$1,000,000 problem :: Gauss :: The staircase of the primes  
         
     

We can draw a graph of the function counting the number of primes: The staircase of the primes. The height above any number x on the horizontal line tells you how many primes there are less than x. For example as x runs through the numbers between 10.5 and 11.5 the graph jumps one step above the number 11 to record a new prime at 11.

 
 
 
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