Consider the numbers 13, 16, 27, and 41.
a. Which of these numbers are prime? How do you know?
b. Which of these numbers are composite? How do you know?
a. The numbers 13 and 41 are prime numbers. A prime number is a number greater than 1 that cannot be divided evenly by any other number except for 1 and itself. Since 13 and 41 cannot be divided evenly by any other number except for 1 and themselves, they are prime.
b. The numbers 16 and 27 are composite numbers. A composite number is a positive integer greater than 1 that can be divided evenly by at least one other number besides 1 and itself. Since 16 can be divided evenly by 2, 4, and 8, and 27 can be divided evenly by 3 and 9, they are composite numbers.