What if our number system was not based on the number 10? (In fact, there is a common system that is based on 2: the binary system—which is often humorously described as the way dolphins would count with their two flippers). But how about a system based on the number 60? That was how the Sumerians did it in the ancient world, and this article is about the Sumerian math tablets of long ago.
For a rather dry subject after the first few paragraphs, Nicholas Wade writes a solid, engaging story here. He starts out with a great lead that compares these ancient tablets to the technologies of the modern world: “Papyrus, parchment, paper…videotape, DVDs, Blu-ray discs—long after all these materials have crumbled to dust, the first recording medium of all, the cuneiform clay tablet of ancient Mesopotamia, may still endure.” There’s a good deal of math in the middle section of the article but it is somewhat interesting for its differences from the decimal system; and Wade does pick it up towards the end by mentioning the well-known Pythagorean theorem. He adds an element of mystery by suggesting the possibility of the Babylonians discovering the theorem before Pythagoras did. The ending, however, is a bit lacking—perhaps if he had ended with an interesting quote from a scientist/mathematician, the story would end on a stronger note and keep the reader thinking. Instead, the last paragraph simply reads, “With some tablets the answers are stated without any explanation, giving the impression that they were for show, a possession designed to make the owner seem an academic.”
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