The Collatz Conjecture. Mathematics Is Deceiving at Times. by Arpita Bhattacharya Medium

Open in app
Be part of a better internet.

Get 20% off membership for a limited time
The Collatz Conjecture

Arpita Bhattacharya · Follow
6 min read · Nov 28, 2022
Listen Share More
Mathematics is deceiving at times.
While you look at a problem, you think

“oh! That must be very simple to solve!”
But, as you begin solving it, all these
obstacles and hidden complexities start
appearing getting us stuck. There are
many such problems in number theory
and various other topics in mathematics.
One such problem is the “Collatz

Conjecture”.
Looking at this problem, great

mathematicians such as Paul Erdős had
said, “Mathematics may not be ready for
such problems.”
And, Jeffery Lagarias claimed that “This

is an extraordinarily difficult problem,
completely out of reach of present day
mathematics.”
But the conjecture is seems so simple

that anyone can understand the problem.
The conjecture is as follows,
First take any positive integer greater

than 1, say n. If the number is even,
divide it by 2 and if it is odd, multiply it
by 3 and add 1. Then check whether the
result is even or odd and repeat the
respective process using the result. The
conjecture is that if we take any positive
integer greater than 1, and repeat the
process endlessly, we will always end
with 1.
We can mathematically write the

conjecture as,
What will happen if starting with any

initial number we keep iterating the
process using the above rules? Does it
grow to infinity? Or does it become
extremely small?
Let’s take some examples to see what

happens.
Say, n = 5.
Thus, as it’s odd, the result would be, 3(5)

+ 1 = 16.
We then use the result, which is 16,

being even, we do 16/2 = 8. Thus, it goes
as,
5 → 16 → 8 → 4 → 2 → 1.
Then, as 1 is odd, we multiply it by 3 and

add 1, we get 4 which leads to 1 again. (4
→ 2 → 1)
Now, if we take n = 14.
So, 14 is even. Thus, 14/2 = 7, 7 is odd,

thus, 3(7) + 1 = 22, next is 22/2 = 11……
14 → 7 → 22 → 11 → 34 → 17 → 52 → 26 → 13
→ 40 → 20 → 10 → 5 → 16 → 8 → 4 → 2 → 1.
Again, 1 is odd. So, we multiply it by 3

and add 1, we get 4 which leads to 1
again. (4 → 2 → 1)
We observe that, no matter what positive

number you would take, we are always
ending up at 1. You can take a few more
positive integers and try it out yourself.
Let’s type a Python code for the

conjecture so that the computer can do
all the calculations and we don’t have to
manually struggle with it.
Python code:
def collatz(n):
while n > 1:
print(n, end=' ')
if (n % 2):
# n is odd
n = 3*n + 1
else:
# n is even
n = n//2
print(1, end='')
n = int(input('Enter n: '))
print('Sequence: ', end='')
collatz(n)
After reading about the conjecture, I

have a few questions in mind. What
would happen if the number is
negative?? Or what would happen if we
start with a fraction??Can we have a
pattern with these numbers??
Let’s find out.
What would happen if the number is

negative?
First, let’s try by taking an example.
Say, n = -3. The series will be,
-3 → -8 → -4 → -2 → -1 → -2 → -1 → -2 → -1…..
It becomes a never ending loop!
Thus, by some amount trial and error

using the python code above, I found out
that negative numbers end up in usually
3 types of loops.
One of them is what I got above. The

second is when we get -5, or any of the
following numbers in the series,
….. -5 → -14 → -7 → -20 → -10 → -5 ……
And third is when we get -17 or any of

the following numbers,
…..-17 → -50 → -25 → -74 → -37 → -110 → -55

→ -164 → -82 → -41 → -122 → -61 → -182 →
-91 → -272 → -136 → -68 → -34 → -17…..
What if we try this conjecture with fractions,

that is, when 0<n<1 or -1<n<0?
Well, fractions cannot be classified as
odd or even because they are not whole
numbers. They are only parts of
numbers.
For example, you can’t say that the

fraction 1/3 is odd because the
denominator is an odd number. You
could just as well write that same
fraction as 2/6, in which the
denominator is an even number.
The terms “even number” and “odd

number” are only used for whole
numbers and their additive inverses.
Thus, this conjecture cannot be applied

to fractions.
Can we have a pattern with these numbers?

