Related papers: Integer Representations and Trajectories of the 3x…
For all natural numbers a,b and d > 0, we consider the function f_{a,b,d} which associates n/d to any integer n when it is a multiple of d, and an + b otherwise; in particular f_{3,1,2} is the Collatz function. Coding in base a > 1 with b <…
Consider a finite positive integer. If it is even, divide it by 2, and if it is odd, multiply it by 3 and add 1. This will give you a new integer. Following the procedure for the new integer, you will receive another integer. Repeat the…
The Collatz conjecture (or ``Syracuse problem'') considers recursively-defined sequences of positive integers where $n$ is succeeded by $\tfrac{n}{2}$, if $n$ is even, or $\tfrac{3n+1}{2}$, if $n$ is odd. The conjecture states that for all…
In this article, we reduce the unsolved problem of convergence of Collatz sequences to convergence of Collatz sequences of odd numbers that are divisible by 3. We give an elementary proof of the fact that a Collatz sequence does not…
In this paper, we present a new method for the analysis of piecewise dynamical systems that are similar to the Collatz conjecture in regard to certain properties of the commutator of their sub-functions. We use the fact that the commutator…
It is known that for an arbitrary positive integer \(n\) the sequence \(S(x^n)=(1^n, 2^n, \ldots)\) is complete, meaning that every sufficiently large integer is a sum of distinct \(n\)th powers of positive integers. We prove that every…
Lothar Collatz had proposed in 1937 a conjecture in number theory called Collatz conjecture. Till today there is no evidence of proving or disproving the conjecture. In this paper, we propose an algorithmic approach for verification of the…
Much work has been done attempting to understand the dynamic behaviour of the so-called "3x+1" function. It is known that finite sequences of iterations with a given length and a given number of odd terms have some combinatorial properties…
For a set of natural numbers $A$, let $R_{A}(n)$ be the number of representations of a natural number $n$ as the sum of two terms from $A$. Many years ago, Nathanson studied the conditions for the set $A$ and $B$ of natural numbers that are…
A recast of the standard residue-class analysis of the 3x+1 (Collatz) map in terms of two elementary operators on arithmetic progressions. The resulting calculus (i) splits any progression into its even and odd subsequences in a single…
The document tries to put focus on sequences with certain properties and periods leading to the first value smaller than the starting value in the Collatz problem. With the idea that, if all starting numbers lead ultimately to a smaller…
Let $r_Q(n)$ be the representation number of a nonnegative integer $n$ by the quaternary quadratic form $Q=x_1^2+2x_2^2+x_3^2+x_4^2+x_1x_3+x_1x_4+x_2x_4$. We first prove the identity $r_Q(p^2n)=r_Q(p^2)r_Q(n)/r_Q(1)$ for any prime $p$…
We show that if p is an odd prime then $$\sum_{k=0}^{p-1}E_kE_{p-1-k}=1 (mod p)$$ and $$\sum_{k=0}^{p-3}E_kE_{p-3-k}=(-1)^{(p-1)/2}2E_{p-3} (mod p),$$ where E_0,E_1,E_2,... are Euler numbers. Moreover, we prove that for any positive integer…
Let $$ A_{m,n}(a)=\sum_{j=0}^m (-4)^j {m+j\choose 2j}\sum_{k=0}^{n-1} \sin(a+2k\pi/n) \cos^{2j}(a+2k\pi/n) $$ and $$ B_{m,n}(a)=\sum_{j=0}^m (-4)^j {m+j+1\choose 2j+1}\sum_{k=0}^{n-1} \sin(a+2k\pi/n) \cos^{2j+1}(a+2k\pi/n), $$ where $m\geq…
For an integer $x$ let $t_x$ denote the triangular number $x(x+1)/2$. Following a recent work of Z. W. Sun, we show that every natural number can be written in any of the following forms with $x,y,z\in\Z$: $$x^2+3y^2+t_z, x^2+3t_y+t_z,…
The $3x+1$ problem concerns the iteration of the map $T:\mathbb{Z}\to\mathbb{Z}$ defined by $T(x)=x/2$ for even $x$ and $T(x)=(3x+1)/2$ for odd $x$. We study the \emph{coefficient stopping time} dynamics of $T$ (in the sense of Terras) by…
The (3x+1)-Map, T, acts on the set, Pi, of positive integers not divisible by 2 or 3. It is defined by T(x) = (3x+1)/2^k, where k is the largest integer for which T(x) is an integer. The (3x+1)-Conjecture asks if for every x in Pi there…
By using techniques of poset representation theory, we present a formula for the number of partitions of a positive integer into three polygonal numbers.
It is proved that all sufficiently large integers $n$ can be represented as $$n=x_1^2+x_2^3+\cdots+x_{13}^{14},$$ where $x_1,\ldots,x_{13}$ are positive integers. This improves upon the current record with $14$ variables in place of $13$.
The starting point of this work is an equality between two quantities $A$ and $B$ found in the literature, which involve the {\em doubling-modulo-an-odd-integer} map, i.e., $x\in {\mathbb N} \mapsto 2x \bmod{(2n+1)}$ for some positive…