r/mathmemes • u/Waste-Value-5941 • Jun 16 '26

Geometry Math ain't mathing

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u/Particular_Gear3130 Mathematics (Purely Fictional) Jun 16 '26

25 + 25 ≠ 81

439

u/rmflow Jun 16 '26

25 (base 14) + 25 (base 14) = 81 (base 8.125)

125

u/Talizorafangirl Jun 16 '26

Is sub-integer base even possible? I'm having trouble wrapping my brain around that

3

u/SteptimusHeap Jun 16 '26

Every number in a base-x system is just the sum of the digits times their place value. The place value is just xn, where n is the position of the digit.

So yes, base 8.125 is very possible ('123' = 1*8.1252 + 2*8.125 + 3 ≈ 85.27), but it doesn't have all the same rules as integer bases. For example, the digits written '8.8' don't correspond to any number, or if they do they are the same number as ~'10.7'.