Guinness Book of Records??

[Rick Shepherd]

----- Original Message -----
From: David Wilson <davidwwilson at attbi.com>
To: Sequence Fanatics <seqfan at ext.jussieu.fr>
Sent: Friday, August 23, 2002 11:37 AM
Subject: Re: Guinness Book of Records??


>
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: "N. J. A. Sloane" <njas at research.att.com>
> To: <seqfan at ext.jussieu.fr>; "Antti Karttunen" <karttu at megabaud.fi>
> Cc: <njas at research.att.com>; "Robert G. Wilson v" <rgwv at kspaint.com>
> Sent: Friday, August 23, 2002 3:01 AM
> Subject: Re: Guinness Book of Records??
>
>
> > What I had in mind was quite simple:
> >
> > I would propose that Guinness list it as follows:
> >
> >
> > "The world's largest collection of number sequences.
> > Have you ever wondered what the next term is in (say)
> > 1, 11, 21, 1211, 111221, 312211, ... ?
> > The On-Line Encyclopedia of Integer Sequences
> > (URL: www.research.att.com/~njas/sequences/)
> > contains 75,000 such sequences."
> >
> > But it would be better, I think, if someone other
> > than me proposed it!
> >
> > Neil
>
> How about "Most referenced mathematical work"
>
>

and/or possibly even, "Best search tool for mathematical world records"

Ladies and Gentlemen, we give you...
Largest and smallest known numbers with various mathematical properties.
Most digits of precision of various mathematical and scientific constants.
If the record-holding numbers themselves aren't in the OEIS, pointers to
them and their discoverers are.

(If , in fact, any of the above are not yet the case, these seem like yet
other worthy ongoing goals for the OEIS and therefore good categories for
Guinness to have and thereby encourage (as opposed to, say, potentially
dangerous eating and physical stunts).).

As an amateur mathematician, I can't speak to how often the OEIS is cited
compared to other sites, books, etc., but as a place with wonderful
potential -- and actuality -- for bringing together professionals and
amateurs, I applaud it and would love to see it get this kind of publicity.

(In my view, there may be a large number of amateur mathematicians who
have probably struggled for years with how best to use whatever talents
they do have.  To have any chance of resolving their conflicts they need
more ways to open channels of communication with people such as some
reading this message.  At any rate, the OEIS helps open such channels,
so I'm pleased to help publicize it and have done so in small ways so far.).

If I say much more, I'll have to use that "dime" myself to make that phone
call -- and who, exactly, needs an extremely shy spokesperson?    :^j)
Rick Shepherd