I’ve decided to do something about NOTHING!
Nada, nichts, ничего ( nichego ), لا شيء ( la shay’ )
Which, you must admit, is far more constructive than doing nothing about something! Although, in certain cases, doing nothing, can be the most appropriate option.
Roman Numerals
I loved learning about Roman Numerals in my childhood.
It’s like one of those strange encrypted languages.
In school, they teach you the keys to deciphering this gobbledygook and then suddenly, the penny drops.
It becomes ludic. Fun. Enjoyable.
With both Roman Numerals and the Rudiments and Theory of Music, it’s like learning a new ‘language’. A whole new world of logic lights up our mind.
Open Sesame!
The Rudiments and Theory of Music
I’ve still got my dog-eared copy of the Rudiments and Theory of Music lying around somewhere.
The little Red book. The reference. So many musical gems packed into one small, dense book. I would still recommend this book to anyone starting out with the Theory of Music.
Calculator Soup
I sometimes wonder how the Romans carried out division operations and measurements with their numeral system. I suspect the multitude of Greek mathematicians, including Euclid, were a source of inspiration.
Having said that, when you observe the wonders of Roman architecture and their ability to navigate and systematically conquer, I’m sure long division was within their grasp.
Check out this article for some Roman Elementary calculations. If you’d like to have fun with Roman Numeral Arithmetic, check out CalculatorSOUP.
Euclid
Euclid was born c.300 B.C., just after the death of Alexander The Great. He devised the Euclidean Division Algorithm which is still in use to this day.
Brahmagupta
Throughout the different periods, many civilisations felt that something was missing in their maths. The notion of nothing or absence needed to be dealt with.
Enter Brahmagupta, an Indian mathematician, who lived between c.598 A.D. and c.670 A.D. Just to place this into context on a timeline:
- the Pope sent Augustine in 597 A.D. to England to spread Christianity and thus began the christianisation of England.
- the Prophet Mohammad (570-632 A.D.) was spreading the word of Islam.
- the Frankish kingdom was consolidating its power in Western Europe.
- the Roman Empire was diminished and was centred around Constantinople
- the Sassanid Empire was the last pre-Islamic Empire in Iran.
Brahmagupta introduced the notion of ZERO or o as symbolised in the Hindu Numeral system, based on decimal positional notation. You might say it was revolutionary.
Al-khwarizmi (aka Algorithm) and Fibonacci
This same decimal notation started to be adopted by Arabic mathematics around 662 A.D. It wasn’t until the year 976 A.D. that the notation first appeared in Europe. Fibonacci promoted the use of the Arabic Numeral system as early as 1202.
The decimal notation was used by the Persian mathematician Al-khwarizmi, famous for inventing Algebra in the early 800s A.D. His name is used on a day-to-day basis: Algorithm.
Hindi Numerals
The numerals have somewhat changed over time, but there are similarities and some distinct differences between the original symbols used in Hindi numerals and the modern Arabic numerals used today. Take a look at the Hindi equivalent and translation:
John Cooper Clarke, Punk Poet
On a lighter note, John Cooper Clarke was the inspiration for the title of this post. I love his poetry and the poem called NOTHING is very apt.
Click here to discover Nothing, by John Cooper Clarke.
Enjoy!
Resources
Brahmagupta | Encyclopedia.com. (n.d.). https://www.encyclopedia.com/people/science-and-technology/astronomy-biographies/brahmagupta
Clarke, J. C. (n.d.). John Cooper Clarke –. John Cooper Clarke. https://johncooperclarke.com/poems/nothing
Gies, F. C. (2023, April 21). Fibonacci | Biography, Sequence, & Facts. Encyclopedia Britannica. https://www.britannica.com/biography/Fibonacci
History of The Hindu–Arabic Numeral System – Adoption in Europe | Adoption Europe | Technology Trends. (n.d.). https://www.primidi.com/history_of_the_hindu%E2%80%93arabic_numeral_system/adoption_in_europe
Long Division (with Steps) Remainder Calculator (Euclidean) Online. (n.d.). https://www.dcode.fr/euclidean-division
Netchev, S. (2023, January 10). The Sassanid Empire c. 620 CE. World History Encyclopedia. https://www.worldhistory.org/image/16853/the-sassanid-empire-c-620-ce/
Roman Elementary Mathematics the Operations on JSTOR. (n.d.). https://www.jstor.org/stable/3293540
The History of Algebra. (2017, April 22). ThoughtCo. https://www.thoughtco.com/the-history-of-algebra-1788145
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