What is the base used by the decimal numeral system?

What is the base used by the decimal numeral system?

• A. 2
• B. 8
• C. 10
• D. 16

Answer: (C)

The base of a numeral system is the factor by which place values grow as you move left. In the decimal system that factor is ten, so each step to the left multiplies the value by ten. There are ten digit symbols available (0 through 9), and each position represents a power of ten. For example, 345 means 3×10^2 + 4×10^1 + 5×10^0. When a position reaches its maximum symbol, you carry to the next left position and reset the current one, continuing the pattern. This combination of ten symbols and place-value growth by ten is what defines decimal. Other bases use different symbol counts and carry rules, such as binary with two symbols or hexadecimal with sixteen symbols.

The base of a numeral system is the factor by which place values grow as you move left. In the decimal system that factor is ten, so each step to the left multiplies the value by ten. There are ten digit symbols available (0 through 9), and each position represents a power of ten. For example, 345 means 3×10^2 + 4×10^1 + 5×10^0. When a position reaches its maximum symbol, you carry to the next left position and reset the current one, continuing the pattern. This combination of ten symbols and place-value growth by ten is what defines decimal. Other bases use different symbol counts and carry rules, such as binary with two symbols or hexadecimal with sixteen symbols.