Divisor 5023

Prime Number:
Yes!
Divisibility test:
The "Patrick Oglesby Test"
Test Discovered by:
Matt Parker
Date:
11/11/2024

The "Patrick Oglesby Test" for Divisibility by 5023

To determine if any number is divisible by 5023, apply the "Patrick Oglesby Test":

  1. If your number ("X") has 5 digits or more, separate the last (smallest) 4 digits from the rest. This makes two smaller numbers, call them Left and Right (note: don't add in trailing zeros to L). If there are fewer than 5 digits, L = 0 and therefore R = X.
  2. Multiply L by 46 and subtract this from R.
  3. Take that result and cross off its final digit (units). Take this new number and add 1507 times the digit you just crossed off. Call this final result "Y".
  4. Y will be much smaller than X, but we have preserved divisibility by 5023. That is, your original number is divisible by 5023 if (and only if) Y is. Now that it's much smaller, with basic knowledge of your 5023-times tables, it should be easy to visually see if Y is divisible by 5023. If the Y is still much larger than 5023, the above process can be repeated until it does reduce to within small multiples of 5023.

Easy!