• 1rre@discuss.tchncs.de
    link
    fedilink
    arrow-up
    36
    arrow-down
    4
    ·
    1 year ago

    Those aliens have 3 fingers. A decimal system to them is like a system based on 14, 196, 2744, 38416, … would be like to us - probably worse than US Customary

    • geissi@feddit.de
      link
      fedilink
      English
      arrow-up
      19
      ·
      1 year ago

      14, 196, 2744, 38416, … would be like to us - probably worse than US Customary

      I mean if they had a base 14 numerical system then a base 14 measurement system would make perfect sense.
      Contrary to that, the US does use a decimal system for numbers while the various units in the US customary system do not have any common base.

    • joel_feila@lemmy.world
      link
      fedilink
      arrow-up
      14
      ·
      1 year ago

      humans have used base 8 count the gaps between your fingers, base 12 count the joints on 4 fingers with your thumb, and base 26 by using lots of body parts.

    • candybrie@lemmy.world
      link
      fedilink
      arrow-up
      12
      arrow-down
      1
      ·
      1 year ago

      Number of fingers doesn’t have to dictate their number system. If they’re using a decimal based number system, then a decimal based measurement system is still the logical choice.

          • 1rre@discuss.tchncs.de
            link
            fedilink
            arrow-up
            6
            arrow-down
            1
            ·
            edit-2
            1 year ago

            Base 12 is not organically common, it’s incredibly rare even with the modern counting systems we’ve discovered…

            The frequency of emergences (based on language families that use them) are: 4 ~1 time, 5 ~4 times, 6 ~3 times, 8 ~2 times, 10 ?? times, 12 ~3 times, 15 ~1 time, 20 ~9 times, 20+5 ~2 times, 23 ~1 time, 24 ~1 time, 27 ~1-2 times, 32 ~1 time, 60 ~2 times

        • betheydocrime@lemmy.world
          link
          fedilink
          arrow-up
          7
          arrow-down
          1
          ·
          1 year ago

          If we had 8 fingers, or 3 fingers, or 15 fingers, we would still be using base 10. It’s just that the value of “10” would be different each time

        • candybrie@lemmy.world
          link
          fedilink
          arrow-up
          2
          ·
          1 year ago

          Yes but (1) that isn’t the only base system humans use and (2) aliens could use a base system entirely divorced from their body parts. So number of fingers doesn’t have to dictate which base system is used.

      • 1rre@discuss.tchncs.de
        link
        fedilink
        arrow-up
        4
        arrow-down
        1
        ·
        1 year ago

        It partially does, the percentage of languages that use base 10 is nearly 100 and most that don’t use base 5 or 20… Sure there’s others (60 being the main one that still has an effect on most people’s lives) but they’re vanishingly uncommon

    • lolcatnip@reddthat.com
      link
      fedilink
      arrow-up
      2
      ·
      1 year ago

      There’s no good way to predict what base they’d actually use for their numbers, but there’s definitely nothing about 10 that makes it an obvious choice for an inter-species standard line the comic implies.

      • 1rre@discuss.tchncs.de
        link
        fedilink
        arrow-up
        2
        arrow-down
        1
        ·
        1 year ago

        3, 6 or 12 would be overwhelmingly likely though, inferring from all documented human language families

    • LiquorFan@pathfinder.social
      link
      fedilink
      arrow-up
      3
      arrow-down
      1
      ·
      1 year ago

      No, the problem with the imperial system is not what number it’s based on. The problem is that it’s not based on any number. A coherent base 14 system would be easier to use than the madness that is imperial.