4 ms·

Arguably, Duodecimal would have been better. 12 is divisble by a large number of factors and it has some more interesting aspects outlined here: https://en.wiki

• _bxg1 7y ago
  Came here to say this. We got 10 instead because we have 10 fingers to count on.
  • abjKT26nO8 7y ago
    And when was the last time you counted something on your fingers that was more than 3? Also, quoting parent's link: > It is possible to count to 12 with the thumb acting as a pointer, touching each finger bone in turn. A traditional finger counting system still in use in many regions of Asia works in this way, and could help to explain the occurrence of numeral systems based on 12 and 60 besides those based on 10, 20 and 5. In this system, the one (usually right) hand counts repeatedly to 12, displaying the number of iterations on the other (usually left), until five dozens, i. e. the 60, are full.
    • _bxg1 7y ago
      > And when was the last time you counted something on your fingers that was more than 3? ??? I'm not talking about me, I'm talking about the thousands of years of human history that got us here?
  • thaumasiotes 7y ago
    > We got 10 instead because we have 10 fingers to count on. People have counted in 12s by reference to the knuckles on each finger. Even more commonly, people have counted in 20s by reference to fingers and toes. You can point to fingers as the reason for a base 10 system instead of a base 11 system, but you can't really point to them as the reason for a base 10 system uniquely.
• patrec 7y ago
  Post discovery of the "decimal" point, having two twice seems ripe for de-duplication.