This repository holds the files used to run a demonstration of PNIS in action at sdmsolutions.ca
The Pokémon Novelty Integer System, or PNIS for short, is a numeral system that expresses numbers using Pokémon as digits. PNIS is a system similar to binary, octal, or decimal, except it has way more digits then all of them!
Counting in the decimal system begins with one digit, 0, and continues until 9. There are no more digits after 9 so the number must be expressed using two digits, 10. Decimal is known as a base 10 system since it contains 10 unique digits. Binary is base 2 and uses two digits, 0 and 1. PNIS currently contains 803 unique digits (802 Pokémon plus a zero), making it a base 803 numeral system!
Just like decimal, PNIS works through "positional notation". Each digit represents a specific order of magnitude based on its position in the number. For example five and fifty are represented in decimal as 5 and 50. In the first number the "5" is in the "ones" position and represents 5 "ones". In the second number the "5" is in the "tens" position and represents 5 "tens". As more digits are added to the left of the number the order of magnitude increases by the base of the numeral system. For PNIS, the base is 803! Below is a diagram to explain:
The 803 digits of PNIS are represented by Pokémon and their National Pokédex number. Bulbasaur is 1, Wobbuffet is 202, and Marshadow is 802. Since there is no Pokémon with the number 0, MissingNo is used. Play around with PNIS and make sure to show all your friends!