Name: Matthew H.
Status: student
Age: N/A
Location: N/A
Country: N/A
Date: N/A
Question:
What is the fastest way to calculate the factors of a
large number (above 120 digits) on a computer? I have heard of the
Number Field Sieve, the Self Implementing Quadratic Sieve, and the
Elliptical Curve Method.
Replies:
This is not an easy task. The book "Music of the Primes" gives a fairly
readable and fascinating telling of the history of prime numbers, which is
closely related to identifying factors of large numbers. The methods you
mention are all part of that story but is beyond the scope of a platform
such as this to go into.
NEWTON is an electronic community for Science, Math, and Computer Science K-12 Educators, sponsored and operated by Argonne National Laboratory's Educational Programs, Andrew Skipor, Ph.D., Head of Educational Programs.
