2.2 NUMBER SYSTEM

A number system defines a set of values used to represent ‘quantity’. Generally, one talks about a number of people attending class, or a number of modules taken by each student, and use numbers to represent grades achieved by students in tests. Quantifying values and items in relation to each other is helpful for us to make sense of our environment. The number system can be categorised into two broad categories:

• Non-Positional Number Systems: In ancient times, people used to count with their fingers. When fingers became insufficient for counting, stones and pebbles were used to indicate the values. This method of counting is called the non-positional number system. It was very difficult to perform arithmetic operations with such a number system, as it had no symbol for zero. The most common non-positional number system is the Roman number system. These systems are often clumsy and it is very difficult to do calculations for large numbers.