5 ms·

That language is math. Which, due to historical accident, was inspired by Arabic writing, rather than the Latin variety.

andrewcooke 14y ago
that sounds interesting, but i'm having a hard time getting my head round it. can you give an example where math is right to left? [edit oh, numbers! thanks! i was thinking about algebra.]
- Turing_Machine 14y ago
  Think of the standard addition and multiplication algorithms. You start with the rightmost place, right?
- Retric 14y ago
  Think about basic math aka addition, subtraction, and multiplication work. 1237 + 4567 7+7 = 14 = 4 3+6 + 1 = 10 = 0 2+5+1 = 7 1+4 = 5 5704 That's right to left. If we wrote numbers left to right we the 1's place would be on the left.
- lutusp 14y ago
  Sure -- Scheme: Link: http://weber.marblefalls.txed.net/mfhs/academics/electives/compsci/R0SchExprs.htm http://weber.marblefalls.txed.net/mfhs/academics/electives/c... Example: (+ 5 (* 10 x)) Which more or less means 5 + 10 * x in everyday notation. Compare to Reverse Polish Notation (used in Hewlett-Packard calculators and elsewhere), which would express the above as: 10 x * 5 +
- T-hawk 14y ago
  Numeric notation is built right to left. To count up from 1 to 9 uses single digits, of course. Then to go from 9 to 10, the ones place increments and rolls over, and we add the new tens digit on the left, not the right.
  - bnegreve 14y ago
    Not sure, the numeric notation is little endian wheras DNSs are big endian.
    - B-Con 14y ago
      That's the point. Numeric notation is right-to-left. It was around long before the concept of endianness.
      - bnegreve 14y ago
        What does it mean to be right-to-left? If it means that least significant values are on the right side and most significant ones on the left side, then domain names are left-to-right (as opposed to numeric notation).
- taproot 14y ago
  He meant left to right. It was a [fixed]mistake in the article.
616c 14y ago
Not true, but close enough. Even in Arabic, numbers are the exception, written from left to write. انا من مواليد ١٩٨٦. I was born in 1986. You will notice the number sequencing, although slightly different looking, is the same as in Western orthography. Why? Arabs took their numbering system from the Indians, and adapted it.
- leot 14y ago
  The only way in which it makes sense to talk about numbers being written "right to left" or "left to right" is when comparing the order of speech sounds to the ordering of numerals read. In English it goes from the biggest to the smallest: "420" ==> "four hundred and twenty".
  - rmk2 14y ago
    Then German and Danish are neither left-to-right nor right-to-left, since 123 is einhundertdreiundzwanzig or hundredetreogtyve ("onehundredthreeandtwenty"), so that doesn't seem to work too well, either...
- Samuel_Michon 14y ago
  "Even in Arabic, numbers are the exception, written from left to write." This is true in modern times, but in antiquity Arabic and Hebrew numerals were written right-to-left. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abjad_numerals http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abjad_numerals http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hebrew_numerals http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hebrew_numerals
opminion 14y ago
I think that you mean "numerals", not math in general. In our system (and in the Arabic "Indian" system, as pointed out by a fellow reply) numerals are written with the least significative figure to the right, so in that sense it's like com.twitter@holysee. However, the author has acknowledged that there was a minor error in the post, so this is a case of a retrofitted explanation :-) In fact, notations do not have to be consistent about digit significance. See, for example, US dates (9/11/2001) or German (and Arabic) long-form of most two digit numerals, which are read backwards, as in "four and twenty blackbirds" (happy to be corrected about Arabic...).

andrewcooke 14y ago

that sounds interesting, but i'm having a hard time getting my head round it. can you give an example where math is right to left? [edit oh, numbers! thanks! i was thinking about algebra.]

Turing_Machine 14y ago
Think of the standard addition and multiplication algorithms. You start with the rightmost place, right?
Retric 14y ago
Think about basic math aka addition, subtraction, and multiplication work. 1237 + 4567 7+7 = 14 = 4 3+6 + 1 = 10 = 0 2+5+1 = 7 1+4 = 5 5704 That's right to left. If we wrote numbers left to right we the 1's place would be on the left.
lutusp 14y ago
Sure -- Scheme: Link: http://weber.marblefalls.txed.net/mfhs/academics/electives/compsci/R0SchExprs.htm http://weber.marblefalls.txed.net/mfhs/academics/electives/c... Example: (+ 5 (* 10 x)) Which more or less means 5 + 10 * x in everyday notation. Compare to Reverse Polish Notation (used in Hewlett-Packard calculators and elsewhere), which would express the above as: 10 x * 5 +
T-hawk 14y ago
Numeric notation is built right to left. To count up from 1 to 9 uses single digits, of course. Then to go from 9 to 10, the ones place increments and rolls over, and we add the new tens digit on the left, not the right.
- bnegreve 14y ago
  Not sure, the numeric notation is little endian wheras DNSs are big endian.
  - B-Con 14y ago
    That's the point. Numeric notation is right-to-left. It was around long before the concept of endianness.
    - bnegreve 14y ago
      What does it mean to be right-to-left? If it means that least significant values are on the right side and most significant ones on the left side, then domain names are left-to-right (as opposed to numeric notation).
taproot 14y ago
He meant left to right. It was a [fixed]mistake in the article.

616c 14y ago

Not true, but close enough. Even in Arabic, numbers are the exception, written from left to write. انا من مواليد ١٩٨٦. I was born in 1986. You will notice the number sequencing, although slightly different looking, is the same as in Western orthography. Why? Arabs took their numbering system from the Indians, and adapted it.

leot 14y ago
The only way in which it makes sense to talk about numbers being written "right to left" or "left to right" is when comparing the order of speech sounds to the ordering of numerals read. In English it goes from the biggest to the smallest: "420" ==> "four hundred and twenty".
- rmk2 14y ago
  Then German and Danish are neither left-to-right nor right-to-left, since 123 is einhundertdreiundzwanzig or hundredetreogtyve ("onehundredthreeandtwenty"), so that doesn't seem to work too well, either...
Samuel_Michon 14y ago
"Even in Arabic, numbers are the exception, written from left to write." This is true in modern times, but in antiquity Arabic and Hebrew numerals were written right-to-left. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abjad_numerals http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abjad_numerals http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hebrew_numerals http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hebrew_numerals

opminion 14y ago

I think that you mean "numerals", not math in general. In our system (and in the Arabic "Indian" system, as pointed out by a fellow reply) numerals are written with the least significative figure to the right, so in that sense it's like com.twitter@holysee. However, the author has acknowledged that there was a minor error in the post, so this is a case of a retrofitted explanation :-) In fact, notations do not have to be consistent about digit significance. See, for example, US dates (9/11/2001) or German (and Arabic) long-form of most two digit numerals, which are read backwards, as in "four and twenty blackbirds" (happy to be corrected about Arabic...).