Binary System
The binary numeral system uses the number 2 as its base (radix). As a base-2 numeral system, it consists of only two numbers: 0 and 1.
While it has been applied in ancient Egypt, China and India for different purposes, the binary system has become the language of electronics and computers in the modern world. This is the most efficient system to detect an electric signal’s off (0) and on (1) state. It is also the basis for binary code that is used to compose data in computer-based machines. Even the digital text that you are reading right now consists of binary numbers.
Reading a binary number is easier than it looks: This is a positional system; therefore, every digit in a binary number is raised to the powers of 2, starting from the rightmost with 20. In the binary system, each binary digit refers to 1 bit.
How to Read a Binary Number
In order to convert binary to decimal, basic knowledge on how to read a binary number might help. As mentioned above, in the positional system of binary, each bit (binary digit) is a power of 2. This means that every binary number could be represented as powers of 2, with the rightmost one being in the position of 20
Example: The binary number (1010)2 can also be written as follows:
(1 * 23) + (0 * 22) + (1 * 21) + (0 * 20)
