Supercomputing for a superproblem: A computational journey into pure mathematics

World famous mathematician publishes his findings as a University of Leicester research report

2012-11-06

(Press-News.org) A world-famous mathematician responsible for solving one of the subject's most challenging problems has published his latest work as a University of Leicester research report.

This follows the visit that famed mathematician Yuri Matiyasevich made to the Department of Mathematics where he talked about his pioneering work. He visited UK by invitation of the Isaac Newton Institute for Mathematical Sciences.

In 1900, twenty-three unsolved mathematical problems, known as Hilbert's Problems, were compiled as a definitive list by mathematician David Hilbert.

A century later, the seven most important unsolved mathematical problems to date, known as the 'Millennium Problems', were listed by the Clay Mathematics Institute. Solving one of these Millennium Problems has a reward of US $1,000,000, and so far only one has been resolved, namely the famous Poincare Conjecture, which only recently was verified by G. Perelman.

Yuri Matiyasevich found a negative solution to one of Hilbert's problems. Now, he's working on the more challenging of maths problems - and the only one that appears on both lists - Riemann's zeta function hypothesis.

In his presentation at the University, Matiyasevich discussed Riemann's hypothesis, a conjecture so important and so difficult to prove that even Hilbert himself commented: "If I were to awaken after having slept for a thousand years, my first question would be: has the Riemann hypothesis been proven?"

Professor Alexander Gorban, from the University of Leicester, said: "His visit was a great event for our mathematics and computer science departments.

"Matiyasevich has now published a paper through the University that regards the zeros of Riemann Zeta Function (RZF). This is a mathematical function which has been studied for over a hundred years.

"The goal of this paper is to present numerical evidence for a new method for revealing all divisors of all natural numbers from the zeroes of the RZF. This approach required supercomputing power.

"There is previous evidence of famous pure mathematical problems using massive computations. Unfortunately, the Riemann hypothesis is not reduced to a finite problem and, therefore, the computations can disprove but cannot prove it. Computations here provide the tools for guessing and disproving the guesses only."

### The paper on how supercomputers have helped the mathematicians to travel into the world of the Riemann hypothesis is now available online, together with the presentation of the Matiyasevich talk, at: http://www2.le.ac.uk/departments/mathematics/research/research-reports-2/research-reports-2012

Images of Yuri Matiyasevich available from pt91@le.ac.uk

ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:

New strategy for fingerprint visualization developed at Hebrew University

2012-11-06

Jerusalem, Nov. 6, 2012 -- Identifying fingerprints on paper is a commonly used method in police forensic work, but unfortunately it is not easy to make those fingerprints visible. Now, scientists at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem have developed a new approach for making such fingerprints more readily readable. The new method, created by a team headed by Prof. Yossi Almog and Prof. Daniel Mandler of the Institute of Chemistry at the Hebrew University, uses an innovative chemical process to produce a negative of the fingerprint image rather than the positive image ...

Strange diet for methane consuming microorganisms

2012-11-06

This press release is available in German. Methane is formed under the absence of oxygen by natural biological and physical processes, e.g. in the sea floor. It is a much more powerful greenhouse gas than carbon dioxide. Thanks to the activity of microorganisms this gas is inactivated before it reaches the atmosphere and unfolds its harmful effects on Earth's climate. Researchers from Bremen have now proven that these microorganisms are quite picky about their diet. All life on Earth is based on carbon and its compounds. Cell components of all creatures contain carbon. ...

Early treatment sparks striking brain changes in autism

2012-11-06

When given early treatment, children with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) made significant improvements in behavior, communication, and most strikingly, brain function, Yale School of Medicine researchers report in a new study. The study was published in the current issue of the Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders by Yale Child Study Center researchers Fred Volkmar, M.D., Kevin A. Pelphrey, and their colleagues. The results suggest that brain systems supporting social perception respond well to an early intervention behavioral program called pivotal response ...

