The Frobenius Coin Problem

Tuesday, October 24, 2017 - 12:00 to 12:50
158 Benedum Hall
Speaker Information
University of Pittsburgh

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Abstract or Additional Information

The Frobenius Coin Problem (FCP), named after mathematician Ferdinand Frobenius, is one of the oldest problems involving linear Diophantine equations. The central question is, what is the largest amount of money that cannot be attained only using coins of specific denominations?

For two coins, James Sylvester in 1884 found a formula for this famous counting question. I will present my own geometric proof of the FCP for two coins, show some results for 3 coins, and somehow this will lead to me discussing chicken nuggets.