The Origin and Significance of Zero

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.

Contents


Foreword


 Valdis Segliņš





Preface


 Robert Lawrence Kuhn





Acknowledgements


List of Figures and Tables


Notes on Contributors





Introduction


 Peter Gobets





Part 0: Zero in Historical Perspective


Introduction to Part 0





1 Viewing the Zero as a Part of Cross-cultural Intellectual Heritage


 Bhaswati Bhattacharya





2 Connecting Zeros


 Mayank N. Vahia





3 Babylonian Zeros


 Jim Ritter





4 Aspects of Zero in Ancient Egypt


 Friedhelm Hoffmann





5 The Zero Concept in Ancient Egypt


 Beatrice Lumpkin





6 On the Placeholder in Numeration and the Numeral Zero in China


 Célestin Xiaohan Zhou





7 Reflections on Early Dated Inscriptions from South India


 T. S. Ravishankar





8 From Śūnya to Zero – an Enigmatic Odyssey


 Parthasarathi Mukhopadhyay





9 The Significance of Zero in Jaina Mathematics


 Anupam Jain





10 Notes on the Origin of the First Definition of Zero Consistent with Basic Physical Laws


 Jonathan J. Crabtree





11 Putting a Price on Zero


 Manil Suri





12 Revisiting Khmer Stele K-127


 Debra G. Aczel, Solang Uk and Hab Touch





13 The Medieval Arabic Zero


 Jeffrey A. Oaks





14 Numeration in the Scientific Manuscripts of the Maghreb


 Djamil Aïssani





15 The Zero Triumphant: Allegory, Emptiness and the Early History of the Tarot


 Esther Freinkel Tishman





Part 1: Zero in Religious, Philosophical and Linguistic Perspective


Introduction to Part 1





16 On the Semiotics of Zero


 Brian Rotman





17 Nought Matters: the History and Philosophy of Zero


 Paul Ernest





18 The Influence of Buddhism on the Invention and Development of Zero


 Alexis Lavis





19 Zero and Śūnyatā: Likely Bedfellows


 Fabio Gironi





20 Indian Origin of Zero


 Ravi Prakash Arya





21 A Philosophical Origin of the Mathematical Zero


 Sudip Bhattacharyya





22 Category Theory and the Ontology of Śūnyata


 Sisir Roy and Rayudu Posina





23 Zero: an Integrative Spiritual Perspective with One and Infinity


 Sharda S. Nandram, Puneet K. Bindlish, Ankur Joshi and Vishwanath Dhital





24 Challenges in Interpreting the Invention of Zero


 Kaspars Klavins





25 Some More Unsystematic Notes on Śūnya


 Alberto Pelissero





26 Much Ado about Nothing or, How Much Philosophy Is Required to Invent the Number Zero?


 Johannes Bronkhorst





27 From Emptiness to Nonsense: the Constitution of the Number Zero (for Non-mathematicians)


 Erik Hoogcarspel





28 The Fear of Nothingness


 John Marmysz





29 The Concept of Naught in Jewish Tradition


 Esti Eisenmann





30 How Does Tom Tillemans Think?


 Erik Hoogcarspel





31 Overhauling the Prevailing Worldview: an Essay


 Peter Gobets





Part 2: Zero in the Arts


Introduction to Part 2





32 Selected Works by Anish Kapoor


 Peter Gobets





Part 3: Zero in Mathematics and Science


Introduction to Part 3





33 The Unique Significance of Zero in Thinking: a Sense of ‘Nothing’


 Andreas Nieder





34 Can We Divide by Zero?


 Marina Ville





35 Division by Zero (khahara) in Indian Mathematics


 Avinash Sathaye





36 Zero: in Various Forms


 Mayank N. Vahia and Upsana Neogi





37 Nothing, Zeno Paradoxes and Quantum Physics


 Marcis Auzinsh





38 The Significance to Physics of the Number Zero


 Joseph A. Biello and R. Samson





39 A World without Zero


 R. Samson





Epilogue


 Peter 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