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ZERO Slow on
the Uptake
It took some time for zero to catch
on in Europe. Roman numerals were
Zero is neither a positive nor a negative
number—it means an absence of value. still favored over Arabic numerals
It is used as a placeholder in many (1, 2, 3, etc.) right up to 1500 ce.
numbers, such as in the number 10. European mathematicians couldn’t
Placing a zero after the numeral one understand how a number could
changes its value to ten. mean nothing!
NEGATIVE NUMBERS POSITIVE NUMBERS A stone inscription
...-5 -4 -3 -2 -1 1 2 3 4 5... dating from 875 ce on
the Chaturbhuj Temple
in India features one of
the earliest uses of zero.
Complex
Zero was
Sporting 500 ce in India. Once Calculations
created in around
Zero zero was invented, Being able to use zero allowed Indian
There are mathematics was astronomers to make complex calculations
other names for transformed. “Nothing” that took their math way beyond that of
had a numeral!
zero, especially European scientists. They used their
in sport. In soccer advanced math to figure out that the Earth
it is called “nil,” in spins on its axis and that it moves around
tennis it is known as the Sun. It would be another thousand
“love,” and in cricket a years before the Polish astronomer
score of zero is called a “duck.” Copernicus worked this out!
Copernicus
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