"Mark Boyd" <[log in to unmask]> wrote in message
news:9p2fkp02j5h@enews2.newsguy.com...
> The question:
>         What is the last digit in the number 346?
> She answered 6 and so did I.  The correct answer is apparently 3.

There is obviously a typo in the question.  The phrase "most significant"
was misspelled "last".  :-)

One of the beauties of mathematics is that you can define things any way you
want, and go from there.  But this definition of "last" runs counter to
common usage.  When the IRS mailed out the tax relief checks on a schedule
based on the "last two digits" of the social security number, they certainly
didn't mean the two most significant digits!  When you dial a phone number,
do you dial the "last" digit first?

Turning to my dictionary, I see that most definitions of "last" are temporal
in nature, and none equate to leftmost or rightmost.  The most relevant
definition would favor your original answer:  "lowest in size, rank, or
importance."

One could go on and on, but it's an argument you're not likely to win, so
don't invest too much emotional energy in it.  (Unless, of course, you want
to pursue it "just for the principle of it" :-)

Walter

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