Zero- cultures have feared it, banned it, revered it, and finally accepted it. It is infinity's twin. The Church believed it first to be heresy, then to prove God's existence. It is the number that is needed for calculus, the math of nature, but also is the center of black holes. Seife explores the number's history, from Aristotle to Albert Einstein and beyond.
Very good. It was very interesting- the Greeks didn't like zero because it didn't fit in with their philosophies; Christians didn't like it because they thought it was contradicting God's nature; but the Mayans' first day of each month was the zero-eth day. It was all about religion. The Hindus worshipped it as part of a god, Shiva. It's like Copernicus- when we think something messes with our doctrine, we try to ignore it and call everyone who believes in it heretics.
Believe in zero.
Happy Thanksgiving!
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