Stuff You Should Know SYSK Selects: How Zero Works
Apr 27, 2019
Discover the fascinating history of zero, tracing its trajectory from ancient Sumer to India’s Aryabhata. Learn about its role as a crucial placeholder and the cultural challenges it faced. Explore zero's surprising properties in mathematics, including the paradoxes of multiplication and division. Delve into its introduction to the Western world through Fibonacci and the Maya's independent development. Enjoy amusing anecdotes and cultural insights that highlight zero's transformative power in our understanding of numbers.
AI Snips
Chapters
Books
Transcript
Episode notes
Zero's Representation
- Zero's representation evolved from a heavy dot used by Arabs and Indians to the 'O' used by Europeans.
- Robert Kaplan suggests the dot may originate from the round depression left in sand counting boards after removing a stone.
Sumerian Zero
- Sumerians used two diagonal lines on clay tablets to represent nothing, a precursor to zero.
- This placeholder concept arose from needing to distinguish quantities like 3,000 and 300 on tax records or grain inventories.
Zero's Evolution
- The concept of zero as a placeholder was solidified with the Babylonian abacus.
- Zero as a number itself wasn't recognized until 5th century AD India, a groundbreaking development.
