Binary means anything involving two things. A dichotomous key is hence a binary approach, but this meaning is different to some more specific meanings of binary (it has nothing to do with the binary number system, for example). A dichotomy refers to splitting something into two parts.
What are the two types of dichotomy?
- jointly exhaustive: everything must belong to one part or the other, and.
- mutually exclusive: nothing can belong simultaneously to both parts.
What is an example of a dichotomy?
Dichotomy is defined as a sharp division of things or ideas into two contradictory parts. An example of dichotomy is grouping mammals by those that live on land and those that live in water.
