A Number System Invented by Inuit Schoolchildren Will Make Its Silicon Valley Debut

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April 11, 2023

Decades ago, a group of Inuit middle school students and their teacher invented a new number system, based on a traditional Iñupiaq oral counting system, that makes it faster and easier to perform visual arithmetic. In fact, when students worked with both the more commonly used Hindu-Arabic number system and the new Kaktovik numerals over the course of a year, "scores on standardized math exams jumped from below the 20th percentile to 'significantly above' the national average." Now Kaktovik numerals have received some key tech support that will enable their use in digital formats—which means they may be coming to a smartphone or computer near you. Read more in this week's top story!

Sophie Bushwick, Associate Editor, Technology @sophiebushwick

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FROM THE STORE Scientific American Volume 328, Issue 4

QUOTE OF THE DAY "High school senior Lucy Goetz got the highest possible grade on an original essay she wrote about socialism. So imagine her surprise when I told her that a new kind of educational software I've been testing claimed she got help from artificial intelligence." Geoffrey A. Fowler, The Washington Post

FROM THE ARCHIVE The Most Boring Number in the World Is ... That prime numbers and powers of 2 fascinate many people comes as no surprise. In fact, all numbers split into two camps: interesting and boring By Manon Bischoff | March 2023

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