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I've taken a class on elementary number theory (for fun), but now I wonder: was it at all useful to learn number theory for my future career in physics?

More to the point, are there any applications of elementary number theory (the kind that would be taught in a first or second undergrad-level course) in the natural sciences (especially physics, but also chem, bio, or maybe geology)?

  • @JohnRennie I don't believe this to be a duplicate. I have googled "number theory in physics" and found many of those responses, but they all seem to require graduate-level number theoretic topics (as in analytic number theory or algebraic number theory). I'm specifically asking about applications of elementary number theory. However there is a lot there so if there is a good answer to this in that question, could you please point it out? –  Jul 21 '14 at 16:44
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    I'm with @John Rennie here, it's a duplicate. The distinction between "elementary" and "analytic"/"algebraic" number theory is arbitrary, and many analytic/algebraic number theoretical theorems also possess very ugly, but correct, "elementary" proofs. – ACuriousMind Jul 21 '14 at 16:47

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