--- title: "Off the Number Line: Odd Perfect Number" description: Two math explorers are searching for an elusive number. What do they find? image: https://2024.mindresearch.org/hubfs/Education/Archive/Off_the_Number_Line.jpg --- [![](https://2024.mindresearch.org/hs-fs/hubfs/MIND-logo-2018.jpg?width=1701&height=623&name=MIND-logo-2018.jpg)](http://www.mindresearch.org/) [![mind logo](https://2024.mindresearch.org/hubfs/graphics/logos/MIND-logos-color2.svg)](https://www.mindeducation.org/) [![mind white logo](https://2024.mindresearch.org/hubfs/graphics/logos/MIND-logos-white2.svg)](https://www.mindeducation.org/) - [Our Approach](https://2024.mindresearch.org/our-approach) - [Why MIND?](https://2024.mindresearch.org/why-math-education) - [Our Research](https://2024.mindresearch.org/our-research) - [Our Patents](https://2024.mindresearch.org/patents) - [Our Impact](https://2024.mindresearch.org/impact) - [Our Partners](https://2024.mindresearch.org/partners) - [Partner Stories](https://2024.mindresearch.org/partner-stories) - Our Programs - [ST Math](http://www.stmath.com/) - [InsightMath](http://www.insightmath.com/) - [MathMINDs](https://www.mindresearch.org/mathminds) - [Life at MIND](https://2024.mindresearch.org/careers) - Resources - [Blog](https://2024.mindresearch.org/blog) - [Math Discourse](https://2024.mindresearch.org/puzzletalks) - [Podcast](https://2024.mindresearch.org/edtech-podcast) - [News](https://2024.mindresearch.org/news) - [Activities](https://2024.mindresearch.org/stem-resources) - [Donate](https://store.mindresearch.org/pages/donate) **Student privacy****:** learn more about our commitment to keeping students safe [Read More](https://www.mindresearch.org/privacy-policy) ![MIND-on-Math_Blog-Header-5](https://2024.mindresearch.org/hs-fs/hubfs/graphics/headers/_blog-headers/MIND-on-Math_Blog-Header-5.png?width=2000&height=667&name=MIND-on-Math_Blog-Header-5.png "MIND-on-Math_Blog-Header-5") Category Community Teaching & Learning Technology & Games Research & Outcomes Neuroscience Celebrations & Successes [![Subscribe](https://no-cache.hubspot.com/cta/default/237516/a35fb57d-2960-4554-a0f3-e7bb5946fc70.png)](https://cta-redirect.hubspot.com/cta/redirect/237516/a35fb57d-2960-4554-a0f3-e7bb5946fc70) [Mathematics](https://2024.mindresearch.org/blog/topic/mathematics) # Off the Number Line: Odd Perfect Number By [Matthew Peterson and James Huang](https://2024.mindresearch.org/blog/author/matthew-peterson-and-james-huang) - - - - - [mailto:?subject=Off%20the%20Number%20Line:%20Odd%20Perfect%20Number&body=Off%20the%20Number%20Line:%20Odd%20Perfect%20Number%20https://2024.mindresearch.org/blog/off-the-number-line-odd-perfect-number](mailto:?subject=Off%20the%20Number%20Line:%20Odd%20Perfect%20Number&body=Off%20the%20Number%20Line:%20Odd%20Perfect%20Number%20https://2024.mindresearch.org/blog/off-the-number-line-odd-perfect-number) - **![funny math cartoon](https://2024.mindresearch.org/hs-fs/hubfs/Education/Archive/OTNL_odd_perfect.jpg?width=766&name=OTNL_odd_perfect.jpg "funny math cartoon")** **Interviewer:** There’s a unicorn standing there but these two explorers are only interested in the number. Too funny… **Cartoonist:** What? There’s a unicorn? Oh, yeah. **Interviewer:** Okay, so tell me. What exactly is an “odd perfect number?” **Cartoonist:** A “perfect” number is a positive integer that is equal to the sum of all of its proper divisors. The first perfect number is 6 because the divisors of 6 are 1,2 and 3, and 6 equals 1+2+3. The next is 28, because 28 = 1+2+4+7+14. It turns out that perfect numbers are very rare and they all seem to be even. **Interviewer:** So, it’s not possible for a perfect number to be odd? **Cartoonist:** Mathematicians haven’t ruled out the possibility yet. There’s a group at [oddperfect.org](http://oddperfect.org/) that has an ongoing computing project to try to find one, but it’s already into the hundreds of digits and becoming increasingly unlikely that odd perfect numbers exists. **Interviewer:** The open possibility that an odd perfect number could exist makes them even more fascinating than unicorns, which we know are fictional. Very cool. Looking forward to what I’ll learn from next week’s [Off the Number Line](http://blog.mindresearch.org/blog/topic/off-the-number-line) cartoon!   **Further reading**: - Is it possible to [significantly increase young children’s understanding of multi-digit numbers](http://blog.mindresearch.org/blog/bid/370670/Little-Kids-Big-Numbers)? - [How to use math cartoons in the classroom](http://blog.mindresearch.org/blog/math-cartoons-in-the-classroom) ![Matthew Peterson and James Huang](https://2024.mindresearch.org/hubfs/Blog/Authors/MIND-profile-600x600.png) ### About the Author Matthew Peterson, Ph.D., is Co-founder and Chief Research & Development Officer at the MIND Research Institute. James Huang is Senior Visual Designer at MIND Research Institute. ### Comment #### [ST Math Changes Lives at Title I Schools in Santa Ana, California](https://2024.mindresearch.org/blog/st-math-changes-lives-at-title-1-schools-in-santa-ana-california) [Behind the Scenes at MIND: Creating Partnerships With Schools And Districts](https://2024.mindresearch.org/blog/mind-creating-partnerships-with-schools-and-districts) ### Search Result By: ![feature image](https://2024.mindresearch.org/hubfs/Blog/Images/Inside-our-Minds-logo-teal-800x800.png) [Featured Podcast](https://2024.mindresearch.org/blog/topic/featured-podcast) ### [Rethinking Attendance in Edtech](https://2024.mindresearch.org/blog/rethinking-attendance-in-edtech) [Listen Now](https://2024.mindresearch.org/blog/rethinking-attendance-in-edtech) ##### LATEST PODCAST EPISODES ###### BY MIND RESEARCH INSTITUTE - [Rethinking Attendance in Edtech](https://2024.mindresearch.org/blog/rethinking-attendance-in-edtech) - [People, Process, and Penguins: Designing Math Experiences](https://2024.mindresearch.org/blog/people-process-penguins) - [Bridging STEM Gaps with STEMconnector CEO Jo Webber](https://2024.mindresearch.org/blog/bridging-stem-gaps-with-stemconnector-ceo-jo-webber) - [The EdTech Genome Project: Talking Implementation with Elizabeth Birie](https://2024.mindresearch.org/blog/edtech-genome-project) - [From Meeting the Moment to Foundational Change](https://2024.mindresearch.org/blog/from-meeting-the-moment-to-foundational-change) ##### [See all podcasts](https://www.mindresearch.org/edtech-podcast) ## Interested in Contributing? 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