Halfpenny (British decimal coin) Halfpenny (British decimal coin) The British decimal halfpenny (p) coin was introduced in February 1971, at the time of decimalisation, and was worth one two-hundredth of a pound sterling. It was ignored in banking transactions, which were carried out in units of 1p. The decimal halfpenny had the same value as 1.2 pre-decimal pence, and was introduced to enable the prices of some low-value items to be more accurately translated to the new decimal currency. The possibility of setting prices including an odd half penny also made it more practical to retain the pre-decimal sixpence in circulation (with a value
Cocker's Decimal Arithmetick Cocker's Decimal Arithmetick Cocker's Decimal Arithmetick is a grammar school mathematics textbook written by Edward Cocker (1631–1676) and published posthumously by John Hawkins in 1684. "Decimal Arithmetick" along with companion volume, "Cocker's Arithmetick" published in 1677, were used in schools in the United Kingdom for more than 150 years. The concept of decimal fractions and the advantages of using them in calculations were well known, but a wide variety of different notations were in use. After surveying various notations, "Decimal Arithmetick" recommends the decimal point notation introduced by John Napier: "Decimal Arithmetick" gives instructions for calculations involving decimals, methods of