Carol number

noun

An integer of the form 4ⁿ-2ⁿ⁺¹-1.

Meanings

nounCarol number (plural Carol numbers)

plural Carol numbers

  1. mathematicsAn integer of the form 4ⁿ-2ⁿ⁺¹-1.

    Mathematically, it is actually interesting in all sorts of ways, being both a Keith number and a Carol number.

    2009, The Philosophers' Magazine - Issue 47, page 4
    3 more examples

    […] 7. There are 47 occurrences of 47 in the first thousand prime numbers. 8. The atomic number of Silver is 47. 9. It is a Carol number. […]

    2014, Rajesh Kumar Thakur, The Power of Mathematical Numbers, page 131

    In 2007 the largest Carol number was found for n = 253987, consisting of 152916 digits, by using the programs MultiSieve and PrimeFormGW.

    2019, Dr. Ir. Maarten Looijen, Over getallen gesproken - Talking about numbers, page 70

    For ngt;2, the binary representation of the n-th Carol number is n-2 consecutive unities, a single zero in the middle, and n#43;1 more consecutive unities, or to put it algebraically, #92;textstyle#123;CN(n)#61;#92;sum#95;#123;i#61;1,i#92;nen#43;2#125;#123;2n#125;2#123;i-1

    2021, Elena Deza, Mersenne Numbers And Fermat Numbers, page 136

Origin

First studied by Cletus Emmanuel, who named it after a friend, Carol G. Kirnon.

Full word history & related roots →
Cite this entry
APA

Carol number. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Carol%20number

MLA

“Carol number.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Carol%20number. Accessed November 4, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “Carol number,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Carol%20number.

Source: Carol number on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.