Stirling numbers of the second kind count the number of ways to partition a set of n elements into k nonempty subsets. They are denoted by or . The sum
is the nth Bell number.
Using falling factorials, we can characterize the Stirling numbers of the second kind by the identity
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Famous quotes containing the words stirling, numbers and/or kind:
“Oh, if thy pride did not our joys control,
What world of loving wonders shouldst thou see!
For if I saw thee once transformed in me,
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—William Alexander, Earl O Stirling (1580?–1640)
“Green grow the rushes-O
What is your one-O?”
—Unknown. Carol of the Numbers (l. 2–3)
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—William Shakespeare (1564–1616)