Uniqueness of Quickly Growing Series With Rational Sums
As Sylvester himself observed, Sylvester's sequence seems to be unique in having such quickly growing values, while simultaneously having a series of reciprocals that converges to a rational number.
To make this more precise, it follows from results of Badea (1993) that, if a sequence of integers grows quickly enough that
and if the series
converges to a rational number A, then, for all n after some point, this sequence must be defined by the same recurrence
that can be used to define Sylvester's sequence.
Erdős (1980) conjectured that, in results of this type, the inequality bounding the growth of the sequence could be replaced by a weaker condition,
Badea (1995) surveys progress related to this conjecture; see also Brown (1979).
Read more about this topic: Sylvester's Sequence
Famous quotes containing the words uniqueness of, uniqueness, quickly, growing, series, rational and/or sums:
“Somehow we have been taught to believe that the experiences of girls and women are not important in the study and understanding of human behavior. If we know men, then we know all of humankind. These prevalent cultural attitudes totally deny the uniqueness of the female experience, limiting the development of girls and women and depriving a needy world of the gifts, talents, and resources our daughters have to offer.”
—Jeanne Elium (20th century)
“Somehow we have been taught to believe that the experiences of girls and women are not important in the study and understanding of human behavior. If we know men, then we know all of humankind. These prevalent cultural attitudes totally deny the uniqueness of the female experience, limiting the development of girls and women and depriving a needy world of the gifts, talents, and resources our daughters have to offer.”
—Jeanne Elium (20th century)
“This is my playes last scene, here heavens appoint
My pilgrimages last mile; and my race
Idly, yet quickly runne, hath this last pace,
My spans last inch, my minutes last point,
And gluttonous death, will instantly unjoynt
My body, and soule, and I shall sleepe a space,”
—John Donne (15721631)
“For its home, dearie, homeits home I want to be.
Our topsails are hoisted, and well away to sea.
O, the oak and the ash and the bonnie birken tree
Theyre all growing green in the old countrie.”
—William Ernest Henley (18491903)
“Every man sees in his relatives, and especially in his cousins, a series of grotesque caricatures of himself.”
—H.L. (Henry Lewis)
“Platowho may have understood better what forms the mind of man than do some of our contemporaries who want their children exposed only to real people and everyday eventsknew what intellectual experience made for true humanity. He suggested that the future citizens of his ideal republic begin their literary education with the telling of myths, rather than with mere facts or so-called rational teachings.”
—Bruno Bettelheim (20th century)
“If God lived on earth, people would break his windows.”
—Jewish proverb, quoted in Claud Cockburn, Cockburn Sums Up, epigraph (1981)