People have tried approximately 2^60
numbers using this conjecture but have
always ended up at 1.
The collatz conjecture problem, also

known as the hailstone problem, is mind
boggling as it’s hard to find any definite
pattern in the problem. There is no real
proof for this conjecture, at least not yet,
and hence drives many mathematicians
crazy. There is this randomness in the
problem which makes it simple, yet so
complicated. Many mathematicians
believe that to find out a proof for this
problem, a completely new kind of
mathematics needs to be invented.
But this simple problem has given quite

a few interesting results.
Well, we know that all the positive

integers through this conjecture end up
at 1. Instead of writing different threads
for different chain of numbers
connected with the conjecture equation,
we connect all the threads and chains to
each other which finally connects to one
main branch that finally leads to 1. This
forms a tree like structure. The following
diagram would make it much clear.
The next diagram shows a complicated

tree that can be formed if we take larger
numbers.
Now if, while forming the tree, we say

that we’ll bend the line slightly anti-
clockwise if the next number is even and
clockwise if it is odd. Then, we’ll get rid
of the numbers and just make it as
simple lines. We would now get a bent
branched structure as drawn below.
In the diagram below, it includes every

number less than 10,000. It forms this
amazing seaweed like structure. It’s
amazing how something so simple forms
something so beautiful and close to
nature.
Another interesting way to look at it is as

a fractal.
The Collatz map can be viewed as the

restriction to the integers of the smooth
real and complex map. The following is a
simplified equation for the collatz
conjecture in a complex plane.
Iterating the above optimised equation

in the complex plane produces the
following collatz fractal.
Hence, the collatz is conjecture is one

such very simple, but, very interesting
problem that have astonished many
mathematicians till date. It is one of of
the many unsolved problems in
mathematics. People have compiled
records of numbers in millions, but,
have not yet come across a positive
integer that does not end in 1.
37 1
Mathematics Math
Collatz Conjecture Conjecture
37 1
Follow
Written by Arpita Bhattacharya

112 Followers
21 | Math Graduate from Warwick Uni | STEM

Enthusiast | Dancer | Sitarist | Insta: @rpita623 |
LinkedIn:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/arpitabhattacharya/
More from Arpita Bhattacharya
Arpita Bhattacharya
Legendre’s Formula: A
Mathematical Breakthrough
Area of Math: Number Theory.
Apr 20, 2023 57 1
Arpita Bhattacharya
How to win a million dollars from

Faber & Faber?
Area of Math: Number Theory.
Apr 10, 2023 3
Arpita Bhattacharya
Tabular Integration: Faster &

accurate way to solve repeated…
integration by
Objective of this parts
article: To explain a
technique to super-boost one’s speed and…
Dec 8, 2022 12 1
Arpita Bhattacharya
Cutting Through the Confusion:

How Dedekind Cuts Build the Real…
Numbers
When we learn about numbers in school, we
typically start with the natural numbers (1, 2,…
Apr 24, 2023 65 1
See all from Arpita Bhattacharya
Recommended from Medium
Quaternions, Hamilton, fractal, beauty
Kasper Müller in Cantor’s Paradise
The Discovery and Beauty of

Numbers in 4 Dimensions
The story of the quaternions
Aug 26, 2022 604 8

The Collatz Conjecture. Mathematics Is Deceiving at Times. by Arpita Bhattacharya Medium

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

The Collatz Conjecture. Mathematics Is Deceiving at Times. by Arpita Bhattacharya Medium

Uploaded by

Document Information

Original Title

Copyright

Available Formats

Share this document

Share or Embed Document

Sharing Options

Did you find this document useful?

Is this content inappropriate?

Copyright:

Available Formats

The Collatz Conjecture. Mathematics Is Deceiving at Times. by Arpita Bhattacharya Medium

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

Open in app

Be part of a better internet.

The Collatz Conjecture

Listen Share More

Mathematics is deceiving at times.

While you look at a problem, you think

One such problem is the “Collatz

Looking at this problem, great

And, Jeffery Lagarias claimed that “This

But the conjecture is seems so simple

The conjecture is as follows,

First take any positive integer greater

We can mathematically write the

What will happen if starting with any

Let’s take some examples to see what

Thus, as it’s odd, the result would be, 3(5)

We then use the result, which is 16,

Then, as 1 is odd, we multiply it by 3 and

Now, if we take n = 14.

So, 14 is even. Thus, 14/2 = 7, 7 is odd,

Again, 1 is odd. So, we multiply it by 3

We observe that, no matter what positive

Let’s type a Python code for the

print(n, end=' ')

print('Sequence: ', end='')

After reading about the conjecture, I

Let’s find out.

What would happen if the number is

Say, n = -3. The series will be,

It becomes a never ending loop!

Thus, by some amount trial and error

One of them is what I got above. The

….. -5 → -14 → -7 → -20 → -10 → -5 ……

And third is when we get -17 or any of

…..-17 → -50 → -25 → -74 → -37 → -110 → -55

What if we try this conjecture with fractions,

For example, you can’t say that the

The terms “even number” and “odd

Thus, this conjecture cannot be applied

Can we have a pattern with these numbers?

The collatz conjecture problem, also

But this simple problem has given quite

Well, we know that all the positive

The next diagram shows a complicated

Now if, while forming the tree, we say

In the diagram below, it includes every

Another interesting way to look at it is as

The Collatz map can be viewed as the

Iterating the above optimised equation

Hence, the collatz is conjecture is one

Collatz Conjecture Conjecture

Written by Arpita Bhattacharya

21 | Math Graduate from Warwick Uni | STEM

More from Arpita Bhattacharya

Apr 20, 2023 57 1

How to win a million dollars from

Apr 10, 2023 3

Tabular Integration: Faster &

Cutting Through the Confusion: