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The Origin and Significance of Zero
An Interdisciplinary Perspective
Series: - Value Inquiry Book Series, Volume: 395
Winner of the 2024 Outstanding Academic Titles award in Choice, a publishing unit of the Association of College & Research Libraries (ACRL)
Zero has been axial in human development, but the origin and discovery of zero has never been satisfactorily addressed by a comprehensive, systematic and above all interdisciplinary research program. In this volume, over 40 international scholars explore zero under four broad themes: history; religion, philosophy & linguistics; arts; and mathematics & the sciences. Some propose that the invention/discovery of zero may have been facilitated by the prior evolution of a sophisticated concept of Nothingness or Emptiness (as it is understood in non-European traditions); and conversely, inhibited by the absence of, or aversion to, such a concept of Nothingness in the West. But not all scholars agree. Join the debate.
Zero has been axial in human development, but the origin and discovery of zero has never been satisfactorily addressed by a comprehensive, systematic and above all interdisciplinary research program. In this volume, over 40 international scholars explore zero under four broad themes: history; religion, philosophy & linguistics; arts; and mathematics & the sciences. Some propose that the invention/discovery of zero may have been facilitated by the prior evolution of a sophisticated concept of Nothingness or Emptiness (as it is understood in non-European traditions); and conversely, inhibited by the absence of, or aversion to, such a concept of Nothingness in the West. But not all scholars agree. Join the debate.
Peter Gobets is an independent researcher, specializing in philosophy, linguistics and the history of science and mathematics. He has authored three books including a philosophical novel. In the early 1990s, he drafted the original Zero Project, formally launched in 2015.
Robert Lawrence Kuhn (B.A., S.M., Ph.D.) is creator and host of Closer To Truth (science and philosophy, TV and web). He has written or edited over thirty books, chairs The Kuhn Foundation, and received the China Reform Friendship Medal.
Robert Lawrence Kuhn (B.A., S.M., Ph.D.) is creator and host of Closer To Truth (science and philosophy, TV and web). He has written or edited over thirty books, chairs The Kuhn Foundation, and received the China Reform Friendship Medal.
ââ¦a fascinating interdisciplinary expedition to unearth zeroâs best-kept secrets.â
â Professor Max Tegmark, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, USA
âZero has been central to battles in mathematics, in philosophy, in religion, and in the sciences.â
â Professor John Leslie, University of Guelph, Canada
â Professor Max Tegmark, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, USA
âZero has been central to battles in mathematics, in philosophy, in religion, and in the sciences.â
