Ever used an abacus?

[ChavezSpeakstheTruth]

How do they work?

[redqueen]

1. Each row of beads corresponds to a place in the number.

ones, tens, hundreds, etc.

Very simple, really.

Unless I'm wrong. :silly:

[ChavezSpeakstheTruth]

2. what is the top row for?

[redqueen]

6. bigger numbers?

Sorry... I honestly don't remember... it's been a long time!

:hi:

[pnorman]

9. Top row counts for FIVE.

On the more 'streamlined' Japanese model, there's just a single bead up there. The Chinese has TWO, which is really redundant. In the lower set, the Japanese (post ~1932) model has only FOUR beads, but the Chinese model has FIVE. So in the Japanee model, the MAXIMUM value that can be entered in a single column is NINE. With the Chinese model it could be FIFTEEN. I'm sure the redundancy problem is handled with no great difficulty, but I don't know how. I'll make a websearch on that some time MUCH later, but it doesn't bother me all that much. I think that HEX calculations could be done on the Chinese model, with no great difficulty. That too, in the sweet bye and bye.

pnorman

[StopTheMorans]

3. no, i prefer to do crunches and leg-lifts

[diamond14]

4. an abacus is for COUNTING.....one row is for single numbers

the next row is for TENS (10,20, 30, 40...)

the next row is for HUNDREDS (100, 200, 300, 400..)


etc.


it's a GREAT WAY to teach children the relationships of numbers, and how to add up numbers....we had a GIANT abacus mounted in our basement when I was a child...with calculators today, kids never learn how numbers relate to each other....

an abacus and a slide rule is the way to TEACH math to kids...otherwise, some day, their calculator batteries will WEAR OUT, and they won't know what to do....

[ChavezSpeakstheTruth]

5. We learned with beans

Different beans corresponded to diferent amounts

[ET Awful]

7. I actually learned how to use one once upon a time just out of curiosity

That was probably 20 years ago, and I've since forgotten how :)

[dr.strangelove]

8. I use an abacus to count funny copycat threads in the lounge.

I use my sliderule to see if they are really funny.

[qnr]

10. sure did, and I networked it with 2 tin cans and a string n/t

[sleipnir]

11. How days will take to mend? How many ways to reach and bend?

So swoon me Starry Nights...

[InvisibleTouch]

12. I had one as a toy, as a kid.

Never really used it for counting, though. It was just pretty, with the colorful beads.