Sheldon 73 Is The Best Number

[Grimarlon Varner]

Aprime number theory equation by mathematics professor emeritus Carl Pomerance turned up on The Big Bang Theory, where it was scrawled on a white board in the background of the hit sitcom about a group of friends and roommates who are scientists, many of them physicists at the California Institute of Technology.

In a recent paper, "Proof of the Sheldon Conjecture," Pomerance, the John G. Kemeny Parents Professor of Mathematics Emeritus, does the math on a claim by fictional quantum physicist Sheldon Cooper that 73 is "the best number" because of several unique properties. Pomerance's proof shows that 73 is indeed unique.

The Big Bang Theory is known for dressing the set with "Easter eggs" to delight the self-avowed science nerds in the audience. When UCLA physics professor David Saltzberg, technical consultant for The Big Bang Theory, heard about the Sheldon proof, he contacted Pomerance to ask if they could use it in the show, which was broadcast April 18.

"What's interesting is, when you see cartoons with technical stuff on boards, usually it doesn't make any sense, but the stuff that they have on the boards, I'll usually say, oh, I recognize that," says Pomerance, who wasn't particularly a fan of the show before he came across the "Sheldon prime number problem" while doing some light math reading.

What is it about the number 73 that makes it so attractive to Sheldon, who includes a T-shirt emblazoned with the number in his regular shirt rotation? Pomerance and co-author Chris Spicer, associate professor of mathematics at Morningside College, explain in the introduction to the proof, accepted for publication in American Mathematical Monthly. One note of context: The "index" of a prime number is its place in ascending numerical order. (For example, the consecutive prime numbers 2, 3, 5, 7 are indexed 1, 2, 3, and 4.)

"First note that not only is 73 a prime number, its index in the sequence of primes is the product of its digits, namely 21; it is the 21st prime. In addition, reversing the digits of 73, we obtain the prime 37, which is the 12th prime, and 12 is the reverse of 21," they write, laying out the points Sheldon makes on the show.

The question Pomerance and Spicer set out to solve is whether this is the only prime number with these properties. Since there is, theoretically, an infinite number of prime numbers, that is easier said than proved. Their paper proposes a series of equations that they say proves 73 is, in fact, unique. It is a portion of this proof, which runs 10 pages, that is written on a whiteboard on the show's set.

He has built an impressive list of credits, including leading roles on the stage in Washington, D.C. and New York City and appearances on television shows like "The Good Wife" and "Person of Interest."

Most recently, he closed a six-week run of "Brownsville Song (B-Side for Tray)" at Claire Tow Theater at Lincoln Center in New York. Best played the lead role of Tray, and his portrayal was given critical acclaim from the likes of Variety, the New York Times and Theater Mania.

I have been doing a number of readings, which allow playwrights to hear their developing works aloud. I've also been currently preparing for pilot season, which is when new TV shows cast and shoot an episode in the hopes of being picked up next season.

There are many ways to prepare for pilot season, from making sure my headshot and resume are up to date and really represent my work, to having clips of me on camera for my agent to show to casting directors as they submit me for auditions. I also try to take note of what I learn from every audition and try to incorporate those lessons into the next one.

Yes and no. My agents will submit me for a wide swath of work. I am then able to read whole scripts (or sometimes only the scenes they provide) and decide if I would like to move forward with an audition. So this happens on a case-by-case basis.

I've been really blessed with opportunities to work and grow as an actor onstage. I am very interested now in taking what I've learned and continuing to work in theater, but also to build on the TV jobs that I have had and begin working in film as well. I am really intrigued by the way one is able to tell a story depending on the structure and conventions each medium supports. So I want to take the lessons my teacher, the theater, has taught me and develop as an actor versatile enough to work in all three media.

While the play deals with some heavy subject matter, Tray has no idea that his life is going to be cut short. In many ways, he is able to just be a 18 year old young man dealing with family life, boxing, and getting scholarships to pay for college. So I prepared by brushing up on boxing skills, observing how young men Tray's age dress, move, and talk, and by visiting the Brownsville Recreation Center to learn about what that great organization is doing for young people in Brownsville.

I had always loved theater, but wasn't sure that I wanted to pursue it. I decided at the end of my sophomore year to declare a theater major. I figured I should pursue what I'm passionate about fully and if I decided along the way that I wanted to do something different I would still have the opportunity to do so.

Much of this business is out of your direct control. Spending energy focusing on those aspects can be draining and is not as effective as focusing on what you can do. So put time and energy into learning things that help you grow into the best actor you can be, be they through readings, classes, auditions, seeing/doing plays, writing, or something seemingly unrelated to this craft altogether. The more you know about the world around you, the more you can incorporate it into your work.

In case there would ever be any doubt about Dr. Sheldon Cooper's status as a nerd (which is hard enough to even imagine), one would only need to take a look at the shirts he wears on a regular basis. Over the course of The Big Bang Theory, Sheldon builds up quite the impressive wardrobe of hundreds of shirts referencing topics ranging from the scientific to rites of science fiction passage to more niche corners of nerd fandom.

Sheldon's personality and emotional maturity in particular might change a lot over the years, but his sartorial style is a relative constant in the ever-changing world of the series. Some shirts are worn more frequently than others, but there are those that stand out as a cut above the rest.

This next shirt gets to the heart of Sheldon's love for the beauty of mathematics and science alike, even when the peculiarities of both fields might not excite others as much as they do him. At first glance, the shirt is both simple and confusing: a blue tee with the number 73 in a circle.

This shirt is yet another simple but perfectly in character design fitting for Sheldon's special interests: a mustard yellow tee featuring an old-fashioned locomotive train, precisely the kind Sheldon probably most wanted to conduct.

The third season episode "The Wheaton Recurrence" finds Sheldon and friends dueling against his longtime nemesis Wil Wheaton in a bowling tournament. It's during these games that Sheldon comes up with a name for his bowling team, and a shirt to match it: The Wesley Crushers. This is a reference to Wheaton's Star Trek character and is stamped on the back of a mustard-yellow bowling shirt.

The Big Bang Theory is filled with references to plenty of mainstream nerd fare, whether Star Trek, Star Wars, Harry Potter, or countless other options. But sometimes, the series has fun with referencing lesser-known or lasting pieces of popular culture, such as this Sheldon shirt does.

This red tee features the logo of the short-lived 1980s series The Greatest American Hero. Perhaps best remembered for its theme song, "Believe It or Not," the quirky series hasn't quite held up in the pop culture consciousness in the way other superhero shows have.

Sheldon's love of television isn't just limited to sci-fi shows, as this frequently worn shirt makes clear. At first glance, it might not be obvious what this design refers to, largely it's more or less obsolete.

The red shirt design makes use of the traditional series of human development but takes things one step further as the yellow graphic design concludes with human's technological evolution into a robot.

Yet another of Sheldon's best shirts perfectly blends his favorite worlds of science, science fiction, and superheroes. Though occasionally hard to distinguish due to the lightness of the print on the dark blue background, this design is an homage to Leonardo da Vinci's Vitruvian Man.

Still in keeping with Sheldon's love of all things nerdy, this plain black tee features everyone's favorite brain-twisting toy, the Rubik's cube. But, as can be clearly seen from the vibrant rainbow puddle at the bottom, the Rubik's cube is somehow artfully melting with no clear cause.

Sheldon Cooper loves many superheroes, but from the beginning of the series, it's clear that he has a true favorite in the Flash. It makes sense, given the Flash's own background as a scientist, and Sheldon's pride in his line of work.

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