7.3: Unusual Number systems
( \newcommand{\kernel}{\mathrm{null}\,}\)
Dualtown Number System
The peoples of Dualtown use only numbers which are 1 and some of the multiples of 2 (even numbers). E={1,2,4,6,8⋯}. Notice that the set E is closed under multiplication.
Let's construct a 4×4 multiplication table E.
× | 1 | 2 | 4 | 6 |
1 | 1 | 2 | 4 | 6 |
2 | 2 | 4 | 8 | 12 |
4 | 4 | 8 | 16 | 24 |
6 | 6 | 12 | 24 | 36 |
The smallest ten prime numbers in Dualtown are 2,6,10,14,18,22,26,30,34,38. Notice that 36=(6)(6)=(2)(18). Thus 36 has two different Dualtown prime factorizations. Hence the Prime Divisibility Theorem does not hold for the Dualtown number system.