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LostInParadise's avatar

Should combination locks be renamed permutation locks?

Asked by LostInParadise (31927points) May 29th, 2016

In mathematics, a combination is the selection from a range of choices where the order in which the items are chosen does not matter. For example, if you are shopping, the order in which you choose the items does not make a difference. For the typical combination lock, the order in which the numbers are selected makes a difference. A lock that opens with 37–10-23 will not open with 23–10-37. The concepts of combination and permutation are frequently being taught now in high school, so in the interest of clarity, wouldn’t a name change be appropriate?

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