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Assume a set of numbers {2, 3, 4} where n is 3, or the size of the set.

Is there a way I can calculate the total unique composites that could be produced from pairs in that set?

The total number of unique pairs is (n(n-1))/2, but this does not necessarily produce unique products - for example if we assume the set {2,3,4,5,6,7,8}.

Asaf Karagila
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cardycakes
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  • What are we assuming about your set? What does it mean to produce a composite from a pair in a set? Are you looking for the most number of unique products of pairs? In that case if you let the numbers all be diff primes, then all the products of pairs will be unique. – Eric Dec 07 '21 at 04:15
  • We are assuming the set is any number of integers (primes or not). So for example {2, 3, 4} produces [2 * 3 = 6, 2 * 4 = 8, 3 * 4 = 12], all of which are unique. But the set of {2, 3, 4, 6} will produce 12 twice. – cardycakes Dec 07 '21 at 09:14
  • “Assume a set” is not proper math language. You mean “Consider a set”. Similarly “produce from pairs” is ambiguous. You could add, multiply, subtract, etc. pairs of numbers to produce a number. What exactly do you want? Do you want an algorithm to get the number of unique products, a set that gives the most/fewest unique products, or something else entirely? Improve your question. – Eric Dec 07 '21 at 16:34
  • Thanks for the tips. I mean multiply (I thought "product" meant that). – cardycakes Dec 07 '21 at 22:05

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