Other characters besides numbers can be represented in binar

Other characters besides numbers can be represented in binary. For example, how many bits are required for a binary representation of a) The 26 upper-case letters in the English alphabet? b) All of the upper-case and lower-case letters in the English alphabet? c) All of the upper-case and lower-case letters in the English alphabet, the 10 7. numerals, and 15 punctuation marks?

Solution

a) The 26 uppercase letters in the English alphabet

The total number of characters in an alphabet of this problem is: 26.

Therefore, the number of bits required to represent 26 characters is: 5. Using a total of 5 bits the total number of characters can be represented is: 2⁵ = 32. And ofcourse, you need to represent only 26 characters.

b) All of the uppercase and lowercase letters in the English alphabet?

The total number of characters in an alphabet of this problem is: 26 + 26 = 52.

Therefore, the number of bits required to represent 52 characters is: 6. Using a total of 6 bits the total number of characters can be represented is: 2⁶ = 64. And ofcourse, you need to represent only 52 characters.

c) All of the uppercase and lowercase letters in the English alphabet, the 10 numerals, and 15 punctuation marks?

The total number of characters in an alphabet of this problem is: 26 + 26 + 10 + 15 = 77.

Therefore, the number of bits required to represent 77 characters is: 7. Using a total of 7 bits the total number of characters can be represented is: 2⁷ = 128. And ofcourse, you need to represent only 77 characters.