Fibonacci numbers

mathematics
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Alternative Title: Fibonacci sequence
Fibonacci numbers, the elements of the sequence of numbers 1, 1, 2, 3, 5, 8,
13, 21, …, each of which, after the second, is the sum of the two previous
numbers. These numbers were first noted by the medieval Italian
mathematician Leonardo Pisano (“Fibonacci”) in his Liber abaci (1202; “Book
of the Abacus”), which also popularized Hindu-Arabic numerals and
the decimal number system in Europe. For information on the interesting
properties and uses of the Fibonacci numbers see number games: Fibonacci
numbers.
Leonardo PisanoLeonardo Pisano ("Fibonacci"), statue by Giovanni Paganucci,
1863; in the camposanto in Pisa, Italy.Hans-Peter Postel
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number game: Fibonacci numbers

In 1202 the mathematician Leonardo of Pisa, also called Fibonacci, published an

influential treatise, Liber abaci. It contained the...

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number game: Fibonacci numbers

In 1202 the mathematician Leonardo of Pisa, also called Fibonacci, published an influential
treatise, Liber abaci. It contained the following recreational problem: “How many pairs of
rabbits can be produced from a single pair in one year if it is assumed that every…


number symbolism: Nature’s numbers

This connection involves the Fibonacci numbers (1, 1, 2, 3, 5, 8, 13, 21, 34, 55, 89, 144,…),
in which each number, starting with 2, is the sum of the previous two numbers. These
numbers were first discussed in 1202 by the Italian mathematician Leonardo Pisano, who
seems to…

quasicrystal: Quasiperiodicity

…quasiperiodic pattern may be the Fibonacci sequence, discovered during the Middle Ages
in the course of studies conducted on rabbit reproduction. Consider the following rules for
 birth and maturation of rabbits. Start with a single mature rabbit (denoted by the symbol L for
large) and a baby rabbit (denoted by…

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Fibonacci numbers
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KEY PEOPLE
 Fibonacci
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 Number game
 Pascal's triangle
 Number
 Lucas sequence
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HomeScienceMathematics
Perfect number
mathematics
WRITTEN BY
The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica
Encyclopaedia Britannica's editors oversee subject areas in which they have
extensive knowledge, whether from years of experience gained by working on
that content or via study for an advanced degree....
See Article History
Perfect number, a positive integer that is equal to the sum of its proper
divisors. The smallest perfect number is 6, which is the sum of 1, 2, and 3.
Other perfect numbers are 28, 496, and 8,128. The discovery of such numbers
is lost in prehistory. It is known, however, that
the Pythagoreans (founded c. 525 BCE) studied perfect numbers for their
“mystical” properties.

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number game: Perfect numbers and Mersenne numbers

Most numbers are either “abundant” or “deficient.” In an abundant number, the sum of its

proper divisors (i.e., including 1 but excluding...

The mystical tradition was continued by the Neo-Pythagorean

philosopher Nicomachus of Gerasa (fl. c. 100 CE), who classified numbers as
deficient, perfect, and superabundant according to whether the sum of their
divisors was less than, equal to, or greater than the number, respectively.
Nicomachus gave moral qualities to his definitions, and such ideas
found credence among early Christian theologians. Often the 28-day cycle of
the Moon around the Earth was given as an example of a “Heavenly,” hence
perfect, event that naturally was a perfect number. The most famous example
of such thinking is given by St. Augustine, who wrote in The City of God (413–
426):

Six is a number perfect in itself, and not because God created all things in six days;
rather, the converse is true. God created all things in six days because the number is
perfect.
The earliest extant mathematical result concerning perfect numbers occurs
in Euclid’s Elements (c. 300 BCE), where he proves the proposition:

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If as many numbers as we please beginning from a unit [1] be set out continuously in
double proportion, until the sum of all becomes a prime, and if the sum multiplied into
the last make some number, the product will be perfect.
Here “double proportion” means that each number is twice the preceding
number, as in 1, 2, 4, 8, …. For example, 1 + 2 + 4 = 7 is prime; therefore, 7 × 4
= 28 (“the sum multiplied into the last”) is a perfect number. Euclid’s formula
forces any perfect number obtained from it to be even, and in the 18th century
the Swiss mathematician Leonhard Euler showed that any even perfect
number must be obtainable from Euclid’s formula. It is not known whether
there are any odd perfect numbers.

The Editors of Encyclopaedia BritannicaThis article was most recently revised and updated
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
 number game: Perfect numbers and Mersenne numbers

Most numbers are either “abundant” or “deficient.” In an abundant number, the sum of its
proper divisors (i.e., including 1 but excluding the number itself) is greater than the number;
in a deficient number, the sum of its proper divisors…

mathematics: The Elements

…and the formation of “perfect numbers”—that is, those numbers that equal the sum of their
proper divisors (Book IX). In some form Book VII stems from Theaetetus and Book VIII
from Archytas.…


 number symbolism: 6

” In mathematics, a perfect number is one that equals the sum of its divisors (excluding
itself), and 6 is the first perfect number in this sense because its divisors are 1, 2, and 3. The
next perfect number is 28. No odd perfect numbers are known, but it…

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Perfect number
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RELATED TOPICS
 Number game