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I just realized that the way we count on our fingers is great for speed and instant recognizability since we are used to thinking in base 10, but it is incredibly inferior when it comes to how hifh you can count on your fingers.

Just by switching to base 2 and using every finger as a digital bit, you can count up zo 1024 on just your fingers.

Hell, if you considered using three positions and therefore effectively utilized base 3 wystem, you could count to 59049 just using your fingers.

This shit just blows my mind.

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Discussion

An Capone 🌗 2y ago

Hell, even if you don't want to make things complicated, you can use one hand as a numerator and the other as a multiplicator and count to up to 30 while still keeping most of the speed and instant recognizability even if you internally operate in base 10, since it only requires two operatipns at most which our brains can do in a fraction of a second.

Bearetta 🐻‍❄️🇨🇿 2y ago

You mean that binary thing where everyone giggles at number 4? Yeah I know that. I acknowledge it just to let you know I'm also cool.

An Capone 🌗 2y ago

Didn't even think to think about it that way. Come to think of it, I have no idea, why 3 is somehow connected to the word "peace"

An Capone 🌗 2y ago

Or is that 12?

Bearetta 🐻‍❄️🇨🇿 2y ago

Never heard of it. But I realized I can count only to 32 on my fingers🤭 Still more than enough for me😄#binary

An Capone 🌗 2y ago

Until a while back, I though the highest you can get on your fingers is 30. How do you get 32? Do you only have one hand?

Bearetta 🐻‍❄️🇨🇿 2y ago

1-2-4-8-16 on one hand. Anything between can be counted on that combination🤔 Wait. There's more! I can count to more than 16 on one hand!

Jesus fckin Christ and they accepted me to IT on MU with this brain. #maths #it

Bearetta 🐻‍❄️🇨🇿 2y ago

I'm seriously laughing my ass off. I'm sick, it's late, I'm done😂😂😂

Darwin Award Winner 2y ago

Exactly, 12

Luke Dashjr 2y ago

It quickly gets impractical.

Tonal is a perfect fit, though

Leafophonist 2y ago

Simple addition and subtraction up to 99 using your fingers as an abacus is also amazing to me.

An Capone 🌗 2y ago

It gets impractical because we are so used to thinking in base 10 and because we are used to using fingers as a quick visual cache of sorts and not just counting to high numbers.

What is tonal though?

Luke Dashjr 2y ago

It gets impractical because the ring finger doesn't move freely and 3 states are easily confused.

https://books.google.com/books?id=aNYGAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA15

An Capone 🌗 2y ago

The ring finger moves independently enough. You dont have zo use your entire fingers. First knuckle and up is good enough.

And tecognizibility isn't (theoretically all thst different. Up. down and perpendicular are all imho unique enough to just work.

However neither is really pf any concern here. It was just a wuick brain fart, not a suggestion thst we should do it. I don't know about you. but I don't really often feel the urge to count to particularly high numberbon my fingers