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113th out of 133 books
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154 voters
The Nothing That Is: A Natural History of Zero
A symbol for what is not there, an emptiness that increases any number it's added to, an inexhaustible and indispensable paradox. As we enter the year 2000, zero is once again making its presence felt. Nothing itself, it makes possible a myriad of calculations. Indeed, without zero mathematics as we know it would not exist. And without mathematics our understanding of the...more
Paperback, 240 pages
Published
December 1st 2000
by Oxford University Press
(first published January 1st 1999)
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Kaplan never met a literary allusion he didn't like.
At times this works, as it adds depth and surprising insight into some of the mathematical concepts he's talking about. At other times, it feels remarkably scattershot, and adds little to the material. Not every reference in every classic to nothing or nothingness needs to be included - pick the ones that actually add something to the discussion, please.
Most of the time, this is a remarkable work of the history of mathematics, specifically the...more
At times this works, as it adds depth and surprising insight into some of the mathematical concepts he's talking about. At other times, it feels remarkably scattershot, and adds little to the material. Not every reference in every classic to nothing or nothingness needs to be included - pick the ones that actually add something to the discussion, please.
Most of the time, this is a remarkable work of the history of mathematics, specifically the...more
“The Nothing That Is: A Natural History of Zero” by Robert Kaplan is a look at what is perhaps the most significant creations and advances ever made in mathematics. Imagine trying to calculate using Roman Numerals or any system that did not have columns, and its significance doesn’t end there as it is critical in dealing with negative numbers and calculus. Zero took a journey from indicating nothing, to being a number of value which then forced the creation of the idea of null to once again indi...more
Kaplan gives zero a more romantic and even mystical turn than others writing about specific numbers. In part, he might say, any thinking person would have done the same since the status of zero as a number remained long in question. And the peculiarities of the idea of nothing persist to the present. But Kaplan enjoys the play of language and in language the flexing of ideas. Though finally he credits Wittgenstein with pointing us toward the unthinkable that lies at the center of zero, he waves...more
A pretty good book that tells you more about zero. It is as its title -- A Natural History of Zero.
To quote Newton, "If I have seen a little further it is by standing on the shoulders of Giants." Zero is something which we take for granted, but that is only because the people of the past and we owe it to them.
Despite some mathematics involved, you don't need more than high school mathematics to be able to read this book. Besides, you can also choose to skim through topics which don't interest yo...more
To quote Newton, "If I have seen a little further it is by standing on the shoulders of Giants." Zero is something which we take for granted, but that is only because the people of the past and we owe it to them.
Despite some mathematics involved, you don't need more than high school mathematics to be able to read this book. Besides, you can also choose to skim through topics which don't interest yo...more
I stumbled upon this book in university while working on an assignment for a math course. It was completely unrelated to my assignment, but the title intrigued me...so i decided to take it back to my study table and read it on my breaks.
It is an amazing book that tracks the history of the human evolution of basic mathematical concepts that build the foundations of all modern sciences. At the same time it ties in the parallels with history and philosophy of the last 2000+ years.
A great non fict...more
It is an amazing book that tracks the history of the human evolution of basic mathematical concepts that build the foundations of all modern sciences. At the same time it ties in the parallels with history and philosophy of the last 2000+ years.
A great non fict...more
Since I was a bookish person my whole life, there was a somewhat sad acceptance of not liking math, which meant not very good at math. But, when I decided to go to graduate school, I had to take a calculus course to have a complete application. I took it as a summer class at Framingham state college. First pre-calculus, taught by a real ass. He was very condenscending and if he had a love of the subject, he never shared it whith the students. I suffered through and took the calculus. Though I di...more
I bought this book from Berkley during one of my visits to San Fransisco. Robert Kaplan has done some good amount of research and have tracked the evolution of some of the fundamental concepts on which modern science and mathematics is based. Zero, a number which itself does not means anything but together with other numbers means a lot. The history of zero has been tracked to ancient Indian number systems where it was called as "shoonya". It is unfortunate that the invention of zero in India co...more
this book kinda blew my mind. ill probably forget what happened in the book like two months from now, but seriously this book was totally interesting. personally, i was totally going to use this book for my ncsm thingiemaproject, but it totally came late so i couldnt use it,,,,besides it wasnt due yet, so i thought to myself hey why dont i just read it. and i did. this guy, robert kaplan is like ttoally amazing. he gives so much information on the number zero. he even kind of redefines it as bas...more
I've had many math professors who fancied themselves as philosophers as well as mathematicians. This author strikes me as one of those. Not necessarily a bad thing. But Kaplan really packs his literary and historical references into each paragragh, making for a dense, and slow, read at times.
The second half of the book picks up. Here it switches from historical speculation to more modern uses of zero, demonstrating its importance in math and our everyday life. Over all, an interesting read for a...more
The second half of the book picks up. Here it switches from historical speculation to more modern uses of zero, demonstrating its importance in math and our everyday life. Over all, an interesting read for a...more
Kaplan is a mathematician who knows how to communicate to right-brainers.. YAY.
This is a really nice book that describes all the ways that the zero, and therefore math, is integrated into the rest of life and shows it throughout history in a wide range of disciplines and contexts.
