Binary code is a term used to describe a basic form of computer language used by many cultures throughout the galaxy.
When an electric current is used to transmit or carry data and information, the information is encoded as ones (1) or zeroes (0), with an "off" current representing 0, and an active, or "on" current representing 1. A single one or zero is referred to as a unit of information, referred to as a "bit." Early human computers used an 8 bit code which had 256 possibilities including zero. Advanced computers process amounts of information in larger quantities, usually measured in bytes; kilobytes; megabytes; and gigabytes.
The Bynars of Bynaus in the Beta Magellan system have a culture completely based on binary code. Their minds are supplemented by high-speed computation modules, dependant to a central computer. Despite the dependence, the interconnectedness of their society allows a tremendous amount of communications and information transfer. (TNG:"11001001")
- Some have likened the Bynar system to a benign form of the Borg Collective.
Federation computers use an even more advanced system, using the measurements quads, kiloquads and gigaquads to measure data. The systems are based in binary yet also accomodating the use of trinary code. (VOY:"Hope and Fear")
- Star Trek computers are frequently referred to operating in binary capacities, such as "11001001" and VOY:"Favorite Son," however, references to trinary code, and the possible obsolescence of binary, have been made in modern Trek productions. Since an electric current can only be on or off, the science to create a working trinary code computer is probably not possible using modern electrical technology. Scientists today have theorized that quantum mechanics might provide solutions for trinary, or even quadratic, alternatives to binary code. This would be known as quantum computing.