Monday, December 31, 2012

Thoughts on a New Year

One should have been sleeping, but this one was lying abed between the wee hours and dawn, wide awake and no prospect of getting back to sleep.

I would not count sheep; don't like mutton, and Mary can darn well keep her little lamb.  Instead, I thought about the impending 2013 on the calendar, and I realized that I had not yet factored the number.

2013 will not be a prime year.

3 x 11 x 61 = 2013

and thus the factors of 2013 are 1,3,11,33,61,183,671, and 2013.  I don't see anything in there that bodes particular good favor.  But then I don't generally put much stock in numerology.*

Finally, the restless night passes, the sun rises and another cold day in the Midwest is in prospect.

The morning news seems to indicate only  that 2013 will begin as 2012 ends, cold.  A glance at the calendar tells us that February has lost its "extra" day and is back to its truncated truncated state.

Flipping forward we find that once again July will follow June.

Then 365 days from now we will be looking 2014 in the eye.   Should we  live so long.  It won't be prime, either.

*Arithmetic, on the other hand, I believe in.




8 comments:

Jim said...

Even if I could still factor numbers, I'm quite sure doing so would *put* me to sleep. (And I love mathematics. I have a bachelor's in it!)

2013 is the first year since 1987 where all four digits in the year are unique.

Vee said...

Only a mathematician...

Secondary Roads said...

I'm past my prime too. ;)

I set the digital volume on our TV to a prime number. I enjoy doing things like that. :)

vanilla said...

Jim, may all the factors in your life multiply your happiness and well-being in the new year!

Vee, or one obsessed with numbers.
Happy new year!

Chuck, obsessions, odd fellow. Me too; preferably 47, 51 if the hearing is a bit blinky.

vanilla said...

Chuck, wait, wait! 51 is not prime. But that's what works.

vanilla said...

Jim, btw, thanks for the note on unique digits. I had not noticed that. Our last "prime" year was 2011, and you saw how that worked out. Next one is 2017, then a full decade before another.

Sharkbytes said...

If there are no absolutes then one cannot believe in either math or God. Put that in your relativistic pipe and smoke it, society.

vanilla said...

Sharkey, which puts the atheist mathematician in a bit of a bind, eh, wot? Well, consistency is the hobgoblin of small minds. I didn't coin that, did I?