It is a conceptual book, written by a mathematician, for the rest of us.
Swell.
This is a really nice book that describes all the ways that the zero, and therefore math, is integrated into the rest of life and shows it throughout history in a wide range of disciplines and contexts.
It is a conceptual book, written by a mathematician, for the rest of us.
Swell.
The author claims this book can be understood by anyone with High School Maths. This is doubtless true, but there were some parts that stretched my maths ability and some that lost me. This is my fault rather than the author's. This is a fascinating book that tracks the idea of zero through history, mathematics, psychology and philosophy. I would not have choosen this book for myself - it was recommended to me, but I am very glad I have read it. Don't be put of if, like me, maths was not your st...more
Nicely documented journey of the number Zero in our lives.
But , one glaring error was: when most of the historians believe that , the number zero originated from the Indian(Indus) civilization, i found it hard to agree when he credits the Sumerian and other middle eastern civilization as the originators of Zero.
But , one glaring error was: when most of the historians believe that , the number zero originated from the Indian(Indus) civilization, i found it hard to agree when he credits the Sumerian and other middle eastern civilization as the originators of Zero.
Who knew that that the history of nothing would be so violent? The four stars represent my love of the material, mathematics throughout history and in our daily lives, but the intrepid reader should be prepared for a highly florid writing style.
A great book for math nerds like me! But you don't have to be a math expert to understand or appreciate this book -- the book details the history of human civilizations as we learn about how mathematics and numbers are part of the story.
Though a bit poetic and grandiose near the end, some parts are fairly useful; the chapter entitled "Slouching towards Bethlehem" for instance. The chapter "Bathhouses and Spiders" gave me mathematical chills. If you can make it through millennia of boring historical exposition and on through the high-concept math (sort of a fuzzy real analysis) you'll get to the philosophical bits, and that's what I enjoyed the most. If you like even your conversational math to be strict this book might infuriat...more
Kaplan seems like a frustrated poet and his writing can become tedious at times, but this was great for a quick and dirty introduction to the history of "zero".
Reading this book is like being on a treasure hunt. You must weed through the uninteresting parts to get to the insightful ideas. Although I found only 35% of this book worth reading I would still recommend it. The treasures you find throughout the book will blow your mind. This book is great for those imaginitive math geeks like myself.
Kaplan does a good job getting something from nothing (indeed, almost everything from nothing), by telling the history of all numbers from the history of zero.
Interesting book, but it really drags along. The author's frequent "literary" passages would be a lot better if they were more subtle and integrated better with the storyline. This book might be great at half the length.
I never realized how big of a mental jump the concept of zero (as a number, as a thing) is. Didn't realize how long it really took to develop zero as we know it, either (spoiler alert... still grappling with it in the 18th century).
If any part of that description sounds interesti...more
I never realized how big of a mental jump the concept of zero (as a number, as a thing) is. Didn't realize how long it really took to develop zero as we know it, either (spoiler alert... still grappling with it in the 18th century).
If any part of that description sounds interesti...more
May 08, 2010
Dawn
marked it as to-read
As a teacher I am always waxing poetic on zero. Looking forward to this read about origin.
That simple circle encompasses much more than I would have imagined...
As much interesting history as anything.
Remove a star if you hate history.
Remove a star if you hate history.
"The history of representention of non-existence."
Great subject, irritating writing style.
Excellent book! I plan to read it again soon.
Tedious for a non-math person.
It's interesting when you realize how difficult it must've been for ancient cultures to assign a name and an idea to a concept that doesn't physically exist. 1, 5, or 60 apples are tangible (and often part of everyday life), but what's the point of discussing zero apples? In a deeper context, surpassing this hurdle was the first step towards more developed number theory ideas such as infinity, countability/uncountability, irrationality, and imaginary numbers.
I love the story of this number. It has such a fascinating history, and an equally fascinating evolution from impossible idea to full-fledged member of the number-family. (It also helps that zero is my favorite number...) The best part of this book is that it's written to be accessible to anyone who's interested in this number - it's not a heavy math-laden book, but simply the story of a number.
It's less entertaining than the other math books on my shelf, but it's alright. Kaplan's style is more proper than I would like. It's interesting stuff nonetheless. Zero is a recent develpment, historically speaking. For a long time, ot was used before it was recognized for what it is.
I guess it just goes to show that we humans aren't as smart as we give ourselves credit for.
I guess it just goes to show that we humans aren't as smart as we give ourselves credit for.
reading this book is like playing golf– the next chapter is the next hole that actually (none surprisingly) represents O. Indeed, I am still reading it and I am at the 7-th hole. Yes, that’s correct I am at chapter 7.
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Robert and Ellen Kaplan have taught mathematics to people from six to sixty, at leading independent schools and most recently at Harvard University. Robert Kaplan is the author of the best-selling The Nothing That Is: A Natural History of Zero, which has been translated into 10 languages, and together they wrote The Art of the Infinite. Ellen Kaplan is also co-author of Chances Are: Adventures in...more
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“Let the pleasure of doodling led us to writing as decoration rather than to the peculiarly abstract sort of representation it inclines towards: the making of signs to look through rather than at.”
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