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3025 BCE
Origin of Zero
Zero originated in Mesopotamia 5,000 years ago with the Sumerians, who used it as a placeholder, not a number. Their base-60 system influenced time and geometry. Though they couldn't calculate with zero, they developed a positional system using cuneiform script. These innovations laid key groundwork for future math advancements. -
800 BCE
Al-Khwārizmī’s Accomplishments
Al-Khwārizmī’s accomplishments include writing a treatise on Hindu-Arabic numerals and introducing decimal position notation which we still use today.
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628 BCE
Brahmasphutasiddhanta
Brahmagupta wrote a book called “Brahmasphutasiddhanta” which means “the opening of the universe”
(Brahmagupta and the Concept of Zero – ScienceOpen, n.d.). -
1201
Fibonacci
The Hindu-Arabic numeral system gained popularity due to its simplicity and efficiency over Roman numerals. Fibonacci, after studying math across various cultures, introduced the system to Europe through his book Liber Abaci. Though adoption was slow, it eventually replaced Roman numerals due to its advantages. Fibonacci is also known for the Fibonacci sequence, a recursive pattern found widely in nature, made possible by earlier mathematical developments like zero. -
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Binary Numeral System
Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz invented the binary numeral system.
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Zero's Implications for Calculus
The number zero allowed for the idea of calculus to be discovered and developed.
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Kelvin: Absolute Zero
A few discoveries in the world of science that hinged on zero include absolute zero which refers to temperate 0 Kelvin.
Why Do We Need Zero? (n.d.). Retrieved February 16, 2025, from http://5010.mathed.usu.edu/Fall2018/LPierson/whyzero.html -
Einstein Publishes the Theory of Relativity
In his annus mirabilis, Einstein publishes papers on the special theory of relativity, on the photoelectric effect and on Brownian motion.
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Arthur Eddington
Einstein’s general theory of relativity relied on three tests, including the deflection of light by gravity. Arthur Eddington led a 1919 eclipse expedition to test this. Despite delays from WWI, he measured starlight bending around the Sun, confirming Einstein’s prediction and disproving Newton’s. His findings supported the theory that massive objects curve spacetime, affecting light.
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Edwin Hubble
Einstein’s theory suggested space could expand or contract. Edwin Hubble built on this and discovered galaxies are moving away from us, proving the universe is expanding—now known as Hubble’s Law. Hubble, originally a lawyer, returned to astronomy and used Mount Wilson’s telescope to find Cepheid stars in Andromeda, showing it lay beyond the Milky Way. This challenged prior beliefs and expanded our understanding of the cosmos.
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Joseph Weber
Joseph Weber builds the first "resonant bar detectors."
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GPS
The theory of relativity has direct correlation with GPS. Without Einstein's theory our GPS’s would lead us miles away from our destinations.
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Gravity Probe B
NASA launched a spacecraft called Gravity Probe B specifically designed to watch Einstein’s theory play out in the orbit of Earth.
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