Please open https://hotaudiobook.com ONLY on your standard browser Safari, Chrome, Microsoft or Firefox to download full audiobooks of your choice for free.

Title: Finding Zero

Subtitle: A Mathemetician's Odyssey to Uncover the Origins of Numbers

Author: Amir D. Aczel

Narrator: Stefan Rudnicki

Format: Unabridged

Length: 5 hrs and 59 mins

Language: English

Release date: 01-06-15

Publisher: Blackstone Audio, Inc.

Ratings: 4 of 5 out of 32 votes

Genres: History, World

Publisher's Summary:

The story of how we got our numbers - told through one mathematician's journey to find zero.

The invention of numerals is perhaps the greatest abstraction the human mind has ever created. Virtually everything in our lives is digital, numerical, or quantified. The story of how and where we got these numerals, which we so depend on, has for thousands of years been shrouded in mystery. Finding Zero is an adventure-filled saga of Amir Aczel's lifelong obsession: to find the original sources of our numerals. Aczel has doggedly crisscrossed the ancient world, scouring dusty, moldy texts, cross examining so-called scholars who offered wildly differing sets of facts, and ultimately penetrating deep into a Cambodian jungle to find a definitive proof. Here, he takes the listener along for the ride.

The history begins with the early Babylonian cuneiform numbers, followed by the later Greek and Roman letter numerals. Then Aczel asks the key question: Where do the numbers we use today, the so-called Hindu-Arabic numerals, come from? It is this search that leads him to explore uncharted territory, to go on a grand quest into India, Thailand, Laos, Vietnam, and ultimately into the wilds of Cambodia. There he is blown away to find the earliest zero - the keystone of our entire system of numbers - on a crumbling, vine-covered wall of a seventh-century temple adorned with eaten-away erotic sculptures. While on this odyssey, Aczel meets a host of fascinating characters: academics in search of truth, jungle trekkers looking for adventure, surprisingly honest politicians, shameless smugglers, and treacherous archaeological thieves - who finally reveal where our numbers come from.

Members Reviews:

Not what I expected but I loved it just the same.

The personal journey of this author is by itself quite interesting and the added bonus of all the mathematical insights as well as the historical discovery make for some of the best reading a number junkie like myself could ever ask for. I recommend all of Mr. Aczel's books whether you are a Math hound or not.

Couldn't stop listening

My first audible book that I couldn't stop listening to. Enjoyable start to finish. I would love to meet the author and shake his hand in seeing his vision through. I hope to see k127 for myself someday.

Not bad for an evolutionists take...

Fairly interesting, but leans heavily upon the dates and historical periods per the theory of evolution. I am not a proponent of said theory, and would be most enthusiastic if somebody would venture a work on this subject from the creationist point of view. As such, I can only regard this as a mere work of entertainment with a factual account of a true story, but historically, it is nearly valueless to creationists.

Lost me with all the sex talk...

Would you try another book from Amir D. Aczel and/or Stefan Rudnicki?

I'd be hesitant to. I'm not sure I would.

What was most disappointing about Amir D. Aczels story?

While it started out as an interesting personal narrative concerning math, it descended into talk about these statues and carvings which were in sexual positions, sexually aroused, naked, etc. It just became all about sex. I lost interest. I wanted to listen to a book about math, not depictions of sex and arousal.

Which character as performed by Stefan Rudnicki was your favorite?

I didn't get far enough in to say.