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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.
- Sales Rank: #874261 in Books
- Published on: 2016-02-02
- Released on: 2016-02-02
- Original language: English
- Number of items: 1
- Dimensions: 8.22" h x .67" w x 5.53" l, .0 pounds
- Binding: Paperback
- 256 pages
Review
“In his quest to find out whence the numbers came, Aczel crosses the globe, visiting India, Thailand, Vietnam and elsewhere…in weaving together mathematics and history with his personal explorations, Aczel enables readers to experience the joy of the chase.” ―Scientific American
“In this combination of memoir, travelog, and philosophical musing, Aczel recounts his search for the origin of the numerals…Recommended for anyone who cares about the history of mathematics and science.” ―Library Journal
“Readers...accompany Aczel as he tests the limits of coldly cerebral Western mathematical logic against the stunning eroticism of numerical thinking in Hinduism, and weighs the truefalse reasoning of Aristotle against the bewildering four-prong logic of the Buddha...An exciting personal adventure reminding readers of how much nothing really means.” ―Booklist (starred review)
“Prolific mathematics writer Aczel leads a historical adventure that doubles as a surprisingly engaging math lesson...Readers may find themselves questioning Aczel's sanity, as his obsession with zero's origins drives him from one dead end to the next, but it's difficult to avoid being drawn into his quest with these rip-roaring exploits and escapades.” ―Publishers Weekly
“"The author of the best-selling Fermat's Enigma (1996) and other popular books on mathematics and science takes readers through a history of zero and takes himself on a journey through the jungles of Cambodia to find its the earliest use. …the journey to zero is an adventure worth joining." –Kirkus Reviews ” ―
“"The zero is the most precious mathematical legacy we have from medieval times. Without it, modern mathematics would be unthinkable. In this delightful book Amir Aczel engagingly explains its importance, while recounting his search for the earliest representation of zero” ―and the drama that erupted when he found it." –Ian Tattersall, Curator Emeritus in the Division of Anthropology, American Museum of Natural History
“"Amir Aczel is the Indiana Jones of the mathematical world, taking us on an enthralling adventure to find out where our numbers came from." -Marcus du Sautoy, professor of Mathematics at the University of Oxford and author of The Number Mysteries” ―
About the Author
Amir D. Aczel is the author of fifteen books, including The Riddle of the Compass, The Mystery of the Aleph, and the international bestseller Fermat's Last Theorem. An internationally known writer of mathematics and science, he is a fellow of the John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation. He lives in Brookline, MA.
Most helpful customer reviews
22 of 24 people found the following review helpful.
There's More to Nothing Than Meets the Eye
By takingadayoff
There's more to nothing than you might imagine. Zero is not only a convenient placeholder as a numeral, but it's also a slippery concept. Similar to infinity in its paradoxicality (is that a word?), zero is a relatively recent invention. Or is it a discovery?
Mathematician Amir Aczel explores these questions in his search for the first concrete evidence for the use of zero. On his journey, he remembers his childhood as the son of a cruise ship captain. His father's most trusted officer, Laci (pronounced Lotzi), was a former math scholar and introduced the young Aczel to math. Aczel became hooked immediately. Zero has been discovered in ancient Mayan texts, but Aczel is most interested in the early use of zero in Indian and nearby cultures. Although a discovery had been made about a hundred years ago in Cambodia of a zero on a stone slab from the 7th century A.D., the stone was lost in the chaos of war and social upheaval. Aczel set out to find the stone again.
The math is easy to take, Aczel doesn't get too deep, but the philosophy of zero and nothingness is another matter altogether. His explorations of Indian religions were less interesting to me. He breaks from time to time to describe his travels and conversations with other mathematicians. It's as much travel narrative as it is math and science.
It's an engaging book, although the end is a bit anticlimactic, since the fact of the zero on the stone is not in doubt, whether he finds it or not is not critical. I very much liked the tail end, when Aczel finally discovers Laci's decades-old secret.
(Thanks to publisher Palgrave Macmillan for a review copy.)
28 of 34 people found the following review helpful.
