quark Posted April 10, 2012 Share Posted April 10, 2012 I'm drawing blanks searching for a place to verify this. The boy has been investigating number relationships almost every single day for the past few years and may have stumbled upon something interesting. We are not getting our hopes up or anything but I do want him to know that his work is important to me so I have promised to help him look it up. Where online can I ask if this idea has already been discovered? I don't want to have to search a ton of books or websites to find out if his idea is already out there. So I'm guessing I should ask a credible math forum or an experienced number theorist. Or perhaps we should look up math research papers? Where do I begin? I do understand this sounds highly implausible but I would really appreciate suggestions and leads. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Julie of KY Posted April 10, 2012 Share Posted April 10, 2012 I'm not sure, but if it were my child I'd email the folks at Art of Problem Solving and ask them for direction. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WVNA Posted April 10, 2012 Share Posted April 10, 2012 I'm drawing blanks searching for a place to verify this. The boy has been investigating number relationships almost every single day for the past few years and may have stumbled upon something interesting. We are not getting our hopes up or anything but I do want him to know that his work is important to me so I have promised to help him look it up. Where online can I ask if this idea has already been discovered? I don't want to have to search a ton of books or websites to find out if his idea is already out there. So I'm guessing I should ask a credible math forum or an experienced number theorist. Or perhaps we should look up math research papers? Where do I begin? I do understand this sounds highly implausible but I would really appreciate suggestions and leads. First, I hate to burst your bubble, but it's very likely that whatever your son has figured out is already known. Having said that, I'd contact somebody in either the math or math education departments of a local university. I work for a university and we love to interact with kids who are enthusiastic about a subject. As a side note, I remember seeing an interview with Richard Feynman(one of the best theoretical physicists of the 20th century) where he discussed "inventing" math he needed when he was very young. When he got a bit older, he realized the math he came up with already known so at least your son would be in good company. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
quark Posted April 10, 2012 Author Share Posted April 10, 2012 Thanks Julie and WVNA! I've read a couple of Feynman's books and remember reading that. Feynman wasn't the only one I am sure. As I said in my OP, we are not getting our hopes up. He has already done this enough times for us to realize that this one is probably out there somewhere too. Previously, though, we found the original ideas by googling and searching in books. This latest idea is just not coming up. I will contact our nearest uni to see if they can help. I hope I receive more than eye rolls. :glare: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dmmetler Posted April 10, 2012 Share Posted April 10, 2012 There are math discussion boards run by MAA (Mathematical Association of America), SIAM (Society of Industrial and Applied Mathematics) and other groups that may be of help. My DD quite enjoys regional MAA conferences, and often finds that grad students make a very receptive audience for her ideas :). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
quark Posted April 10, 2012 Author Share Posted April 10, 2012 There are math discussion boards run by MAA (Mathematical Association of America), SIAM (Society of Industrial and Applied Mathematics) and other groups that may be of help. My DD quite enjoys regional MAA conferences, and often finds that grad students make a very receptive audience for her ideas :). Oh, thank you so very much! This sounds promising! :001_smile: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
regentrude Posted April 10, 2012 Share Posted April 10, 2012 Previously, though, we found the original ideas by googling and searching in books. This latest idea is just not coming up. Would you mind posting your son's idea here? There are a few people with math backgrounds around... I for one am very curious to hear what he has discovered. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
quark Posted April 10, 2012 Author Share Posted April 10, 2012 Would you mind posting your son's idea here? There are a few people with math backgrounds around...I for one am very curious to hear what he has discovered. I would have posted it here if I'd thought he was ready. But he isn't. I would prefer that he studies it further with as little comment from me and others as possible for now and then, when he is ready, I was hoping that by that time I would have found someone who sees the value in the effort and is willing to help guide him. If I get feedback here right now, it will be very hard for me to stay out of his way. :001_smile: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
boscopup Posted April 10, 2012 Share Posted April 10, 2012 You'll at least eventually post it, right? :lurk5: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
quark Posted April 10, 2012 Author Share Posted April 10, 2012 You'll at least eventually post it, right? Eventually, hopefully! :001_smile: In the meanwhile, here's something else he's been working with that I think mathy kids will enjoy. Conway's audioactive sequence (also known as Morris number sequence). Really cool. Really fun. His idea of fun is writing out long, long strings of these for me to deduce what the starting numbers could be. It's not very hard but he can work these things out in seconds and I obviously can't! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kathy in Richmond Posted April 13, 2012 Share Posted April 13, 2012 (edited) Hi quark, I see that you mentioned John Conway in your last post. I'm a Conway fan, too.:) Does your son have a copy of The Book of Numbers? If so, he might want to take a look there to see if his result is mentioned. Also interesting is that Professor Conway is a regular visitor at MathPath each summer. While there, he always attracts a crowd of youngsters who want to explain their investigations and theories to the master. And to his credit, he always listens patiently (you can read an account of this here in a Wall Street Journal article about the 2006 camp - just keep in mind that the reporter was biased; those kids were not sitting in stuffy auditoriums w/no sunlight all day long. My dd was there and got plenty of fresh air and exercise; but I digress...) He is very encouraging to kids like your son. So far, though, he's never seen a kid with a brand new result in number theory. Not to say there's not a first time...;) Count me among those who are interested in what your son has come up with (when and if he's willing to share). ETA: have you looked through Wolfram's MathWorld online? lots and lots of number theory there! Edited April 14, 2012 by Kathy in Richmond Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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