Polynesians May Have Invented Binary Math

sciencehabit writes "How old is the binary number system? Perhaps far older than the invention of binary math in the West. The residents of a tiny Polynesian island may have been doing calculations in binary—a number system with only two digits—centuries before it was described by Gottfried Leibniz, the co-inventor of calculus, in 1703."

Comments

There were 10 types of ancient societies

[Cryacin]

Those who understood binary, and those who didn't.

Re:There were 10 types of ancient societies

[Mr D from 63]

I thought they invented polynomials.

Re:There were 10 types of ancient societies

[NoNonAlphaCharsHere]

They also used coconut shells as both bowls and for fuel. Polymorphism, if you will.

Re:There were 10 types of ancient societies

[Mateorabi]

No there are 10 types of people:
Those that understand binary
Those that don't
And those that don't realize the joke is base-3.

Re:"Discovered" would be more appropriate

[PIBM]

I'm sorry for you! If you had all of your fingers, you'd make it to 1023!

Re:"Discovered" would be more appropriate

[Anonymous Coward]

GP probably uses signed integers.

Poly?

[Tablizer]

Wouldn't that be "Binesians"?

Re:How is this news?

[JustOK]

There was a Mayan tribe that went around naked. The men used base 21 and the women base 22

Re:"Discovered" would be more appropriate

[mugnyte]

That's called thumb's-complement - still in IEEE committee, but quite handy.

Re:"Discovered" would be more appropriate

[Anonymous Coward]

So you are always negative when good looking women are around..... Sorry for you.

Dear World

[Arancaytar]

You now owe us royalties on every digital computer built in the last century. Please pay the total of one gazillion dollars to the following bank account.

-Signed, Polynesia