How should 10 to be pronounced?

[symbolipoint]

How is 10 supposed to be pronounced? I do not mean, "ten". I mean the binary number written as 10.

Is it to be , "two", or "one zero"? Something else maybe, using a modifying description before saying the word?

 

[jackjack2025]

How is 10 supposed to be pronounced? I do not mean, "ten". I mean the binary number written as 10.

Is it to be , "two", or "one zero"? Something else maybe, using a modifying description before saying the word?

Two in Base two

 

[Mark44]

Is it to be , "two", or "one zero"?

"one zero"

Two in Base two

The only digits in binary (base-2) are zero and one. There's no digit for "two."

 

[Hornbein]

How is 10 supposed to be pronounced? I do not mean, "ten". I mean the binary number written as 10.

Is it to be , "two", or "one zero"? Something else maybe, using a modifying description before saying the word?

Onzer. Ten is onzeronzer.

 

[jackjack2025]

"one zero"
The only digits in binary (base-2) are zero and one. There's no digit for "two."

The problem is that if you say one zero, it is unclear what you mean. Do you mean ten, do you mean one-zero, do you mean two in base two? Do you mean something else?

How I wrote it is clear. Let's assume we live in Base two. How to express the number two in that world? 10. Two in base 2. The fact that two is not a digit in Base 2 is irrelevant.

 

[Mark44]

How is 10 supposed to be pronounced? I do not mean, "ten". I mean the binary number written as 10.

The problem is that if you say one zero, it is unclear what you mean. Do you mean ten, do you mean one-zero, do you mean two in base two? Do you mean something else?

@symbolipoint explicitly asked about the binary number 10 and how it should be pronounced. Since the context is clearly binary numbers, not decimal numbers, $10_2$ corresponds to $2_{10}$. How is that unclear? He was not asking about the decimal number ten.

Two in Base two

How would you pronounce $10100001_2$? Would you convert this binary number to decimal in your head or just read off the binary digits from left to right?

How I wrote it is clear. Let's assume we live in Base two. How to express the number two in that world?

As "one zero," as I already said. Counting in binary numbers goes like this: zero, one, one zero, one one, one zero zero, etc. The only numerals you have to work with are zero and one, so numbers larger than one are composed of a combination of zeros and ones.

 

[jackjack2025]

How would you pronounce $10100001_2$? Would you convert this binary number to decimal in your head or just read off the binary digits from left to right?



[/QUOTE]
Yes, 81 in Base 2

 

[Mark44]

Better check your mental arithmetic. Also, maybe you should learn how to use the quote feature better.

 

[jackjack2025]

Better check your mental arithmetic. Also, maybe you should learn how to use the quote feature better.

damnit. That why we should just use 0's and 1's :)

 

[Rive]

"one zero"

One-o, for short. Like the one in short.

 

[DaveC426913]

How would you pronounce $10100001_2$?

I think this is the litmus test.

I would pronounce 10100001 as "one-zero-one-zero ... zero-zero-zero-one".

Thus, "10" is pronounced "one-zero".

Whether or not a number is ambiguous in the absence of adequate context is an issue that is always present and debateable, but is immaterial to the pronunciation of what is asked for, above.

Note too, by the way, that it is still correct in the absense of any context. Which makes it extra correct.


[EDIT] I'm glad I could show up 3 months later, raise this decaying corpse from the dead, and settle it for poster who is no longer with us.

 

[symbolipoint]

.... But I am still with us.

 

[DaveC426913]

.... But I am still with us.

Well, oops.

I thought jackjack was the OP. Most humble apologies.

Fixed it.

 

[martinbn]

How is 100 base 10 called? It is a hundred. So why is it a problem for 10 base 2 to be called two?

 

[phinds]

How is 100 base 10 called? It is a hundred. So why is it a problem for 10 base 2 to be called two?

Because in English "two" means 2 base 10. If you want to talk about 10 base 2 you need to be specific that that is what you are talking about, unless there is a clear context that implies you are in base 2.

 

[martinbn]

Because in English "two" means 2 base 10. If you want to talk about 10 base 2 you need to be specific that that is what you are talking about, unless there is a clear context that implies you are in base 2.

I disagree. Two means the number two, which is independent of any representation.

 

[phinds]

Fair point, but if you say "two" to the average person, how many of them are going to think "10" vs how many will think 2? Yes, I KNOW they are the same thing but the representation does matter.

 

[symbolipoint]

I disagree. Two means the number two, which is independent of any representation.

I agree with @phinds. His explanation and one or two of the other members' posts were helpful in understanding original posted question. Obtainer and expresser must be clear which number system is being used (number BASE) so they know which kind of terminology to use.

