Aliens Memes

The classic number base paradox strikes again! The alien sees 10 rocks and says "10 rocks" in base 4 (which equals 4 in decimal). The astronaut assumes base 10 and gets confused. But here's the kicker: no matter what base you're using, you always represent it as "base 10" in that base . In base 4, the number 4 is written as "10". In base 16 (hex), the number 16 is written as "10". In binary, the number 2 is written as "10". Every civilization thinks they're using "base 10" because that's literally how you write the base number in that base. It's like asking "What is base 4?" and the answer is always "base 10" from that base's perspective. The real galaxy brain moment: when you realize that if aliens showed up and said they use "base 10", we'd have absolutely no idea what they actually mean without seeing them count first. Could be binary for all we know.