Related papers: On sums of Egyptian fractions

Answering a question of Erd\H{o}s and Graham, we show that for each fixed positive rational number $x$ the number of ways to write $x$ as a sum of reciprocals of distinct positive integers each at most $n$ is $2^{(c_x + o(1))n}$ for an…

Given an integer partition of $n$ into distinct parts, the sum of the reciprocal parts is an example of an egyptian fraction. We study this statistic under the uniform measure on distinct parts partitions of $n$ and prove that, as $n \to…

Egyptian decompositions of 2/D as a sum of two unit fractions are studied by means of certain divisors of D, namely r and s. Our analysis does not concern the method to find r and s, but just why the scribes have chosen a solution instead…

We treat the functions $\star^k:{\mathbf N}\rightarrow{\mathbf N}$ where $\star:x\mapsto \star x := x(x+1)$. The set $\{\star^k x+1: \{x,k\}\subseteq{\mathbf N}\}$ is pairwise coprime; so, the set ${\mathbf P}$ of primes is infinite. Our…

For a fixed positive integer $m$ and any partition $m = m_1 + m_2 + \cdots + m_e$ , there exists a sequence $\{n_{i}\}_{i=1}^{k}$ of positive integers such that $$m=\frac{1}{n_{1}}+\frac{1}{n_{2}}+\cdots+\frac{1}{n_{k}},$$ with the property…

Let $T_o(k)$ denote the number of solutions of $\sum_{i=1}^k\frac 1{x_i}=1$ in odd numbers $1<x_1<x_2<...<x_k$. It is clear that $T_o(2k)=0$. For distinct primes $p_1, p_2,..., p_t$, let $S(p_1, p_2,...,…

An Egyptian fraction is a sum of distinct unit fractions (reciprocals of positive integers). We show that every rational number has Egyptian fraction representations where the number of terms is of the same order of magnitude as the largest…

An increasing sequence $(x_i)_{i=1}^n$ of positive integers is an $n$-term Egyptian underapproximation of $\theta \in (0,1]$ if $\sum_{i=1}^n \frac{1}{x_i} < \theta$. A greedy algorithm constructs an $n$-term underapproximation of $\theta$.…

From the Rhind Papyrus and other extant sources, we know that the ancient Egyptians were very iterested in expressing a given fraction into a sum of unit fractions, that is fractions whose numerators are equal to 1. One of the problems that…

We obtain results bounding the degree of the series $\sum_{n=1}^{\infty} 1/\alpha_n$, where $\{\alpha_n\}$ is a sequence of algebraic integers satisfying certain algebraic conditions and growth conditions. Our results extend results of…

A unit fraction representation of a rational number $r$ is a finite sum of reciprocals of positive integers that equals $r$. Of particular interest is the case when all denominators in the representation are distinct, resulting in an…

Let $d(\cdot)$ denote the natural density on the positive integers. We characterize all sets $A,B$ with positive density satisfying $d(A+B)=d(A)+d(B)$, under the assumption that the two sets are not both contained in a proper finite union…

Refining an estimate of Croot, Dobbs, Friedlander, Hetzel and Pappalardi, we show that for all $k \geq 2$, the number of integers $1 \leq a \leq n$ such that the equation $a/n = 1/m_1 + \dotsc + 1/m_k$ has a solution in positive integers…

We find a polynomial in three variables whose values at nonnegative integers satisfy the Erd\H{o}s-Straus Conjecture. Although the perfect squares are not covered by these values, it allows us to prove that there are arbitrarily long…

Every positive rational number has representations as Egyptian fractions (sums of reciprocals of distinct positive integers) with arbitrarily many terms and with arbitrarily large denominators. However, such representations normally use a…

An Egyptian fraction is a sum of the form $1/n_1 + \cdots + 1/n_r$ where $n_1, \dots, n_k$ are distinct positive integers. We prove explicit lower bounds for the cardinality of the set $E_N$ of rational numbers that can be represented by…

For h=3 or 4, Egyptian decompositions into h unit fractions, like 2/D = 1/D1 + ... +1/Dh, were given by using (h-1) divisors (di) of D1. This ancient modus operandi, well recognized today, provides Di=DD1/di for i greater than 1.…

Suppose l=2m+1, m>0. We introduce m "theta-series", [1],...,[m], in Z/2[[x]]. It has been conjectured that the n for which the coefficient of x^n in 1/[i] is 1 form a set of density 0. This is probably always false, but in certain cases,…

We consider the sum of the reciprocals of the middle prime factor of an integer, defined according to multiplicity or not. We obtain an asymptotic expansion in the first case and an asymptotic formula involving an implicit parameter in the…

Let $\mathcal{G}$ be the greedy algorithm that, for each $\theta\in (0,1]$, produces an infinite sequence of positive integers $(a_n)_{n=1}^\infty$ satisfying $\sum_{n=1}^\infty 1/a_n = \theta$. For natural numbers $p < q$, let…