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Will Jagy
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Very different aspect, but interesting to me at least. The odd index Fibonacci numbers are one branch in the Markov tree,

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Markov_number

http://oeis.org/A002559

Taking notation from the book by Cusick and Flahive, we have the Markov (or Markoff) equation $$m^2 + m_1^2 + m_2^2 = 3 m m_1 m_2,$$ where it follows from the process that generates the tree that $$ \gcd(m, m_1) = \gcd (m_1, m_2) = \gcd(m_2,m) = 1.$$ Then C+H define $u$ on pages 10 and 18 as the smallest positive integer such that $ \pm m_1 u \equiv m_2 \pmod m.$ Then we define an integer $v$ by $mv = u^2 + 1.$

It follows from $mv = u^2 + 1$ that every Markov number is represented, and primitively, as the sum of two squares.

At some point I had a proof (well, I think I did) that the Markov discriminants $$ 9 m^2 - 4 $$ were also the sum of two squares, although sometimes not primitively because these are divisible by 4 when $m$ is even. I cannot recall the proof but it was short and elementary.

PROOF: That was fun. We have $ m^2 + m_1^2 + m_2^2 = 3 m m_1 m_2$ in positive integers. We know from $ v m = u^2 + 1$ that $m$ is not divisible by any prime $q \equiv 3 \pmod 4,$ simply because any $k^2 +1$ is never divisible by such a prime, since $(-1|q)=-1.$ Now, take $\delta = \pm 1,$ and assume $$ 3 m \equiv 2 \delta \pmod q.$$ Then $ m^2 + m_1^2 + m_2^2 \equiv 2 \delta m_1 m_2 \pmod q,$ so then $ m^2 + m_1^2 - 2 \delta m_1 m_2 + m_2^2 \equiv 0 \pmod q,$ finally $$ m^2 + (m_1 - \delta m_2)^2 \equiv 0 \pmod q.$$ But this is a contradiction, as $m$ is not divisible by $q.$ So, in fact $ 3 m \neq \pm 2 \pmod q,$ then $9 m^2 - 4 \neq 0 \pmod q$ for any prime $q \equiv 3 \pmod 4.$

Very different aspect, but interesting to me at least. The odd index Fibonacci numbers are one branch in the Markov tree,

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Markov_number

http://oeis.org/A002559

Taking notation from the book by Cusick and Flahive, we have the Markov (or Markoff) equation $$m^2 + m_1^2 + m_2^2 = 3 m m_1 m_2,$$ where it follows from the process that generates the tree that $$ \gcd(m, m_1) = \gcd (m_1, m_2) = \gcd(m_2,m) = 1.$$ Then C+H define $u$ on pages 10 and 18 as the smallest positive integer such that $ \pm m_1 u \equiv m_2 \pmod m.$ Then we define an integer $v$ by $mv = u^2 + 1.$

It follows from $mv = u^2 + 1$ that every Markov number is represented, and primitively, as the sum of two squares.

At some point I had a proof (well, I think I did) that the Markov discriminants $$ 9 m^2 - 4 $$ were also the sum of two squares, although sometimes not primitively because these are divisible by 4 when $m$ is even. I cannot recall the proof but it was short and elementary.

Very different aspect, but interesting to me at least. The odd index Fibonacci numbers are one branch in the Markov tree,

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Markov_number

http://oeis.org/A002559

Taking notation from the book by Cusick and Flahive, we have the Markov (or Markoff) equation $$m^2 + m_1^2 + m_2^2 = 3 m m_1 m_2,$$ where it follows from the process that generates the tree that $$ \gcd(m, m_1) = \gcd (m_1, m_2) = \gcd(m_2,m) = 1.$$ Then C+H define $u$ on pages 10 and 18 as the smallest positive integer such that $ \pm m_1 u \equiv m_2 \pmod m.$ Then we define an integer $v$ by $mv = u^2 + 1.$

It follows from $mv = u^2 + 1$ that every Markov number is represented, and primitively, as the sum of two squares.

At some point I had a proof (well, I think I did) that the Markov discriminants $$ 9 m^2 - 4 $$ were also the sum of two squares, although sometimes not primitively because these are divisible by 4 when $m$ is even. I cannot recall the proof but it was short and elementary.

PROOF: That was fun. We have $ m^2 + m_1^2 + m_2^2 = 3 m m_1 m_2$ in positive integers. We know from $ v m = u^2 + 1$ that $m$ is not divisible by any prime $q \equiv 3 \pmod 4,$ simply because any $k^2 +1$ is never divisible by such a prime, since $(-1|q)=-1.$ Now, take $\delta = \pm 1,$ and assume $$ 3 m \equiv 2 \delta \pmod q.$$ Then $ m^2 + m_1^2 + m_2^2 \equiv 2 \delta m_1 m_2 \pmod q,$ so then $ m^2 + m_1^2 - 2 \delta m_1 m_2 + m_2^2 \equiv 0 \pmod q,$ finally $$ m^2 + (m_1 - \delta m_2)^2 \equiv 0 \pmod q.$$ But this is a contradiction, as $m$ is not divisible by $q.$ So, in fact $ 3 m \neq \pm 2 \pmod q,$ then $9 m^2 - 4 \neq 0 \pmod q$ for any prime $q \equiv 3 \pmod 4.$

Source Link
Will Jagy
  • 25.7k
  • 2
  • 65
  • 121

Very different aspect, but interesting to me at least. The odd index Fibonacci numbers are one branch in the Markov tree,

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Markov_number

http://oeis.org/A002559

Taking notation from the book by Cusick and Flahive, we have the Markov (or Markoff) equation $$m^2 + m_1^2 + m_2^2 = 3 m m_1 m_2,$$ where it follows from the process that generates the tree that $$ \gcd(m, m_1) = \gcd (m_1, m_2) = \gcd(m_2,m) = 1.$$ Then C+H define $u$ on pages 10 and 18 as the smallest positive integer such that $ \pm m_1 u \equiv m_2 \pmod m.$ Then we define an integer $v$ by $mv = u^2 + 1.$

It follows from $mv = u^2 + 1$ that every Markov number is represented, and primitively, as the sum of two squares.

At some point I had a proof (well, I think I did) that the Markov discriminants $$ 9 m^2 - 4 $$ were also the sum of two squares, although sometimes not primitively because these are divisible by 4 when $m$ is even. I cannot recall the proof but it was short and elementary.