Math · 3
Which 19th-century French mathematician first conjectured in 1849 that infinitely many twin primes exist?
Answer
Alphonse de Polignac
In 1849, Alphonse de Polignac proposed that for every even number k there are infinitely many prime pairs differing by k; setting k=2 gives the twin prime conjecture still unproven today.
💡 Did you know?
Twin primes (pairs differing by 2, like 11 and 13) appear to exist infinitely often, yet mathematicians still cannot prove it after 170+ years of trying.
Other options people guess
- Évariste Galois
- Joseph Fourier
- Augustin-Louis Cauchy
Topics
- primes
- conjectures
- history-of-math
- number-theory
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