â Professor John Leslie, University of Guelph, Canada
Contents
Foreword
âValdis SegliÅÅ¡
Preface
âRobert Lawrence Kuhn
Acknowledgements
List of Figures and Tables
Notes on Contributors
Introduction
âPeter Gobets
Introduction to Part 0
1 Viewing the Zero as a Part of Cross-cultural Intellectual Heritage
âBhaswati Bhattacharya
2 Connecting Zeros
âMayank N. Vahia
3 Babylonian Zeros
âJim Ritter
4 Aspects of Zero in Ancient Egypt
âFriedhelm Hoffmann
5 The Zero Concept in Ancient Egypt
âBeatrice Lumpkin
6 On the Placeholder in Numeration and the Numeral Zero in China
âCélestin Xiaohan Zhou
7 Reflections on Early Dated Inscriptions from South India
âT. S. Ravishankar
8 From ÅÅ«nya to Zero â an Enigmatic Odyssey
âParthasarathi Mukhopadhyay
9 The Significance of Zero in Jaina Mathematics
âAnupam Jain
10 Notes on the Origin of the First Definition of Zero Consistent with Basic Physical Laws
âJonathan J. Crabtree
11 Putting a Price on Zero
âManil Suri
12 Revisiting Khmer Stele K-127
âDebra G. Aczel, Solang Uk and Hab Touch
13 The Medieval Arabic Zero
âJeffrey A. Oaks
14 Numeration in the Scientific Manuscripts of the Maghreb
âDjamil Aïssani
15 The Zero Triumphant: Allegory, Emptiness and the Early History of the Tarot
âEsther Freinkel Tishman
Introduction to Part 1
16 On the Semiotics of Zero
âBrian Rotman
17 Nought Matters: the History and Philosophy of Zero
âPaul Ernest
18 The Influence of Buddhism on the Invention and Development of Zero
âAlexis Lavis
19 Zero and ÅÅ«nyatÄ: Likely Bedfellows
âFabio Gironi
20 Indian Origin of Zero
âRavi Prakash Arya
21 A Philosophical Origin of the Mathematical Zero
âSudip Bhattacharyya
22 Category Theory and the Ontology of ÅÅ«nyata
âSisir Roy and Rayudu Posina
23 Zero: an Integrative Spiritual Perspective with One and Infinity
âSharda S. Nandram, Puneet K. Bindlish, Ankur Joshi and Vishwanath Dhital
24 Challenges in Interpreting the Invention of Zero
âKaspars Klavins
25 Some More Unsystematic Notes on ÅÅ«nya
âAlberto Pelissero
26 Much Ado about Nothing or, How Much Philosophy Is Required to Invent the Number Zero?
âJohannes Bronkhorst
27 From Emptiness to Nonsense: the Constitution of the Number Zero (for Non-mathematicians)
âErik Hoogcarspel
28 The Fear of Nothingness
âJohn Marmysz
29 The Concept of Naught in Jewish Tradition
âEsti Eisenmann
30 How Does Tom Tillemans Think?
âErik Hoogcarspel
31 Overhauling the Prevailing Worldview: an Essay
âPeter Gobets
Introduction to Part 2
32 Selected Works by Anish Kapoor
âPeter Gobets
Introduction to Part 3
33 The Unique Significance of Zero in Thinking: a Sense of âNothingâ
âAndreas Nieder
34 Can We Divide by Zero?
âMarina Ville
35 Division by Zero (khahara) in Indian Mathematics
âAvinash Sathaye
36 Zero: in Various Forms
âMayank N. Vahia and Upsana Neogi
37 Nothing, Zeno Paradoxes and Quantum Physics
âMarcis Auzinsh
38 The Significance to Physics of the Number Zero
âJoseph A. Biello and R. Samson
39 A World without Zero
âR. Samson
Epilogue
âPeter Gobets
Appendix 1: Expertise Center on Zero Memorandum of Understanding (MOU)
Appendix 2: Online Presentations
Appendix 3: Status Update/Petition on the Bakhshali Manuscript
Index
Foreword
âValdis SegliÅÅ¡
Preface
âRobert Lawrence Kuhn
Acknowledgements
List of Figures and Tables
Notes on Contributors
Introduction
âPeter Gobets
Part 0: Zero in Historical Perspective
Introduction to Part 0
1 Viewing the Zero as a Part of Cross-cultural Intellectual Heritage
âBhaswati Bhattacharya
2 Connecting Zeros
âMayank N. Vahia
3 Babylonian Zeros
âJim Ritter
4 Aspects of Zero in Ancient Egypt
âFriedhelm Hoffmann
5 The Zero Concept in Ancient Egypt
âBeatrice Lumpkin
6 On the Placeholder in Numeration and the Numeral Zero in China
âCélestin Xiaohan Zhou
7 Reflections on Early Dated Inscriptions from South India
âT. S. Ravishankar
8 From ÅÅ«nya to Zero â an Enigmatic Odyssey
âParthasarathi Mukhopadhyay
9 The Significance of Zero in Jaina Mathematics
âAnupam Jain
10 Notes on the Origin of the First Definition of Zero Consistent with Basic Physical Laws
âJonathan J. Crabtree
11 Putting a Price on Zero
âManil Suri
12 Revisiting Khmer Stele K-127
âDebra G. Aczel, Solang Uk and Hab Touch
13 The Medieval Arabic Zero
âJeffrey A. Oaks
14 Numeration in the Scientific Manuscripts of the Maghreb
âDjamil Aïssani
15 The Zero Triumphant: Allegory, Emptiness and the Early History of the Tarot
âEsther Freinkel Tishman
Part 1: Zero in Religious, Philosophical and Linguistic Perspective
Introduction to Part 1
16 On the Semiotics of Zero
âBrian Rotman
17 Nought Matters: the History and Philosophy of Zero
âPaul Ernest
18 The Influence of Buddhism on the Invention and Development of Zero
âAlexis Lavis
19 Zero and ÅÅ«nyatÄ: Likely Bedfellows
âFabio Gironi
20 Indian Origin of Zero
âRavi Prakash Arya
21 A Philosophical Origin of the Mathematical Zero
âSudip Bhattacharyya
22 Category Theory and the Ontology of ÅÅ«nyata
âSisir Roy and Rayudu Posina
23 Zero: an Integrative Spiritual Perspective with One and Infinity
âSharda S. Nandram, Puneet K. Bindlish, Ankur Joshi and Vishwanath Dhital
24 Challenges in Interpreting the Invention of Zero
âKaspars Klavins
25 Some More Unsystematic Notes on ÅÅ«nya
âAlberto Pelissero
26 Much Ado about Nothing or, How Much Philosophy Is Required to Invent the Number Zero?
âJohannes Bronkhorst
27 From Emptiness to Nonsense: the Constitution of the Number Zero (for Non-mathematicians)
âErik Hoogcarspel
28 The Fear of Nothingness
âJohn Marmysz
29 The Concept of Naught in Jewish Tradition
âEsti Eisenmann
30 How Does Tom Tillemans Think?
âErik Hoogcarspel
31 Overhauling the Prevailing Worldview: an Essay
âPeter Gobets
Part 2: Zero in the Arts
Introduction to Part 2
32 Selected Works by Anish Kapoor
âPeter Gobets
Part 3: Zero in Mathematics and Science
Introduction to Part 3
33 The Unique Significance of Zero in Thinking: a Sense of âNothingâ
âAndreas Nieder
34 Can We Divide by Zero?
âMarina Ville
35 Division by Zero (khahara) in Indian Mathematics
âAvinash Sathaye
36 Zero: in Various Forms
âMayank N. Vahia and Upsana Neogi
37 Nothing, Zeno Paradoxes and Quantum Physics
âMarcis Auzinsh
38 The Significance to Physics of the Number Zero
âJoseph A. Biello and R. Samson
39 A World without Zero
âR. Samson
Epilogue
âPeter Gobets
Appendix 1: Expertise Center on Zero Memorandum of Understanding (MOU)
Appendix 2: Online Presentations
Appendix 3: Status Update/Petition on the Bakhshali Manuscript
Index
This is a book for specialists and non-specialists with an interdisciplinary approach to origin and significance of the numeral zero. It will be of interest to academics in history, mathematics, theology, philosophy, linguistics, arts, sciences and social sciences.