Number System and Bases
Number system is a way to represent numbers. I know that the topic of different number system and bases may seem rather pointless to you. However, the rise of computers and computer graphics has increased the need for knowledge of how to work with different (non-decimal) base systems.
The customary number system that we are used to using is the base-10 number system (decimal system), which uses 0 through 9 as digits. Other common number systems include binary systems (ones and zeroes) and hexadecimal systems (the numbers zero through nine, followed by the letters A through F).
Do you know why it is called Decimal number system? Yeah, right! the root word ‘deci ‘means 10. We are probably using base 10 because we have 10 fingers. If human’s fingers were 8, we would have most likely chosen a number system with base 8.
In a Base 2 number system which is pivotal to computer programming, only two binary digits exist (0 and 1).
No doubt, conversion of number bases can be tricky or confusing at first but its fairly simple when you understand the basics. So, before we dive into the topic, we will first look at the evolution of numbers. What are numbers and how did they come about?
You can click any of the links below to learn a specific topic in number systems or click curriculum if you are using a desktop or the cube icon above if you are using a mobile device to view lessons sequentially.
This course provides explanation of the following topics and questions as simple as possible with examples. Hopefully it helps you!
Conversion of Numbers from Base 10 to Other Bases
How to convert from one base to another?
