system
Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:
human
Whats the usefulness of finding new bigger prime numbers?
gpt
Probably the most useful thing is the experience we gain in the hunt for the prime number. Writing programs to search for large primes is not trivial. Consider that the latest prime number is 23 million digits long. To store the number in its entirety takes about 10 Mb. People have to develop new algorithms to efficiently manipulate numbers this large. And once these algorithms have been developed they can be applied to other areas of research.

I'll also point out that the search for prime numbers helps generate interest in math. People can take part in the search at home. Some of these programs are run on home computers when they are idle. When people sign up for the programs they often do some self research to understand what their doing. This outreach aspect should not be underestimated in value.

Another point to make is the prime numbers are the building blocks of the integers. Every positive integer has a unique prime factorization. So studying the prime numbers  is an important part of number theory. Every time we discover a new prime there's a chance that it will hint at something new pattern that we have yet recognized. 

At the same same time prime numbers have some interesting properties that were learning how to exploit. Encryption is often cited, but they can also be used for random number generation, and some other things. It's hard to imagine that a 23 million digit prime being useful today, but who knows what will happen in the future as computing continues to progress and people continue to test new ideas.