Ep 18: Mathematically Advance Ancient India

It should come as no surprise that the first recorded use of the number zero happened in India. Mathematics on the Indian subcontinent has a rich history going back over 3,000 years and thrived for centuries before similar advances were made in Europe, with its influence meanwhile spreading to China and the Middle East. Indian mathematicians made seminal contributions to the study of trigonometry, algebra, arithmetic and negative numbers among other areas. Perhaps most significantly, the decimal system that we still employ worldwide today was first seen in India. The leap, made in India, that transformed zero from a simple placeholder to a number in its own right indicates the mathematically enlightened culture that was flourishing on the subcontinent at a time when Europe was stuck in the dark ages. Although its reputation suffers from the Eurocentric bias, the subcontinent has a strong mathematical heritage, which it continues into the 21st century by providing key players at the forefront of every branch of mathematics.

You can listen to Ep 18: Mathematically Advance Ancient India online on Radio and Podcast. Open the player on this page to stream the available audio.

Ep 18: Mathematically Advance Ancient India is an episode from UNRAVEL STUDIO by Rutuja Sangitrao.

This episode is 00:06:53 long.

This episode was published on Apr 24, 2021.

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