Matthew A Lewis wrote:
>
> this is a new preprint on the los alamos preprint server that may
> interest some of you.
>
> it deals with the sequence of perfect numbers (and hence Mersenne
> primes) and whether or not it is finite...
> math-ph/9812027
> Spin Structures on Riemann Surfaces and the Perfect Numbers
> Simon Davis
> http://xxx.lanl.gov/abs/math-ph/9812027
I am woefully inadequate to comment on this in any technical sense.
However, I would like to know if this preprint adds anything to our
understanding?
Perhaps it just equates the problem of determining the existence of odd
perfect numbers with the problem of determining the existence of a rational
square root of a specific quantity.
The "method" for determining the primality of Mersenne numbers is mentioned
on page 4, but I cannot evaluate this at all, much less compare it to the
methods currently in use. Is anyone interested in looking at this?
-Shaun
P.S. I really enjoyed the Arf invariant. Shows how much I don't know.
