An Indian man with an incredible memory has recently set a new world record by memorizing 14,000 digits of Euler’s number in just 49 minutes.
According to Oddity Central, Deepu V has an extraordinary memory for numbers. He previously set a national record by memorizing 2,000 digits of the irrational number Pi faster than anyone else and claims to have memorized 500 phone numbers.
Deepu V, 33, has an extraordinary memory for numbers. (Photo: Guinness World Records).
When he heard that the world record was seeking someone to memorize the most decimal digits of Euler’s number, Deepu saw an opportunity to etch his name in the famous Guinness World Records. He dedicated four months to prepare for this challenge and broke the previous record of memorizing 10,122 digits in less than an hour.
Like Pi, Euler’s number is an irrational number. It starts with 2.71828 and continues infinitely in a non-repeating decimal sequence. To ensure that competitors do not cheat in this unique Guinness World Record attempt, participants are subjected to ear and eye tests before they start reading the digits. A single mistake in reading a decimal digit or taking more than 15 seconds to read the next digit results in disqualification.
The beginning of the Euler number sequence (also known as e). (Photo: O.C).
However, Deepu was so confident in his “table” memorization method that he was undeterred by the strict rules for setting the record.
“In a table, there are 10 columns and 20 rows. I added 5 digits to each column, so in a single column, there is a full row containing 50 numbers. And with 20 rows on a page, there will be a total of 1,000 digits. Similarly, in 14 pages, I can memorize 14,000 digits,” the 33-year-old man explained his memorization method to Guinness World Records.
During the four months of preparation for this challenging feat, Deepu memorized 250 digits each day from Monday to Thursday, using the remaining three days of the week to solidify all the new information in his memory. To ensure he was ready, he sometimes recorded himself reciting the decimal digits of Euler to catch any mistakes.
All his efforts paid off, as Deepu ultimately broke the previous Guinness World Record of memorizing 10,122 decimal digits of Euler’s number, successfully recalling no fewer than 14,000 decimal digits in 49 minutes.
