Patterns in Numbers

We have spotted patterns in colors and shapes. Now let's look somewhere even more powerful: numbers! Numbers follow patterns all the time, and those patterns are the secret language computers speak. Once you can see number patterns, you are peeking into how AI thinks.

Counting Patterns and Skip Counting

The simplest number pattern is counting by ones: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5... Each number is one more than the one before. The rule is: add 1 each time. But you can skip! Skip counting means jumping by the same number each time. Count by 2s: 2, 4, 6, 8, 10, 12... The rule is: add 2 each time. Count by 5s: 5, 10, 15, 20, 25... The rule is: add 5 each time. Count by 10s: 10, 20, 30, 40, 50... The rule is: add 10 each time. Skip counting is everywhere. Your fingers and toes come in groups of 5. A decade is a group of 10 years. A carton holds 12 eggs — you could count them by 2s!

Odd and Even: A Special Pattern

Here is one of the most important number patterns: odd and even. Even numbers can be split into two equal groups with nothing left over: 2, 4, 6, 8, 10... Think of pairs of socks. Two socks make one pair. Four socks make two pairs. You never have a leftover sock! Odd numbers always have one left over when you try to make pairs: 1, 3, 5, 7, 9... If you have 3 socks, you get one pair and one lonely sock. Even numbers always end in 0, 2, 4, 6, or 8. Odd numbers always end in 1, 3, 5, 7, or 9. That is a pattern within a pattern!

Number patterns help AI a lot. When a music app predicts your next favorite song, it uses patterns in what you have listened to before. The numbers that describe your listening habits follow patterns, and the AI finds those patterns to make a smart guess. You used the same kind of thinking when you found the skip-counting rule — add the same amount each time.