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Nehmo
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Join Date: Jun 2010
Posts: 21

Base 12 or Base 8? Is It Too Late?

08/02/2010 4:44 PM

My friends in math suggest we, and I mean everybody, convert form a base 10 number system to a base 8, or perhaps 12.

Argument for base 12 http://www.rattlesnake.com/notions/base-12.html

Something on 8 http://www.octomatics.org/

I know the US is so stubborn it has trouble making the comparatively small measurement convert to metric, but perhaps it's not too late. If it really is more efficient to use something other than 10, well, let's do it.

~~ Nehmo
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Pathfinder Tags: base 10 base 12 base 8 change Conversion math metric
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Tornado
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#99

Re: Base 12 or Base 8? Is It Too Late?

08/08/2010 1:32 PM

That dolt said he was going to leave, but obviously he has stuck around and phonily voted a few more OTs.

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redfred
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#100
In reply to #99

Re: Base 12 or Base 8? Is It Too Late?

08/08/2010 1:45 PM

Let the ones with small minds go.

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Anonymous Poster
#102
In reply to #100

Re: Base 12 or Base 8? Is It Too Late?

08/08/2010 2:12 PM

then why are you still here, you sad little runt
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#101
In reply to #99

Re: Base 12 or Base 8? Is It Too Late?

08/08/2010 2:11 PM

oh no, imaging the hurt of being voted OT. Sad sad little people.
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redfred
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#103

Re: Base 12 or Base 8? Is It Too Late?

08/08/2010 3:00 PM

There is one interesting remnant that different cultures once used different numbering systems. Look to the words we use for numbers. In English there are the unique number names of eleven and twelve. But for 13 English makes the linguistic contraction of three and ten, thirteen. In Spanish this transition occurs in moving from 15 (quince) to 16 (dieciséis). Now I think that the Babylonians did work in a base 60 system but their cuneiform symbols do not convert easily to the CR4 editor. I wonder if any of the more multilingual members could add to my two examples?

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Tornado
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#104
In reply to #103

Re: Base 12 or Base 8? Is It Too Late?

08/08/2010 5:54 PM

Excuse my French.

The numbers up to 69 are in reasonable blocks of ten, but 70 is the combined "soixante-dix" (60+10), then "soixante-onze" (60+11), etc. Then you get to 80 = quatre-vingt (4x20).

Lest we Anglophones gloat, we still have our "fourscore and seven years ago."

On that note, I recommend Edward Tufte's pamphlet, "The Cognitive Deficiencies of PowerPoint." In it, he feeds the Gettysburg Address into the PowerPoint autochart function. The result is a side-splitting hoot, and there are other gems in the visual presentation of information.

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Andy Germany
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#105
In reply to #104

Re: Base 12 or Base 8? Is It Too Late?

08/09/2010 8:33 AM

You wrote:-

Lest we Anglophones gloat, we still have our "fourscore and seven years ago."

Which is correct but seldom used nowadays except maybe by the Amish folk, whereas in Germany, the counting EVEN TODAY is still on the same/similar level:-

24 = Vier und zwanzig = 4 and twenty = backwards.

Under 20 is OK and 100 to 120 etc., but then you are back to the mixed almost backwards versions again:-

121 = Ein hundert, ein und zwanzig = One hundred, one and twenty = forwards and backwards.

It took me years to follow a telephone number accurately over the telephone!!!

Time in German is also a bit funny for me in certain situations:-

Also "Halb zehn" = "Half ten" = 09:30........I arrive an hour late!!Having 10:30 in mind!!!

And "Dreiviertel 10" = "Three quarters of ten" = 09:45.....a method we seldom use in English today as far as I am aware.

Its quite logical really, but does catch me out sometimes.....

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