New harmonic number identities with applications (Q624824)

After having introduced the multiple harmonic sums (MHS), the author proves the explicit formulas for the sum of products of homogeneous MHS \[ \sum_{k=1}^{n}\prod_{j=1}^{r} H_k (\left \{ 1 \right \}^{\lambda_j}) \] when \(\sum_{j=1}^{r} \lambda_j \leq 5\) and he uses them to study two congruences modulo a power of a prime. The first is an extension of a congruence found by \textit{T.-X. Cai} and \textit{A. Granville} [Acta Math. Sin., Engl. Ser. 18, No. 2, 277--288 (2002; Zbl 1026.11005)] and further refined by \textit{M. Chamberland} and \textit{K. Dilcher} [J. Number Theory 120, No. 2, 349--371 (2006; Zbl 1139.11013)] and by \textit{H. Pan} [Int. J. Mod. Math. 4, No. 1, 87--93 (2009; Zbl 1247.11025)]. The second is an improvement modulo \(p^4\) of a congruence modulo \(p^3\) provided by \textit{Z.-W. Sun} and \textit{R. Tauraso} [Adv. Appl. Math. 45, No. 1, 125--148 (2010; Zbl 1231.11021)]. The author also generalizes a notable work by \textit{Z.-W. Sun} [Proc. Am. Math. Soc. 140, No. 2, 415--428 (2012; Zbl 1271.11021)] which established some formulas appeared in \textit{B. C. Berndt} [Ramanujan's notebooks. Part I. New York etc.: Springer-Verlag (1985; Zbl 0555.10001)]. Beyond a versatile application of the \textit{stuffle product}, in the proof the authors employs the Wolstenholme's theorem, the Bernoulli numbers, an identity by \textit{T. B. Staver} [Norsk Mat. Tidsskr. 29, 97--103 (1947; Zbl 0030.28901)], some results on the MHS supplied by \textit{M. E. Hoffman} [``Quasi-symmetric functions and mod p multiple harmonic sums'', \url{arXiv:math/0401319}], by \textit{Z.-W. Sun} [Discrete Appl. Math. 105, No. 1--3, 193--223 (2000; Zbl 0990.11008)], by \textit{J.-Q. Zhao} [Int. J. Number Theory 4, No. 1, 73--106 (2008; Zbl 1218.11005)] and by the same \textit{R. Tauraso} [J. Number Theory 130, No. 12, 2639--2649 (2010; Zbl 1208.11027)]. Although not cited in the text, the paper by \textit{R. Tauraso} and \textit{J.-Q. Zhao} [J. Comb. Number Theory 2, No. 2, 129--159 (2010; Zbl 1245.11008)] has however been inserted in the reference list, probably as a weakly related work still dealing with the MHS.