Number System

Complete Notes & Short Tricks — RRB NTPC

1. Classification of Numbers

Type Definition Example

Natural Numbers (N) Counting numbers 1, 2, 3, 4...

Whole Numbers (W) Natural numbers + 0 0, 1, 2, 3...

Integers (Z) Whole numbers + negatives ...-2,-1,0,1,2...

Rational Numbers Can be written as p/q, q≠0 1/2, 0.75, 5

Irrational Numbers Cannot be written as p/q √2, π

All numbers on number

Real Numbers Rational + Irrational
line

Even Numbers Divisible by 2 2, 4, 6...

Odd Numbers Not divisible by 2 1, 3, 5...

Prime Numbers Exactly 2 factors (1 and itself) 2, 3, 5, 7, 11...

Composite Numbers More than 2 factors 4, 6, 8, 9...

Co-prime Numbers HCF = 1 (need not be prime) 8&9

Trick: 1 is neither prime nor composite. 2 is the only even prime number.

Primes up to 100 (memorize these — 25 total):

2, 3, 5, 7, 11, 13, 17, 19, 23, 29, 31, 37, 41, 43, 47, 53, 59, 61, 67, 71, 73, 79, 83, 89, 97

2. Divisibility Rules (Very Important — Direct Questions Asked)

Divisor Rule

2 Last digit is 0, 2, 4, 6, 8

3 Sum of digits divisible by 3

4 Last 2 digits divisible by 4

5 Last digit is 0 or 5
 Divisor Rule

6 Divisible by both 2 and 3

7 Double the last digit, subtract from rest; result divisible by 7 (repeat if needed)

8 Last 3 digits divisible by 8

9 Sum of digits divisible by 9

10 Last digit is 0

11 (Sum of digits at odd places) − (Sum of digits at even places) = 0 or divisible by 11

12 Divisible by both 3 and 4

13 Multiply last digit by 4, add to rest; divisible by 13

Trick for 7: Number: 364 → 36 − (4×2) = 36 − 8 = 28 → divisible by 7 ✓

Trick for 11: Number: 2915 → (2+1) − (9+5) = 3 − 14 = −11 → divisible by 11 ✓
3. Finding Unit Digit (Very common in NTPC)
Cyclicity of unit digits — numbers repeat their unit digit in cycles when raised to powers:

Digit Cycle Pattern

0, 1, 5, 6 1 Same digit always

4, 9 2 Alternates

2, 3, 7, 8 4 4 different values

Short Trick:
1. Divide the power by the cycle length.
2. Find the remainder R.
3. If R = 0, use the cycle-length position (last value in cycle).
4. Match with the power table of that digit.
Example: Find unit digit of 4798
Unit digit of base = 7 → cycle = 4
98 ÷ 4 → remainder = 2
72 = 49 → unit digit = 9

Example: Find unit digit of 6325

Unit digit = 3 → cycle 4
25 ÷ 4 → remainder 1
31 = 3 → unit digit = 3

4. HCF (GCD) and LCM

HCF = Highest common factor of two or more numbers
LCM = Lowest common multiple

Key Formula: Product of two numbers = HCF × LCM

Methods:
• HCF: Prime factorization or long division method
• LCM: Prime factorization (take highest power of each prime)

Shortcuts:
• HCF of fractions = HCF of numerators / LCM of denominators
• LCM of fractions = LCM of numerators / HCF of denominators
• HCF always divides LCM completely
Trick — greatest number dividing x, y, z leaving same remainder: HCF of (x−y), (y−z), (x−z)
Trick — greatest number dividing x, y, z leaving remainders a, b, c: HCF of (x−a), (y−b), (z−c)
Trick — smallest number leaving remainder r when divided by x, y, z: LCM(x,y,z) + r
Trick — smallest number exactly divisible by x, y, z: LCM(x,y,z)
5. Remainder Theorems (High-Weight Topic)
Basic Remainder Rule: Remainder of (a × b) ÷ n = [(Remainder of a÷n) × (Remainder of b÷n)] ÷ n, then
take remainder again.

