What if the numbers we used today did not exist? Imagine trying to count without the modern system we have; it would be hard. In 3000 BC, the current numerical method had not been created yet. The Egyptians had to be innovative, so the very first number system ever created was made up of images. Instead of digits, they used shapes and representatives, or hieroglyphs. Different formations stood for different number values, and that is what they used to count. It may seem like a brainless and simple method, but for the time period it was very advanced.
It is estimated that the Egyptians created the first fully-developed number system of ten as early as 2700 BC, and possibly much earlier than that. However, there was no concept of place value, so larger numbers were rather unwieldy. The ancient Egyptians used a numeral system for counting and solving written mathematical problems, often involving multiplication and fractions. Evidence for Egyptian mathematics is
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1 was represented with a single vertical stroke. 10 was shown by a drawing of a horseshoe, or a large upside down “U”. 100 was represented by a coil of rope. 1,000 was shown by a drawing of a lotus plant. 10,000 was represented by a single finger. 100,000 was a picture of a tadpole or frog. 1,000,000 was the figure of a god with arms raised above his head.
While the past may seem irrelevant, a lot of what we can do today originates from what happened very long ago. The Egyptians were remarkable at mathematics. The earliest records of geometry come from Egypt, as their geometry specialists were called. Egyptians worked out efficient ways of performing multiplication and division. While we have various ways to perform such calculations, Egyptians used a more computation-friendly method that involved doubling numbers, a technique we still use in modern-day computing. Egyptians also invented basic