Essentially, it comes up in math problems often, as in the geometric series. As a derivation of this property, we can see that the sum of k natural powers of 2 will be equal to 2^(k+1)-1, which I have been told is often used in programming, though PrimeHunter might be more qualified to assert this. Besides that, I cannot think of a source for notability, so I will leave it to the discretion of the more experienced editors.