Example: Find remainder of (17 × 23) ÷ 5

17 ÷ 5 → R = 2
23 ÷ 5 → R = 3
2×3 = 6 → 6 ÷ 5 → R = 1

Negative Remainder Trick: If remainder comes out negative, add the divisor. Example: −3 mod 7 → 7 − 3
=4

Pattern-based Remainder (for exponents): Look for a cyclic pattern of remainders when a number is
repeatedly divided.

Example: Remainder of 250 ÷ 7

21÷7=2, 22÷7=4, 23÷7=1 (cycle of 3)
50 ÷ 3 → remainder 2 → use 22 = 4 → Remainder = 4
6. Number of Factors, Sum of Factors
If N = ap × bq × cr (prime factorization)

• Number of factors = (p+1)(q+1)(r+1)

• Sum of factors = [(ap+1−1)/(a−1)] × [(bq+1−1)/(b−1)] × ...
• Number of even factors = Total factors − Odd factors
• Product of all factors = N(number of factors / 2)
Example: N = 36 = 22 × 32
Number of factors = (2+1)(2+1) = 9
Factors: 1,2,3,4,6,9,12,18,36 ✓

7. Number Systems / Base Conversion

Base System Digits Used

2 Binary 0, 1

8 Octal 0–7

10 Decimal 0–9

16 Hexadecimal 0–9, A–F

Decimal → Any Base: Divide repeatedly by base, read remainders bottom to top.
Any Base → Decimal: Multiply each digit by (base)position (position starts from 0, right to left), then sum.

Example: Convert 101101 (binary) to decimal

= 1×25+0×24+1×23+1×22+0×21+1×20
= 32+0+8+4+0+1 = 45

8. Important Formulas & Series

• Sum of first n natural numbers = n(n+1)/2
• Sum of first n odd numbers = n2
• Sum of first n even numbers = n(n+1)
• Sum of squares of first n numbers = n(n+1)(2n+1)/6
• Sum of cubes of first n numbers = [n(n+1)/2]2
Trick: For consecutive number series sums, always check if it's AP (arithmetic progression): Sum = n/2 ×
(first term + last term)

9. Short Tricks — Quick Reference Table

Problem Type Trick

Check if number is prime Check divisibility only up to √N by primes ≤ √N

Use cyclicity of last 2 digits (patterns of 20 for

Find last 2 digits of a^b
most)

Sum of digits divisible by 3 → number

Add digits, check
divisible by 3

Number formed by repeating a 2-digit

Always divisible by 7, 11, 13, 1001
number thrice (ababab)

Number formed by repeating a digit block n Divisible by the repunit factor (e.g., 3-digit repeat
times → divisible by 7×11×13=1001)

Difference of two consecutive squares (n+1)² − n² = 2n+1

Product of any 2 consecutive numbers Always even

Product of any 3 consecutive numbers Always divisible by 6

Sum of any 5 consecutive numbers Always divisible by 5 (equals 5× middle number)

10. Quick Practice Pointers for Exam Day
1. Memorize squares up to 30 and cubes up to 15 — saves huge time.
2. Memorize primes up to 100.
3. Practice unit digit and remainder questions daily — these are near-guaranteed in NTPC.
4. For divisibility by 7, 11, 13 — practice the ababab / repunit trick, frequently asked as "find a number
divisible by ___".
5. Always double-check "0" — is it even? Yes. Is it prime? No. Is it natural? No (per most exam
conventions in India, 0 is a whole number, not natural).

Squares (up to 30) — memorize

11²=121, 12²=144, 13²=169, 14²=196, 15²=225, 16²=256, 17²=289, 18²=324, 19²=361, 20²=400, 21²=441,
22²=484, 23²=529, 24²=576, 25²=625, 26²=676, 27²=729, 28²=784, 29²=841, 30²=900

Cubes (up to 15) — memorize

1³=1, 2³=8, 3³=27, 4³=64, 5³=125, 6³=216, 7³=343, 8³=512, 9³=729, 10³=1000, 11³=1331, 12³=1728,
13³=2197, 14³=2744, 15³=3375