As soon as the time was up, the debate began.
This debate, which had been going on for two months, had started off with daggers drawn and bows drawn. Soon, it entered a white-hot state.
…
"The hexadecimal system is a precious legacy left to us by our ancestors. It is the culmination of the wisdom of our ancestors, and it has played an extremely important role in our history for thousands of years. It has even affected the reproduction and survival of the human race.
As such, countless mathematicians have worked tirelessly to develop and expand this field of study, thereby allowing it to reach its current height.
"This is the brightest star in the history of the human race. It is the result of the combined efforts of all of the greatest mathematicians in human history, and it will continue to guide the human race forward. However, all of you are now trying to replace it with a low-level algorithm, thereby giving up all of the work of your ancestors. What a foolish act! "
Elma was sitting in the center of the conservative faction, and he had a large black mole on his glabella as he appraised Byron and the others with a sense of superiority in his voice.
The conservative faction nodded in unison, and all of them were looking at the reformists with disdain in their eyes.
They didn't know why these guys were following Byron's lead; they were trying to reform the hexadecimal system, and they were even making such a big fuss about it.
The decimal system was only used for currency in the Roth Empire, and the mathematics world had always scoffed at it. They felt that such a crude algorithm was beneath them to be studied. If it weren't for the fact that currency was widely used on the entire Norland Continent, the decimal system wouldn't have been introduced in the Roth Empire.
Byron was the vice-minister of the Ministry of Education, and he held the highest status among all of the people present. However, even with his status, it was still very difficult for him to implement the decimal system. This was a clear indication of just how deeply rooted the hexadecimal system was in the mathematics world of the Roth Empire.
This incident had become the laughing stock of the entire academic community in the Roth Empire. Master Byron was a highly respected figure in the academic community, and he was nearing retirement age. If he were to do something like this, he would most likely become the laughingstock of the entire academic community.
"The decimal system is far more concise and efficient than the hexadecimal system. Combined with the Mamy Multiplication Table, the calculation efficiency will be increased by countless times. This is undoubtedly an advantage that the hexadecimal system has over the hexadecimal system. If we can replace the hexadecimal system with the decimal system, and popularize the Mamy Multiplication Table, we'll be able to greatly increase the intelligence of the populace. We'll be able to popularize arithmetic, and even allow all commoners to learn arithmetic!"
Liszt, the youngest scholar of the reformists, said with excitement. A blueprint seemed to have been unfolded in front of him.
"Commoners? Heh. " Roy, who was sitting beside Erma, pursed his lips in disdain. "Do you think those lowly and foolish commoners have the right to learn something as noble as arithmetic? Mathematics is a noble art exclusive to the nobles. What we should do is to let those ignorant people continue to be stupid. Who allowed you to raise the intelligence of the people? The more those ignorant commoners know, the more ideas they'll have, and that's not a good thing. "
Liszt's expression changed slightly as he slowly clenched his fists. He was born in a fallen noble family, and had entered the Bauhinia Academy with outstanding results. With his astonishing aptitude in arithmetic, he had already become a professor at the Bauhinia Academy at the age of 30, and was the youngest professor in the Bauhinia Academy.
When he was very young, his gambling addict grandfather had lost his entire manor. As such, he had lived with his father and mother in a normal residential area in the northern part of Rodu, living a life that was no different from that of a normal commoner. He had many playmates among the commoners.
As such, in his heart, commoners were no better than his enemies.
However, the nobles' system restricted their development, and they were unable to enter a noble school.
Just as Roy had said, the education system in the Roth Empire could only be described as the education for the ignorant. The nobles received the best education to become more outstanding elites, while the commoners had no right to receive an education. They lived in ignorance for generations.
Liszt was also aware that the commoners had to work hard to fill their stomachs every day, so they didn't have any extra money or spare time to receive an education.
However, if the decimal system could replace the hexadecimal system, and the Mamy multiplication table could be popularized, then even the commoners would be able to quickly master all arithmetic up to 10. That would be enough for them to use in their daily lives.
Quantitative change was bound to bring about qualitative change. Once enough commoners mastered the decimal system, it would definitely be a significant boost for the entire human race.
Mathematics wasn't an art that only a minority of people pretended to be elegant. It was a tool that should be used in daily life and production. However, he just couldn't convince these esteemed masters of the Roth Empire to do so.
Byron looked at Roy, and said in a serious voice, "The education system we're doing isn't education for the ignorant commoners. The nobles' education system has been popular for many years. What we're going to do next is to select some talented children from the commoners and educate them so that they can become pillars of the Roth Empire."
"Commoners have the blood of fools flowing through their veins. Even if we give them an opportunity to learn, they still won't be able to become pillars of the Roth Empire. Our Mathematics Association has already voted yesterday, and over 90% of our members are against the decimal system reform. They want to preserve the hexadecimal system, and that's the attitude and determination of the entire mathematics community.
On top of that, this so-called multiplication table proposed by a nobody that hasn't even been tested and verified yet dares to challenge the hexadecimal system that we've been adhering to for thousands of years. If we were to change it, wouldn't we become the laughingstock of the entire continent? If the Roth Empire's mathematics heritage were to be destroyed, would you be able to bear the responsibility? "
Elton chuckled coldly as he glowered at the reformists.
The reformist party fell silent as everyone turned to look at Byron. Only Lord Byron had the right to bear such a heavy burden. Even he most likely wouldn't be able to bear such a heavy burden.
Luna was standing at the entrance of the palace with her hands clasped together as she looked at Byron with an anxious expression. This was a trap that Elton had set up, but regardless of whether Byron jumped into it or not, he was destined to lose.
Smiles appeared on the faces of Erma and the others, as if they had already foreseen this outcome.
"Sorry, I'm late."
Right at this moment, the door of the palace was suddenly pushed open from the outside.
You've already exceeded your reading limit for today. If you want to read more, please log in.
Login
Select text and click 'Report' to let us know about any bad translation.