 

[BillTre]

There is confusion here between a number line designation (second number from zero), the digits involved (ones, zeros, and twos), and the base system which can change the digits to designate the value (two).

Spelling all this out will make things clear, but make things more complicated and less fun to discuss (if you are not concerned about clarity).

Here is a relevant non-spoken joke:
There are 10 kinds of people, those that understand binary and those that don't.

 

[Rive]

Because in English "two" means 2 base 10.

It is a bit messy, but I think the exact meaning is more about this digit '2', with the base only assumed if used as number.
Can be used to describe numbers with only a base above two.

Could be worse, though...

 

[DEvens]

There are 10 types of people: those who understand binary and those who do not.

 

[jack action]

Sorry to be late to the party, but ...

Because in English "two" means 2 base 10.

Do you have a source for that? I can't seem to find one.

two

A numerical value equal to 2; this many dots (••).

two adjective

: being one more than one in number

two noun

: a number that is one more than one

How would you pronounce $10100001_2$? Would you convert this binary number to decimal in your head or just read off the binary digits from left to right?

How would you pronounce $LXXXI$ in Roman numerals? Would you convert this Roman number to decimal in your head or just read off the letters from left to right?

I read "eighty-one", not "l-x-x-x-i".

The only digits in binary (base-2) are zero and one. There's no digit for "two."

According to that logic, $10_{10}$ would also read "one-zero" because there's no digit for "ten". And $81$ would read "eight-one" (in any base, really).

The funny thing is that in base 11 and above, you probably read $A$ as "a", even though it actually represents the digit "ten", just like $2$ represents "two". So how do we pronounce $A2_{16}$:

• "a-two",
• "ten-two",
• "one-hundred-and-sixty-two"?

 

[BillTre]

There are 10 types of people: those who understand binary and those who do not.

I like to say that this is a joke that only works as written, not as spoken.

 

[Mark44]

How would you pronounce LXXXI in Roman numerals?

I would probably pronounce it as it is written but would mentally translate it into the decimal numeral 81.

According to that logic, ##10_{10} would also read "one-zero" because there's no digit for "ten".

That makes no sense. In any number system base-n, with n > 1. the digits of that system are 0 through n-1. In decimal (i.e., base-10), the digits are 0 through 9.
I'm also tacitly assuming that we aren't using a system with a negative base or a fractional base. That would be a separate conversation.

And 81 would read "eight-one" (in any base, really).

No, not really. In the absence of any other information, one would assume that the implied base is 10. "81" would make sense in a base other than 10 only if the base were larger than 8.

Regarding the quote below, for which you asked for a source...

Because in English "two" means 2 base 10.

Without any contextual information about bases, it would be understood that we're talking about the decimal system of numbers (base 10). It's only in computer science or certain fields of mathematics that we're concerned about number systems using a base other than 10.

 

[Rive]

It's only in computer science or certain fields of mathematics

Just for the log: base 12 (and its whole broad sisterhood) was around the clock all the time.
And especially in English, with that faaaantastic mess of money-coin system base way back.. Well...

 

[Mark44]

Just for the log: base 12 (and its whole broad sisterhood) was around the clock all the time.

Sure, historically other systems were used, but clocks don't really use a formal base-12, otherwise we would say that noon and midnight are $10_{12}$ o'clock.

 

[jack action]

Without any contextual information about bases, it would be understood that we're talking about the decimal system of numbers (base 10).

In the word "two", there is nothing about how the concept of "two" can be written some other way, such as a number - in any form you like - or as "deux" in French. Unless someone finds me a source stating otherwise, "two" represents a quantity twice the unit:

• $.$ -> "one" dot
• $..$ -> "two" dots

In math: $2 + 2 = 4$ (Here, I agree with you, without any more information; we assume base 10)
Also in math: $10_2 + 10_2 = 100_2$
In Roman numeral: $II + II = IV$
And this would also technically be good: $2 + 10_2$ equals $IV$

These all translate the same way in English (written or oral): "Two plus two equals four".

Because "two" (written or oral), "deux" (in French, written or oral), $2$, $10_2$, and $II$ all represent the same concept in different notations or languages: the number of letters in the word "go".

 

[Mark44]

In the word "two", there is nothing about how the concept of "two" can be written some other way, such as a number - in any form you like - or as "deux" in French. Unless someone finds me a source stating otherwise, "two" represents a quantity twice the unit:

• . -> "one" dot
• .. -> "two" dots

That's the difference between the concept of "number" (which you represented with dots) vs. numeral, the name we associate with a number.

 

[DaveC426913]

There are 10 types of people: those who understand binary and those who do not.

There are II kinds of people: those that understand Roman numerals and those that don't.

 

[sbrothy]

I'm used to reading base2 numbers from right-to-left but that may just be a bad habit from programming.