Book Title: Scientific Secrets of Jainism
Author(s): Nandighoshvijay
Publisher: Research Institute of Scientific Secrets from Indian Oriental Scriptures Ahmedabad
________________
Limitations Of Mathematics In Jain Philosophy And....
Proceeding further, we come across yet another class of numbers, called complex Numbers. Square roots, forth-roots etc. of negative numbers are very useful in these complex numbers. Really speaking the square-roots, the fourth roots or sixth-roots of negative numbers have imaginary existence. Mahāvīracarya, the Jain mathematician of the ninth century of A.D., was the first to call them imaginary." Later on in the year 1545 A.D. the mathematician named Cardon also called them imaginary. Of course, these numbers are used in mathematics in the following way e.g. 40=25+15=52 − (√−15)2 = (5+ √−15)(5−√−15)
22
95
Here (5+√15) and (5-√-15) are called complex numbers. Since there is no real number in mathematics whose square can be a negative number, it is not possible to find out the real value of √15. and therefore, it is called, imaginary.
Zero - The Eternal Enigma
Zero is a unique gift of Indian mathematicians to the world. Of course, who invented zero? How? All this cannot be definitely decided. But we can make inferences.
24
25
We make a dual use of zero- as a symbol and as a number. In the initial stage, zero was used as a symbol. Zero is used to show total absence of a thing. Formerly, Indian writers used words and letters to indicate numbers and figures. Then figures 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, etc. were used as symbols for those words. Along with the words, these figures i.e. numbers were also written between brackets e.g.(3, 5, 6, 1, .....etc.) But when total absence of a thing was to be shown, a point was put between brackets along with the word standing for sky. (.) This is what some believe." This symbol (.) showed a null set or null vector." As time passed by, the point, it is inferred dropped out of the brackets and only brackets were used. Which people wrote the symbol of brackets hurriedly, they perhaps joined the brackets together. And this is how today's form of zero came into being. It is my inference that zero was thus created. It showed total absence of a thing. Then after a very long period of time, it was accepted in the form of number. After acceptance of zero as a number, it was again a question to place zero in the order of numbers. Generally, in computers and typewriters zero is placed after 1, 2, 3, 4, 5,
Jain Education International
For Private & Personal Use Only
www.jainelibrary.org