HF patients treated by a cardiologist, rather than hospitalist, have fewer readmissions

2012-11-06

MINNEAPOLIS, MN – November 6, 2012 – When a cardiologist attends to heart failure patients, even when the severity of illness is higher, patients have reduced rates of hospital readmissions, compared with those patients who are treated by a hospitalist, according to a trial being presented today at the American Heart Association's scientific sessions in Los Angeles. Congestive heart failure (CHF) is the most common cause for hospital readmission in patients over the age of 65 years. Whereas efforts to reduce readmission rates have focused on transitions of care and short-term ...

Living abroad can bring success -- If you do it right

2012-11-06

"Travel broadens the mind" goes the old adage, and potential employers often agree, valuing the open-mindedness and creativity fostered by such worldliness. But according to new Tel Aviv University research, not all international experiences are created equal. "Although living abroad does help to hone creative abilities, not all individuals who have lived abroad derive an equal benefit from such experiences," explains Dr. Carmit Tadmor of TAU's Recanati School of Business, who conducted the study with Dr. Adam Galinsky of the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern ...

Team finds a new way to inhibit blood clotting and inflammation

2012-11-06

CHAMPAIGN, lll. — Scientists have identified a group of small molecules that interfere with the activity of a compound that initiates multiple steps in blood clotting, including those that lead to the obstruction of veins or arteries, a condition called thrombosis. Blocking the activity of this compound, polyphosphate, could treat thrombosis with fewer bleeding side effects than the drugs that are currently on the market. Their findings appear in the journal Blood. Blood clots are formed at the site of an injured blood vessel to prevent blood loss. Sometimes, however, ...

New study reveals challenge facing designers of future computer chips

2012-11-06

To build the computer chips of the future, designers will need to understand how an electrical charge behaves when it is confined to metal wires only a few atom-widths in diameter. Now, a team of physicists at McGill University, in collaboration with researchers at General Motors R&D, have shown that electrical current may be drastically reduced when wires from two dissimilar metals meet. The surprisingly sharp reduction in current reveals a significant challenge that could shape material choices and device design in the emerging field of nanoelectronics. The size of ...

ICDs can reduce sudden death in young patients with hypertrophic cardiomyopathy

2012-11-06

MINNEAPOLIS, MN – November 5, 2012 – A multicenter registry has demonstrated that the use of implantable cardioverter-defibrillators (ICDs) to combat sudden cardiac death in high-risk pediatric patients suffering from hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM). The study is being presented Nov. 5 at the 2012 Scientific Sessions of the American Heart Association (AHA) in Los Angeles. While the study found that the rate of possible device complications adds a level of complexity to this age group, it also demonstrated that life-saving ICD interventions were common in younger patients ...

Higher anxiety associated with poorer functioning in children with 22q11.2 deletion syndrome

2012-11-06

UC Davis researchers have found that for children with the genetic disorder known as chromosome 22q11.2 deletion syndrome anxiety -- but not intelligence -- is linked to poorer adaptive behaviors, such as self-care and communication skills, that affect daily life. The developmental syndrome, which is associated with a constellation of physical, cognitive and psychiatric problems, usually is apparent at birth or early childhood, and leads to lifelong challenges. The study findings suggest that helping children cope with fear-based symptoms may be the best strategy for ...

Overweight patients hospitalized with pneumonia more apt to survive

2012-11-06

Medical researchers at the University of Alberta studied the records of nearly 1000 patients who were admitted to hospital with pneumonia and noted those who were obese were more apt to survive compared to those who were of normal weight. For their research study, the team examined the records of 907 patients with pneumonia who were admitted to six Edmonton hospitals and also had their body mass index recorded. Two-thirds of the patients had severe pneumonia and 79 died in hospital. Of those who died, 12 were under weight, 36 were normal weight, 21 were overweight and ...

International survey finds that support for climate interventions is tied to being hopeful and worried about climate change

NRG Oncology trial supports radiotherapy alone following radical hysterectomy should remain the standard of care for early-stage, intermediate-risk cervical cancer

Supercomputing for a superproblem: A computational journey into pure mathematics

ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:

LAST 30 PRESS RELEASES: