Exercise · ZW-STIRLING-NUMBER-OF-THE-SECOND-KIND-005 · ★☆☆ Basic

What is S(n,k) when k>n?

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Explanation

You cannot form k nonempty blocks from fewer than k elements, so the count is zero. The value n describes the number of elements, not the number of partitions.

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Review the concept: Stirling number of the second kind

The Stirling number of the second kind S(n,k) counts the partitions of a set of n elements into k nonempty, indistinguishable blocks.

\[S(n,k)=kS(n-1,k)+S(n-1,k-1)\]

More practice problems: stirling number of the second kind

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