What does 'chunked down number' mean?

[mesa]

I have been asking around campus to find software for checking 'gigantic' primes and this term popped up in my inbox today

"chunked down number'

So what in software language is a 'chunked down number'? They were concerned if using Java that this might be a problem for prime verification of gigantic values.

 

[Simon Bridge]

"Chunking down" is a descriptive term for breaking a large task into smaller parts for ease of analysis.
See: reductionism.

Example of chunking down in C++
http://stackoverflow.com/questions/19042374/how-do-i-optimize-improve-upon-this-hash-function

 

[mesa]

So reductionism is a way of speeding up the program by simplifying each task that has to be performed and therefore will reduce the number of cycles per operation. The downside being it could result in erroneous outputs?

The last time we played with these the programmer sped things up by reducing witnesses but didn't mention chunking down although it seems it would have been part of his work.

 

[Simon Bridge]

No - reductionism is a general mindset - which is why it's an -ism.
The phrase "Chunking down" to describe the process of dividing a task into smaller bits seems to be fashionable.
ifaik it has no formal definition and is used across many fields.

Another example of chunking down is if you've ever done a 4x4 rubik's cube? There's a stage in the solution where you turn the cube in blocks of 4 faces (which is 7 sub-cubes).

It would describe anywhere you handle lots of data in chunks.

 

[mesa]

The phrase "Chunking down" to describe the process of dividing a task into smaller bits seems to be fashionable.
ifaik it has no formal definition and is used across many fields.

Okay, so this is not usually a necessary step when writing code. I now have a program and am working with one of our campus Professors to get it streamlined for use. It looks as if there is going to be a steep learning curve ahead...

On another note, I like your Rubik's cube analogy.