English

Hausdorff's forgotten proof that almost all numbers are normal

Number Theory 2023-09-06 v5

Abstract

In 1914, Felix Hausdorff published an elegant proof that almost all numbers are simply normal in base 2. We generalize this proof to show that almost all numbers are normal. The result is arguably the most elementary proof for this theorem so far and should be accessible to undergraduates in their first year.

Cite

@article{arxiv.2102.00493,
  title  = {Hausdorff's forgotten proof that almost all numbers are normal},
  author = {Edmund Weitz},
  journal= {arXiv preprint arXiv:2102.00493},
  year   = {2023}
}

Comments

10 pages; fixed three small errors and an incorrect argument

R2 v1 2026-06-23T22:42:03.956Z