Explores a mathematical curiosity where 987654321 / 123456789 ≈ 8. The pattern generalizes across number bases: for any base b, the ratio of digits in descending order to ascending order equals approximately b-2, with a fractional part of roughly 1/b^(b-2). Python code demonstrates this holds for bases up to 1000, with algebraic formulas provided for exact calculations. The analysis reveals why floating-point arithmetic returns exact integers for larger bases like hexadecimal.
1 Comment
Sort: