A list of numbers $1,2,3,\dots ,499,500$ is given. A process of elimination is applied: In the first step, every number at an odd position is removed (i.e., the 1st, 3rd, 5th, etc., numbers). In the second step, the process is repeated on the remaining numbers: every number at an odd position in the current list is removed. This process continues until only one number remains. What is that number?