Hatrack River Forum: Incan Counting System Decoded?

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Posted by Noemon (Member # 1115) on :

An Italian engineer believes that he has decoded the Incan mathematical system, and it looks like he's probably right.

Posted by Farmgirl (Member # 5567) on :

I read this with fascinating, Noemon, and also sent the link on to my son, since he did some kind of in-depth report on the Inca during his younger years.

I worked through the inter-active photos windows on this link site a couple times before I figured out what they were doing. (Then it was like - duh!)

Farmgirl

Posted by Bob_Scopatz (Member # 1227) on :

Very cool!

Posted by aka (Member # 139) on :

That is too cool. But I wonder why it starts out in Fibonacci numbers and then changes to powers of 10? Wouldn't it make more sense if it was just Fibonaccis all the way up? Or else all powers of 10? For that matter, a whole lot of different combinations of values for the cells would work as well.

And why are there two identical sides? The example they gave of adding two numbers would have worked equally well with only one set of depressions for putting corn kernels or stones into. Why are they mirror imaged with all cells duplicated except for the ones cell? To my mind those things still need explaining.

So how do you multiply two large numbers? Is there an algorithm for doing that too?

It's a really fascinating question, though. I love it when you post stuff like this, Noemon.

Posted by pooka (Member # 5003) on :

Isn't it possible to make every number from one to ten from the pairs of Fibbonacci numbers?

I went and reviewed Nephite math. They go 1, 2, 4, 7. Then they divide into eigths. And 1.5 measures of barely is some unit of gold. Curious, anyway.

[ January 31, 2004, 01:38 AM: Message edited by: pooka ]

Posted by GradStudent (Member # 5088) on :

I am going to do a lesson on this with my students. I'm posting the gif of the board that I made, in the off chance that another teacher would want to use it.

gif

Fireworks file

Word file

Posted by Zotto! (Member # 4689) on :

Wow, I missed this post earlier. Cool link, Noemon. [Smile]

[ February 01, 2004, 11:18 AM: Message edited by: Zotto! ]

Posted by jehovoid (Member # 2014) on :

Cool story. Interesting method. I guess you could add up pretty much any number with only a limited amount of kernels or stones or whatever. How people deal with these necessities of civilaztion is always fascinating.

Posted by ClaudiaTherese (Member # 923) on :

Noemon: fascinated by the world like no (other) man.

Noemon: King of Links (not the golf kind)

Noemon: "thoughtful."

Yep, good name. [Smile]

Posted by Noemon (Member # 1115) on :

[Smile]