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42 *IS* The answer to Life, the Universe and Zeta

Posted by ryuzaki0 on from the douglas-adams-was-right dept.

Venusian Treen writes "In their search for patterns, mathematicians have uncovered unlikely connections between prime numbers and quantum physics. The gist is that energy levels in the nucleus of heavy atoms can tell us about the distribution of zeros in Riemann's zeta function - and hence where to find prime numbers. This article discusses this connection, and introduces two physisicts who tell us 'why the answer to life, the universe and the third moment of the Riemann zeta function should be 42.'"

12 of 316 comments (clear)

  1. 42 by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

    I just hope I lose my virginity by the time I'm 42 ...

  2. You mean by stunt_penguin · · Score: 5, Funny

    someone found the question? What was it?

    --
    When the posters fear their moderators, there is tyranny; when the moderators fears the posters, there is liberty.
    1. Re:You mean by ZombieRoboNinja · · Score: 5, Funny

      The question, apparently, is "What is the third moment of the Riemann zeta function?"

      I'm as surprised as you are.

  3. How clever! by Pedrito · · Score: 4, Funny

    [Reimann] realized that the places where the zeta function outputs zero ... hold crucial information about the nature of the primes. Mathematicians call these significant places the zeros.

    Man, those mathematicians are really clever at naming stuff. Next thing you know, they're going to call the places where the function outputs ones, "ones". Will it never end?

    1. Re:How clever! by Sax+Maniac · · Score: 4, Funny

      Indeed. I once took a language theory class from a math bigot. He clearly hated computer science and (shudder) actual physical objects like computers.

      Upon trying to describe a stack, he stumbled, paused and said: "Why do you computer people use such strange words like "push" and "pop"? Why not call it 'stick it on the end' and 'take it off the end?' It's so needlessly complicated".

      Without a beat, he then writes a bunch of greek symbols on the board, epsilon prime-prime-underbar-hat, muttering on about nondeterministic finite automata and pumping lemmas.

      Years ago, I learned never to take any computer science classes from anyone who held only degrees in math, but sadly I had no choice that semester.

      --
      I can explanate how to administrate your network. You must configurate and segmentate it, so it can computate.
  4. Ooh really funny. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

    The ratio of funny to informative posts is ridiculous. Why aren't discussions on Slashdot informative; seems like half the replies are jokes that don't really further the conversation.

  5. The Zeta function by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

    4, 8, 15, 16, and 23 are also significant. Hey, wait a minute......

  6. The Slashdot Conjecture by sidles · · Score: 5, Funny

    The Slashdot Conjecture: All mathematical and physics problems that arise naturally in everyday life are in complexity class NP-hard. The Slashdot Corollary: All meaningful discussion of these problems will require either oversimplification or humor.

  7. Re:242723920317613145364418177377134 by ceoyoyo · · Score: 4, Funny

    Only applied mathematicians require scientific rigor. Pure mathematicians don't let the real world get them down so they require only logic.

  8. Re:The answer to everything is a Joke by ozbird · · Score: 3, Funny

    The Tao begot one. One begot two. Two begot three.

    Brother Maynard: Skip a bit, Brother.

    And three begot the ten thousand things.

  9. Re:In more detail by wickersty · · Score: 5, Funny

    With no exaggeration of any kind, I have no idea what you just said.

  10. Re:The answer to everything is a Joke by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 3, Funny

    The answer to this is very simple. It was a joke.

    And thus scientology was born... oh wait that is a different thread.