0 (number): Difference between revisions
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imported>Jitse Niesen (rewrite first sentences, to get rid of the mysterious "It is also the numerical digit which represents itself." (see talk)) |
imported>Blake R. Peters (→Further Reading: Added Further Reading section, added three sources for further reading.) |
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== History == | == History == | ||
The number zero was invented twice - once in India and once in Mesoamerica. This invention is considered especially significant because it required a considerable cognitive leap to achieve and because it opened the door to a host of new applications for numbers. | The number zero was invented twice - once in India and once in Mesoamerica. This invention is considered especially significant because it required a considerable cognitive leap to achieve and because it opened the door to a host of new applications for numbers. | ||
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==Further Reading== | |||
* Bourbaki, Nicolas. ''Elements of the History of Mathematics'' (1998) - can be found (in limited form) on [http://books.google.com/books?id=Qvo8-KC__VAC&pg=PP1&dq=Elements+of+the+History+of+Mathematics#v=onepage&q=&f=false Google Books] | |||
* Kaplan, Robert. ''The Nothing that is: A Natural History of Zero'' (1999) - can be found (in limited form) on [http://books.google.com/books?id=Bn0EBVsfi1YC&printsec=frontcover&dq=The+nothing+that+is+:+a+natural+history+of+zero#v=onepage&q=The%20nothing%20that%20is%20%3A%20a%20natural%20history%20of%20zero&f=false Google Books] | |||
* Seife, Charles. ''Zero: The Biography of a Dangerous Idea'' (2000) - can be found (in limited form) on [http://books.google.com/books?id=obJ70nxVYFUC&pg=PP1&dq=zero#v=onepage&q=&f=false Google Books] | |||
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== Use in Mathematics == | == Use in Mathematics == | ||
Revision as of 02:30, 6 November 2009
0 (zero) is a real number and is the integer between 1 and -1, which signifies a value of nothing. It is also a numerical digit and used as a placeholder for place value systems.
History
The number zero was invented twice - once in India and once in Mesoamerica. This invention is considered especially significant because it required a considerable cognitive leap to achieve and because it opened the door to a host of new applications for numbers.
Further Reading
- Bourbaki, Nicolas. Elements of the History of Mathematics (1998) - can be found (in limited form) on Google Books
- Kaplan, Robert. The Nothing that is: A Natural History of Zero (1999) - can be found (in limited form) on Google Books
- Seife, Charles. Zero: The Biography of a Dangerous Idea (2000) - can be found (in limited form) on Google Books