OFFSET
1,6
COMMENTS
Conjecture: a(n) > 0 for all n > 4.
This conjecture involves two kinds of sandwiches introduced by the author, and it is much stronger than the Goldbach conjecture for odd numbers. We have verified the conjecture for n up to 10^7.
Zhi-Wei Sun also made the following conjectures:
(1) Any even number greater than 10 can be written as the sum of four elements in the set
S = {prime p: p-1 and p+1 are both practical}.
Also, every n=3,4,5,... can be represented as the sum of a prime in S and two triangular numbers.
(2) Each integer n>7 can be written as p + q + x^2 (or p + q + x(x+1)/2), where p is a prime with p-1 and p+1 both practical, and q is a practical number with q-1 and q+1 both prime.
(3) Every n=3,4,... can be written as the sum of three elements in the set
T = {x: 6x is practical with 6x-1 and 6x+1 both prime}.
(4) Any integer n>6 can be represented as the sum of two elements of the set S and one element of the set T.
(5) Each odd number greater than 11 can be written in the form 2p+q+r, where p and q belong to S, and r is a practical number with r-1 and r+1 both prime.
LINKS
Zhi-Wei Sun, Table of n, a(n) for n = 1..10000
G. Melfi, On two conjectures about practical numbers, J. Number Theory 56(1996), 205-210.
Zhi-Wei Sun, Sandwiches with primes and practical numbers, a message to Number Theory List, Jan. 13, 2013.
Zhi-Wei Sun, Conjectures on representations involving primes, in: M. Nathanson (ed.), Combinatorial and Additive Number Theory II: CANT, New York, NY, USA, 2015 and 2016, Springer Proc. in Math. & Stat., Vol. 220, Springer, New York, 2017, pp. 279-310. (See also arXiv:1211.1588 [math.NT], 2012-2017.)
EXAMPLE
a(5)=1 since 2*5=3+3+4 with 3 and 5 both prime, and 2 and 4 both practical.
a(6)=2 since 2*6=3+3+6=3+5+4 with 3,5,7 all prime and 2,4,6 all practical.
MATHEMATICA
f[n_]:=f[n]=FactorInteger[n]
Pow[n_, i_]:=Pow[n, i]=Part[Part[f[n], i], 1]^(Part[Part[f[n], i], 2])
Con[n_]:=Con[n]=Sum[If[Part[Part[f[n], s+1], 1]<=DivisorSigma[1, Product[Pow[n, i], {i, 1, s}]]+1, 0, 1], {s, 1, Length[f[n]]-1}]
pr[n_]:=pr[n]=n>0&&(n<3||Mod[n, 2]+Con[n]==0)
pp[k_]:=pp[k]=pr[Prime[k]-1]==True&&pr[Prime[k]+1]==True
pq[n_]:=pq[n]=PrimeQ[n-1]==True&&PrimeQ[n+1]==True&&pr[n]==True
a[n_]:=a[n]=Sum[If[pp[j]==True&&pp[k]==True&&pq[2n-Prime[j]-Prime[k]]==True, 1, 0], {j, 1, PrimePi[n-1]}, {k, j, PrimePi[2n-Prime[j]]}]
Do[Print[n, " ", a[n]], {n, 1, 100}]
CROSSREFS
KEYWORD
nonn
AUTHOR
Zhi-Wei Sun, Jan 29 2013
STATUS
approved