Finding zero: a mathematician's odyssey to uncover the origins of numbers
(Book)
Description
"The invention of numerals is perhaps the greatest abstraction the human mind has ever created. Virtually everything in our lives is digital, numerical, or quantified. The story of how and where we got these numerals, which we so depend on, has for thousands of years been shrouded in mystery. Finding Zero is an adventure filled saga of Amir Aczel's lifelong obsession: to find the original sources of our numerals. Aczel has doggedly crisscrossed the ancient world, scouring dusty, moldy texts, cross examining so-called scholars who offered wildly differing sets of facts, and ultimately penetrating deep into a Cambodian jungle to find a definitive proof. Here, he takes the reader along for the ride. The history begins with the early Babylonian cuneiform numbers, followed by the later Greek and Roman letter numerals. Then Aczel asks the key question: where do the numbers we use today, the so-called Hindu-Arabic numerals, come from? It is this search that leads him to explore uncharted territory, to go on a grand quest into India, Thailand, Laos, Vietnam, and ultimately into the wilds of Cambodia. There he is blown away to find the earliest zero--the keystone of our entire system of numbers--on a crumbling, vine-covered wall of a seventh-century temple adorned with eaten-away erotic sculptures. While on this odyssey, Aczel meets a host of fascinating characters: academics in search of truth, jungle trekkers looking for adventure, surprisingly honest politicians, shameless smugglers, and treacherous archaeological thieves--who finally reveal where our numbers come from. "--
Copies
More Copies In LINK+
More Details
Notes
Reviews from GoodReads
Citations
Aczel, A. D. (2015). Finding zero: a mathematician's odyssey to uncover the origins of numbers. New York City, Palgrave Macmillan.
Chicago / Turabian - Author Date Citation (style guide)Aczel, Amir D.. 2015. Finding Zero: A Mathematician's Odyssey to Uncover the Origins of Numbers. New York City, Palgrave Macmillan.
Chicago / Turabian - Humanities Citation (style guide)Aczel, Amir D., Finding Zero: A Mathematician's Odyssey to Uncover the Origins of Numbers. New York City, Palgrave Macmillan, 2015.
MLA Citation (style guide)Aczel, Amir D.. Finding Zero: A Mathematician's Odyssey to Uncover the Origins of Numbers. New York City, Palgrave Macmillan, 2015.
Staff View
Record Information
| Last Sierra Extract Time | Jul 20, 2024 08:23:28 PM |
|---|---|
| Last File Modification Time | Jul 20, 2024 08:24:06 PM |
| Last Grouped Work Modification Time | Jul 26, 2024 02:10:39 AM |
MARC Record
| LEADER | 02869cam 2200361 i 4500 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| 001 | sky260240956 | ||
| 003 | SKY | ||
| 005 | 20150113112932.0 | ||
| 008 | 140620s2015 nyua b 001 0 eng | ||
| 010 | |a 2014024462 | ||
| 020 | |a 1137279842 | ||
| 020 | |a 9781137279842 | ||
| 040 | |a DLC |b eng |e rda |c DLC |d BTCTA |d BDX |d OCLCO |d OCLCF |d YDXCP |d TMK |d OQX |d KUA |d ORX |d SKYRV | ||
| 042 | |a pcc | ||
| 049 | |a JRSA | ||
| 050 | 0 | 0 | |a QA141.2 |b .A29 2015 |
| 082 | 0 | 0 | |a 513.5 |2 23 |
| 099 | |a 513.5 A189 2015 | ||
| 100 | 1 | |a Aczel, Amir D., |e author. | |
| 245 | 1 | 0 | |a Finding zero : |b a mathematician's odyssey to uncover the origins of numbers / |c Amir D. Aczel. |
| 264 | 1 | |a New York City : |b Palgrave Macmillan, |c 2015. | |
| 300 | |a x, 242 pages : |b illustrations ; |c 22 cm. | ||
| 336 | |a text |b txt |2 rdacontent. | ||
| 337 | |a unmediated |b n |2 rdamedia. | ||
| 338 | |a volume |b nc |2 rdacarrier. | ||
| 504 | |a Includes bibliographical references and index. | ||
| 520 | |a "The invention of numerals is perhaps the greatest abstraction the human mind has ever created. Virtually everything in our lives is digital, numerical, or quantified. The story of how and where we got these numerals, which we so depend on, has for thousands of years been shrouded in mystery. Finding Zero is an adventure filled saga of Amir Aczel's lifelong obsession: to find the original sources of our numerals. Aczel has doggedly crisscrossed the ancient world, scouring dusty, moldy texts, cross examining so-called scholars who offered wildly differing sets of facts, and ultimately penetrating deep into a Cambodian jungle to find a definitive proof. Here, he takes the reader along for the ride. The history begins with the early Babylonian cuneiform numbers, followed by the later Greek and Roman letter numerals. Then Aczel asks the key question: where do the numbers we use today, the so-called Hindu-Arabic numerals, come from? It is this search that leads him to explore uncharted territory, to go on a grand quest into India, Thailand, Laos, Vietnam, and ultimately into the wilds of Cambodia. There he is blown away to find the earliest zero--the keystone of our entire system of numbers--on a crumbling, vine-covered wall of a seventh-century temple adorned with eaten-away erotic sculptures. While on this odyssey, Aczel meets a host of fascinating characters: academics in search of truth, jungle trekkers looking for adventure, surprisingly honest politicians, shameless smugglers, and treacherous archaeological thieves--who finally reveal where our numbers come from. "-- |c Provided by publisher. | ||
| 650 | 0 | |a Zero (The number) |x History. | |
| 650 | 0 | |a Numerals |x History. | |
| 907 | |a .b23463806 | ||
| 945 | |y .i71315421 |i 33029099603433 |l ardag |s - |k |u 15 |x 3 |w 0 |v 23 |t 3 |z 01-23-15 |o - | ||
| 945 | |y .i71315433 |i 33029099603425 |l cenag |s - |k 07-27-24 |u 16 |x 3 |w 0 |v 15 |t 3 |z 01-23-15 |o - | ||
| 998 | |e - |d a |f eng |a ard |a cen | ||