a new language with a different character system, or
memorize how to play difficult musical compositions . At least those would
also improve your ability to communicate in some form or provide value to
other people around you.

I know I shouldn't be this irritated by what people choose for their hobbies,
it doesn't really matter and this is probably still better than watching cable
news all day. But this topic in particular frustrates me because it seems to
serve no purpose other than to allow nerds to show off to each other and pat
themselves on their backs for "achieving" something that is totally without
value.

~~~
sneakernets
I'm with you on this. There needs to be a term for achieving something that
serves absolutely no purpose in any situation imaginable.

And when I mean "no purpose", I _really_ mean it. This prime can't even be
used for encryption because it's so absurdly large, and now that it's a well-
known prime, it's a cinch to check for it.

~~~
anyfoo
You mean like playing any other kind of sports or game? Or entertainment in
general? And in this case, it does not even appear that the author really
expects you to memorize anything. It’s just a few neat properties and tricks.
This is not a serious article.

~~~
sneakernets
Sports and games have strong cultural connections. Primes, not so much.

(And yes, I'm very much aware that this isn't serious.)

~~~
lsc
I personally would rather connect with the small subculture that connects with
large primes than with the much larger (but in my opinion, less interesting)
subculture that connects with sports.

I mean, I'm not saying that one is any more objectively valuable than the
other, just that it's a preference, and neither one is more valid than the
other.

------
Someone
If you’re going to cheat, go all the way and recite it in base
2^882,589,933-1.

Learning that also will help you cover larger primes, once they get found.

~~~
kzrdude
I've already memorized it in binary though.

~~~
stcredzero
How about memorizing the python script that prints out the binary?

~~~
SilasX
Or how about memorizing a useful enough set of mathematical heuristics such
that you can eventually rederive truths such as this one?

If you’re going compress it to an algorithm that, given enough time, allows
you to construct the number, don’t just stop there!

Shout-out to Truly Part of You:
[https://www.lesswrong.com/posts/fg9fXrHpeaDD6pEPL/truly-
part...](https://www.lesswrong.com/posts/fg9fXrHpeaDD6pEPL/truly-part-of-you)

~~~
stcredzero
Just have a tiny device that sparks a vacuum catastrophe, resulting in a wave
of annihilation expanding outward at the speed of light, creating an empty
void which will spontaneously produce another Big Bang, resulting in a
universe in which some sentient being somewhere will rediscover that
particular prime number? Keep it small and lightweight, and it will be super
convenient!

~~~
whatshisface
That would go against the intention of the problem because we are looking for
a mental technique, not a device.

~~~
stcredzero
So it would be perfect if I had a mental technique for sparking vacuum decay?
What would be truly perfect if the mental technique could be packaged as a
joke.

~~~
whatshisface
Jokes? You must be mistaken, we don't have those here.

~~~
stcredzero
I see. So HN's subculture is really about universal salvation. I guess I'll
just continue working on my paperclip optimizing AI.

------
hammock
Reminds me of this guy:
[https://youtu.be/_FX6rml2Yjs](https://youtu.be/_FX6rml2Yjs)

It takes him 17 hours to say a 3-syllable phrase 100k times. Expanding, it
would take 468 hours, or 19.5 days to recite this prime.

~~~
gentaro
There are actually mnemonists who have been able to recite pi up to 70,000
digits over a span of 17 hours: [http://pi-world-ranking-
list.com/index.php?page=lists&catego...](http://pi-world-ranking-
list.com/index.php?page=lists&category=pi)

------
uberdru
Go straight to the classic on this topic: The Art of Memory by British
historian Frances A. Yates.

[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Art_of_Memory](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Art_of_Memory)

------
quickthrower2
The poem is too complicated. Simply sing the 1 in different notes to signify
how far through you are. I leave it as a exercise to the reader to come up
with a suitable scheme.

You can also say one, uno, eine, wahad etc. Maybe that’s bending the rules.

Or just do 10000 a day and keep an eye on the calendar.

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leowoo91
I will just memorize there is an article on memorizing the largest prime.

~~~
8bitsrule
By sheer coicidence I'm sure, that's how I solved the problem of how to derive
the first trillion digits of Pi.

Which is fine, in principal, especially if -actual value- results from the
computer being used as a space-heater.

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LeifCarrotson
The author is not using the base 2 representation, instead just coming up with
a fancy way to express "500 x 165179 + 433", reciting the number in base 1, or
tally marks.

I don't understand the reason for the diversion to binary.

~~~
DominikPeters
No, we're reciting the number "2^(500 x 165179 + 433) - 1" which, in binary,
uses only the digit 1 repeatedly. Reciting the prime in unary (base 1) would
take quite a lot longer.

~~~
tomjakubowski
Reciting a number in unary vs binary is the difference between O(N) and O(log
N)!

