homeWelcome, sign in or click here to subscribe.login
     


 

 

Weekend


Subscriber content preview

November 7, 2003

Strange But True!

  • A weekly column of incidental information, off-the-wall observations and other random facts about the world.
    • By BILL SONES and RICH SONES, Ph.D.
    Special to the Journal

    Q. How do speakers of English and other European languages count differently from speakers of Chinese, Japanese, Korean? Aren't the number systems the same?

    A. The base-10 system is the same, but take a look at how differently the words mirror each system: In English, says Peter Gray in "Psychology: 4th Edition," we count "one, two... nine, ten, eleven, twelve, thirteen... twenty, twenty-one..."; whereas speakers of Asian languages count (if their words were translated literally into English) "one, two... nine, ten, ten one, ten two, ten three... two-tens, two-tens one..."


     
    . . .


    To read this story in full login or purchase a subscription.



    Previous columns:


    
    Email or user name:
    Password:
     
    Forgot password? Click here.