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8: Topics in Number Theory

  • Page ID
    7080
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    • 8.1: The Greatest Common Divisor
      One of the most important concepts in elementary number theory is that of the greatest common divisor of two integers. Let a and b be integers, not both 0. A common divisor of a and b is any nonzero integer that divides both a and b . The largest natural number that divides both a and b is called the greatest common divisor of a and b .
    • 8.2: Prime Numbers and Prime Factorizations
    • 8.3: Linear Diophantine Equations
      Very little is known about Diophantus’ life except that he probably was the first to use letters for unknown quantities in arithmetic problems. His famous work, Arithmetica, consists of approximately 130 problems and solutions; most of solutions of equations in various numbers of variables. While Diophantus did not restrict his solutions to the integers and recognized rational number solutions as well, today, however, the solutions for a so-called Diophantine equation must be integers.
    • 8.S: Topics in Number Theory (Summary)

    Thumbnail: Golden spiral. Assuming a square has the side length of 1, the next smaller square is 1/φ wide. Then a width of 1/φ², 1/φ³ and so on. (Public Domain; Jahobr).


    This page titled 8: Topics in Number Theory is shared under a CC BY-NC-SA 3.0 license and was authored, remixed, and/or curated by Ted Sundstrom (ScholarWorks @Grand Valley State University) via source content that was edited to the style and standards of the LibreTexts platform; a detailed edit history is available upon request.