Erdős number facts for kids
The Erdős number is a special way to measure how "connected" mathematicians are to a very famous Hungarian mathematician named Paul Erdős. Paul Erdős was one of the most active writers of math papers. He worked with many, many other mathematicians during his life.
Contents
What is an Erdős Number?
Paul Erdős himself has an Erdős number of 0. Think of him as the center of a special math club!
How to Get an Erdős Number
- Anyone who wrote a math paper directly with Paul Erdős has an Erdős number of 1. They are just one step away from him.
- If someone wrote a paper with a person who has an Erdős number of 1, but they never worked with Paul Erdős directly, then they have an Erdős number of 2. They are two steps away.
- This chain continues! If you work with someone who has an Erdős number of 2, and you haven't worked with anyone closer to Erdős, your number would be 3.
It's like a game of "six degrees of separation," but for mathematicians and their research papers!
Famous Mathematicians with Erdős Numbers
Many brilliant mathematicians have an Erdős number. For example, Terence Tao, a super smart math professor, has an Erdős number of 2. He worked with someone who worked with Paul Erdős.
Related Ideas
- This idea is similar to the Bacon number, which connects actors based on movies they've been in together.
More Information
- You can find more details and lists of mathematicians with low Erdős numbers at The Erdős Number Project.
Images for kids
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Paul Erdős in 1992
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If Alice works with Paul Erdős on one paper, and with Bob on another, but Bob never works with Erdős himself, then Alice gets an Erdős number of 1. Bob gets an Erdős number of 2, because he is two steps from Erdős.
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Paul Erdős in 1985 at the University of Adelaide teaching Terence Tao, who was then 10 years old. Tao became a math professor at UCLA, received the Fields Medal in 2006, and was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society in 2007. His Erdős number is 2.
See also
In Spanish: Número de Erdős para niños
