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Can Prime Numbers Be Arbitrarily Far Apart?

šŸ’” The Answer

  • For any positive integer n, there exists a sequence of n consecutive composite numbers.
  • This is proven by constructing the sequence (n+1)!+2 through (n+1)!+(n+1).
  • Each term is divisible by numbers from 2 to n+1, so none is prime.
  • Thus prime gaps can be as large as we want, though small gaps also occur infinitely often.

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1922 — The final act of the Greco-Turkish War, the Great Fire of Smyrna, commences.

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