Flawed Execution But a Compelling History
By David S. Wellhauser
Amir D. Aczel's Finding Zero presents the reader with a number of challenges:
1. Poor style
2. Parochial travelogue
3. Disturbing juxtaposition of `East' and `West'
4. Dated attitude to Hindu and Jain erotic art...as well as the suggestive art of Angkor Wat
5. Fascinating history of the search for Zero
The last of these, and the main reason for reading the book, is in fact not a challenge at all, but for those interested in the history of mathematics and the origin of one of the most important discoveries in human history a pure pleasure. However, readers are required to wade through a considerable amount embarrassment to get there.
Firstly, there is the style. It isn't simply that the sentences are inelegant, but immature and stilted. Mr. Aczel was in serious need of editorial aid in this respect.
As a travelogue, the reader is treated to a series of shockingly naïve attitudes to travel in the `East' where the author is frequently shocked by the sex trade/sex slavery, pickpockets, corrupt officials, and the general shocking customs of the countries he find himself in.
Beyond this there is the vulgar attempt to correct Western arrogance about the history of science in general and the origin of Zero in particular--most of these references are very dated. Nor does the author go into the problematic designation of the scientific method originated in the 17th Century in Europe and the methodologies used in the `East' so as to formalize the process by which conclusions are arrived at. Aczel simply offers a criticism of Western arrogance with no details and comparisons that analyse the methodologies being contrasted. There is some woolly discussion about `Eastern' and `Western' logic but this doesn't really help the reader come to terms with the differences because the differences in the methodologies and ideologies are unclearly stated.
This leads into the last problem with the book--its attitude to erotic and suggestive ancient art/reliefs on temples of India and Cambodia. This was very difficult to read in the early 21st Century where everyone, wishing it or not, is exposed to some of the most extreme forms of sexuality as a matter of course on the Web.
There are many other instances in which this book would be a challenge for the typical thoughtful reader, but there is little reason in beating the point into the ground.
The only incentive for reading this book is the quest for the Eurasian origins of Zero [the earliest discovery of Zero, the author maintains, was Mayan but this was locked away in Meso-America and because of this did not impact Eurasia]. For this reason alone aficionados of mathematical history may wish to give this book a quick look, if you can go beyond its flaws.
Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
Recommended for buffs of mathematical history with a high tolerance for the above mentioned flaws.
Note:
This review was edited by the reviewer because of a threat of legal action from the author. The reason for the threat was twofold.
1. The reviewer referred to the author as Israeli and they, the author, claimed to be a Naturalized American. Mr Aczel was referred to as an Israeli because that was the nationality given on their Wikipedia page. The nationality of the author on the Wikipedia page, as of writing, was removed. Therefore, this has been removed from the review with apologies for the honest mistake.
2. The reviewer felt there was some unconscious glee taken by the author in an Anti-American sentiment the reviewer felt was presented by some actor[s] in the travelogue. This, as well, has been removed because going through a court battle on this issue seems not the most productive use of this reviewer's time and energy...and a misreading may have occurred on the part of the reviewer. It is unclear whether or not this occurred, but the author was adamant it had...hence the removal of the offending observation.
16 of 19 people found the following review helpful.
Not worth the effort
By Stephen Armstrong
I found major flaws with this book. (1) The history itself is disjointed. Why did he not put in some kind of graphic to indicate the different cultural and epochal developments that led to zero? (2) The travelogue was not interesting. (3) The author tries to link Eastern religious philosophy and Eastern erotic stonework to the development of numbers, including zero, but the links are speculative and not necessarily true. The author is neither a philosopher nor cultural anthropologist: he is a bright fellow who thinks his speculative ideas are worth reading. (4) This book is really about the author's search, and hence is about the author, not really about zero. (5) The author does not establish the link between zero (emptiness) and its use as a positional place holder in the number system. (6) Finally, the author tells his version of preserving the K-127 stele (the first graphic indication of a positional zero) and how he scotched a Sicilian archeologist's greedy attempt to snatch this rock from him. He comes across at the same level as the Sicilian archeologist.
It surprised me that the author fell over his feet several times to thank the Sloan Foundation for its support of his travels. If the granting officer ever reads this book, I think he or she will wonder about the value of the grant.
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