How many different characters can the international code

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Before the invention of the telephone, Samuel Morse developed an efficient sytem for sending messages as a series of dots and dashes (short or long pulses). International code, a modified version of Morse code is still widely used.

How many different characters can the international code represent with one to four pulses?

I dont get this at all. How would you do this?
I thought it was going to be like (26)(26)(26)(26) but, I dunno, I dont get the dots and dashes..

Thanks
 
Hello, Anna!

Before the invention of the telephone, Samuel Morse developed an efficient sytem
for sending messages as a series of dots and dashes (short or long pulses).
International code, a modified version of Morse code is still widely used.

How many different characters can the code represent with one to four pulses?
Click to expand...

Don't think of "dots and dashes" . . . Think of the two sounds: "dit" and "dah".
. . That's the sound you hear when code is being sent.

Some examples: \(\displaystyle \;\begin{array}{ccc}B&=&\text{dah-dit-dit-dit}\\R&=&\text{dit-dah-dit}\\Q&=&\text{dah-dah-dit-dah}\end{array}\)

\(\displaystyle \begin{array}{ccc}\text{One pulse: } & 2^1 & = & 2\text{ ways}\\
\text{Two pulses: } & 2^2 & = & 4\text{ ways} \\
\text{Three pulses: } & 2^3 & = & 8\text{ ways} \\
\text{Four pulses: } & 2^4 & = & 16\text{ ways} \end{array}\)

A total of: \(\displaystyle \,2\,+\,4\,+\,8\,+\,16\:=\:30\) characters could be represented.

 
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ok, If I understand that correctly, for this question:

How many pulses would be necessary to represent the 72 letters of the Cambodian alphabet using a system like Morse code?

Would you set it up like : 2^n= 72?

The answer is suppose to be 6..
 
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