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Drag out a ruler and ask them about distances.

It's a simple way of addressing the difference: 0-indexed "points to" the start of each element. 1-indexed represents the ordinal position.

So to relate to the ruler, the first cm/inch interval is, well, the 1st. But the distance to the start of the first is 0. So if you want to emphasise which numbered interval it is, 1-indexed makes most sense. If you want to emphasise where it starts, or the distance from origin, 0-indexed makes more sense.




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