Is 100! + 1 a Prime Number ========================== Here's one I've found on Quora, but let ChatGPT solve it there. 100! is such a big number that the answer to the question is "probably no". If it appears as an exam, it is probebly the second part if a question, and the first is: Prove Wilson's theorem. Wilson's theorem states that. For any natural number n>1: n is a prime number iff and only if (n-1)!≡-1 mod n Both directions can be proven easily: First direction: Suppose that n is a prime numbers. Then each number m in 1,2,...,n-1 has a reciprocal k in 1,2,...,n-1 such that mk!≡1 mod n because n is a prime number. You can use Fermat's little theorem to find the reciprocal. Now, up to two numbers in 1,2,...n-1 are their own reciprocals: 1 and n-1. The proof is that if A,B are in 1,2...n-1 and n divides A²-B² Then n | (A - B)(A + B) and because n is a prime number n divides either A-B or A+B In other words A = B or (n-A)=B in particular, when A² ≡ B² ≡ 1 mod n For n=2, there is nothing to prove. Otherwise, each of the numbers 2,3,...,n-2 can be paired with its reciprocal, thus (n - 2)! ≡ 1 mod n ⇒ (n - 1)!=(n - 1)(n - 2)! ≡ -1 mod n Second direction: Suppose (n - 1)! ≡-1 mod n, but n is composite. Then n has a divisor d which is other from 1 and n. Thus, n is in 2,3,...,n-1. Thus, d | (n - 1)! But (n - 1)! ≡ -1 mod n means that there exists an integer k such that: (n - 1)! = kn -1 ⇒ (n - 1)! + 1 = kn and d divides n, thus d | (n - 1)! + 1 (1) d also divides (n - 1)! and with (1): d | 1 = d = 1 which contradicts our hypothesis that n is composite. Thus, n is a prime number, and Wi;son's theorem is proven! ======================================================== Let us now prove using Wilson's theorem that 100!+1 is composite: 101 is a prime number, thus, according to Wilson't theorem: 100! ≡ -1 mod 101 which means that there exists an integr k, such that: 100! = 101k - 1 ⇒ 100! + 1 = 101k and k>1 because 100!>101 ⇒ k>1 Thus, 100! + 1 = 101k is composite.