How to Count on Your Fingers Using Binary Numbers
Set the rules to have each finger stands for a single binary digit.
Step-by-Step Guide
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Step 1: Set the rules to have each finger stands for a single binary digit.
Specifically (1, 2, 4, 8, ... (doubling each time)).
Using this method, you can count to 1,023 on your hands.
It takes a lot of effort, however.
This is the highest possible where each finger can only be up or down and you only use fingers (it is possible to have the orientation of the hand itself mean something or to have fingers that are up, down).
This is the highest possible because each position corresponds to a single number, and no two positions correspond to the same number.
Example 1:
The first six fingers is the number 111111base2
--> 1+2+4+8+16+32 = 63base10 ...
Example 2:
Ninety-nine is the first seven fingers with only the 1st two and last two extended is the number 1100011base2
--> 1+2+0+0+0+32+64 = 99base10 ...
Note:
The formal definition of binary uses exponents for the place values which are powers of 2 meaning based on 2n for n = 0, 1, 2, 3, ... so that is equal to 20, 21, 22, 23, ... ;
Detailed Guide
Specifically (1, 2, 4, 8, ... (doubling each time)).
Using this method, you can count to 1,023 on your hands.
It takes a lot of effort, however.
This is the highest possible where each finger can only be up or down and you only use fingers (it is possible to have the orientation of the hand itself mean something or to have fingers that are up, down).
This is the highest possible because each position corresponds to a single number, and no two positions correspond to the same number.
Example 1:
The first six fingers is the number 111111base2
--> 1+2+4+8+16+32 = 63base10 ...
Example 2:
Ninety-nine is the first seven fingers with only the 1st two and last two extended is the number 1100011base2
--> 1+2+0+0+0+32+64 = 99base10 ...
Note:
The formal definition of binary uses exponents for the place values which are powers of 2 meaning based on 2n for n = 0, 1, 2, 3, ... so that is equal to 20, 21, 22, 23, ... ;
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Peter Thomas
Brings years of experience writing about creative arts and related subjects.
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