Show HN: Goldbach Conjecture up to 4*10^18+7*10^13

Original Article ↗ Hacker News Discussion ↗

Project overview & participation

  • Browser-based distributed project extends computational verification of the Goldbach conjecture slightly beyond the earlier bound of 4×10¹⁸, to about 4×10¹⁸ + 7×10¹³.
  • Many commenters report contributing billions of checked numbers from desktops and phones; some note issues when running multiple tabs in one browser as work accounting doesn’t behave intuitively.

Language and wording discussions

  • Several comments dissect the article’s phrase “no one has proven it mathematically up until now,” arguing it falsely implies a proof now exists.
  • Consensus: use “no one has proved it mathematically” (or “has yet to be proved”), with some preference in mathematical writing for “proved” over “proven,” though not all agree this is prescriptively required.
  • Nuances of “proved/proven/proofed” and similar irregular verbs are debated at length.

Verification and correctness concerns

  • A major thread analyzes the protocol and finds the server only receives, per job, a single Goldbach decomposition (p, q) and some timing/client token with no strong cryptographic or mathematical guarantees.
  • Commenters show it is easy to fake completed ranges or under-compute work without server detection; thus malicious or faulty clients could hide counterexamples.
  • Suggested remedies include returning full decompositions with primality certificates, duplicating jobs among multiple clients, or more sophisticated cryptographic proofs.
  • The project’s creator openly acknowledges that, given the open, no-login design, rigorous prevention of fake results is not currently solved.

Significance of the “world record”

  • Many argue the extension is only ~0.000001–0.000002 of the previously verified range, likening it to placing a coin on a skyscraper and calling it a new tallest building.
  • Others counter that strictly speaking, the largest verified bound is indeed a “world record,” but agree the “shatters world record” framing is overstated.
  • Some criticize the claim as clickbait, especially given the verification gaps; others see it as harmless motivation for volunteers.

Performance, implementation, and UX

  • WASM Go implementation is acknowledged as slower than native Go; prior 2012-era native code appears much faster for similar tasks.
  • 64-bit integer arithmetic suffices for the current range.
  • Many praise the smooth in-browser UX (e.g., live counterexample count), and some share nostalgic stories of writing Goldbach checkers as early programming exercises.

Overall sentiment

  • Mix of enthusiasm for the idea and implementation with strong skepticism about mathematical rigor and the marketing language.