Etymology

Mersenne prime

Today it means: A prime number which is one less than a power of two (i.e., is expressible in the form 2ⁿ-1; for example, 31=2⁵-1). Full definition →

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The story

Named after French theologian, philosopher, mathematician, and music theorist Marin Mersenne (1588–1648).

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.