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Claim. Let S(N)S(N) be the number of distinct values of ∑k≤Nεk/k\sum_{k\le N}\varepsilon_k/k with εk∈{0,1}\varepsilon_k\in\{0,1\} and let log⁡j\log_j be the jj-fold iterated natural logarithm. For r≥1r\ge1 and log⁡2rN≥1\log_{2r}N\ge1,

log⁡S(N) ≤ Nlog⁡rNlog⁡N∏j=3rlog⁡jN.\log S(N)\ \le\ \frac{N\log_rN}{\log N}\prod_{j=3}^{r}\log_jN .

This is Theorem 3 of the paper (p. 610), in the form of its introduction (p. 598) and of the site's page for Problem 320. The proof splits {1,…,N}\{1,\ldots,N\} by the presence of a prime factor above N/log⁡NN/\log N and recurses on rr. The same paper's Theorem 2 (p. 603) gives the lower bound log⁡S(N)≥1eNlog⁡N∏j=3rlog⁡jN\log S(N)\ge\frac1e\frac{N}{\log N}\prod_{j=3}^r\log_jN under the same condition; it is weaker than the 1975 bound of Bleicher and Erdős's Corollary 3 and is recorded here.

Covers. An upper bound for log⁡S(N)\log S(N). The condition log⁡2rN≥1\log_{2r}N\ge1 allows a depth rr of at most about half the depth at which the iterated logarithm becomes bounded, and the extra factor log⁡rN\log_rN is then a tower over the remaining iterated logarithms, so the bound exceeds the order of magnitude Nlog⁡N∏j=3klog⁡jN\frac{N}{\log N}\prod_{j=3}^k\log_jN with log⁡kN=O(1)\log_kN=O(1) by an unbounded factor. The upper bound of that order is Young, Zhu and Luo's accepted claim.

Depends on. No page of this wiki; the theorem rests on the paper's own lemmas.

Acceptance. Refereed: M. N. Bleicher and P. Erdős, Denominators of Egyptian fractions II, Illinois J. Math. 20 (1976), no. 4, 598--613, DOI 10.1215/ijm/1256049650; the issue is dated 1 December 1976 in the Crossref record, the date this page carries. The proofs are not verified by this corpus.