 |
| Photo : Prof. D. N. Kaprekar (1905 - 1986) |
Odd Numbers, Even Numbers, Prime Numbers... but did you know
there are “Devlali Numbers” too!!! If
you have read the Part – I, Then you’ll surely find this more interesting.
“Devlali Numbers” or Self Numbers were first described in
1963 by Prof. D. N. Kaprekar, a school teacher by profession but also an well
known mathematician of his time.
It states that, integers that cannot be generated by taking
some other number and adding its own digits to it. For example, 21 is not a
self number, since it can be generated from 15 i.e. 15 + 1 + 5 = 21. But 20 is
a self number, since it cannot be generated from any other integer. He also
gave a test for verifying this property in any number. These are sometimes
referred to as Devlali numbers (after the town where he lived).
Kaprekar, born in Dahanu (Thane) received his secondary
school education in Thane and studied at Fergusson College in Pune. In 1927 he
won the Wrangler R. P. Paranjpe Mathematical Prize for an original piece of
work in mathematics.
He attended the University of Mumbai, receiving his
bachelor's degree in 1929. Having never received any formal postgraduate
training, for his entire career (1930–1962) he was a schoolteacher at Devlali, Nashik
a town in Maharashtra, India. He published extensively, writing about such
topics as recurring decimals, magic squares, and integers with special
properties. He also known as "Ganitanand" (गणितानंद); which literally translates into “lover of
mathematics”.
His most famous discovered works include :
- Kaprekar constant (named after him)
- Devlali numbers
- Harshad numbers
- Demlo numbers
Initially his ideas were not taken seriously by Indian
mathematicians, and his results were published largely in low-level mathematics
journals or privately published. Today his name is well-known and many other
mathematicians have pursued the study of the properties he discovered.
Sources: wikipedia.org and other websites.
© Gaurav Ghosh (2014). Please do not reproduce without prior permission.
© Gaurav Ghosh (2014). Please do not reproduce without prior permission.
No comments:
Post a Comment