Kimberling’s golden-ratio array conjectures

Let φ=(1+5)/2\varphi=(1+\sqrt{5})/2 and, for each integer n≥1n\ge 1, define the row Rn={⌊kφn⌋:k≥1}R_n=\{\lfloor k\varphi^n\rfloor:k\ge 1\}. Kimberling's conjectures are: (1) for every n≥1n\ge 1, R2n−1∩R2n=∅R_{2n-1}\cap R_{2n}=\varnothing; (2) if the entries of R2n−1∪R2nR_{2n-1}\cup R_{2n} are arranged in increasing order and each entry is replaced by its rank in this union, then the entries originating in R2n−1R_{2n-1} form the lower Wythoff sequence {⌊kφ⌋:k≥1}\{\lfloor k\varphi\rfloor:k\ge 1\}, while those originating in R2nR_{2n} form the upper Wythoff sequence {⌊kφ2⌋:k≥1}\{\lfloor k\varphi^2\rfloor:k\ge 1\}; and (3), defining a(N)=#{n≥1:N∈Rn}a(N)=\#\{n\ge 1:N\in R_n\} for each positive integer NN, every positive integer occurs infinitely often among the values of aa, that is, ∀v≥1 ∃\forall v\ge 1\ \exists infinitely many N≥1N\ge 1 such that a(N)=va(N)=v.

References

Primary source

arXiv

Additional references

Progress summary

Refreshed
Claimed solved

An unrefereed preprint claims to settle Kimberling’s three conjectures, while leaving one computational pattern unproved.

Kimberling’s conjectures concern the classical array formed from powers of the golden ratio. The October 2026 preprint by Alex Ashburn claims results on all three conjectures, including exact information about intersections between rows.

October 2026 preprint claim

Ashburn uses Lucas-number structure and the Skolem–Bang theorem to claim proofs of the first two conjectures, a characterization of row intersections, and infinite occurrence of every positive multiplicity. The preprint presents the three conjectures as resolved, but explicitly leaves a reported computational pattern conjectural.

Current status (as of October 2026): An unrefereed preprint claims to resolve all three conjectures, but the claim is not independently verified and one computational pattern remains conjectural.

Sources

Solutions 0

No solutions have been posted yet.