Join Amazon Prime and get unlimited Free One-Day Delivery. Already a member? Sign in.

 

or
Sign in to turn on 1-Click ordering.
 
   
More Buying Choices
34 used & new from £2.75
Have one to sell? Sell yours here
 
   
Zero: The Biography of a Dangerous Idea
 
See larger image 
Share your own customer images
Publisher: learn how customers can search inside this book.

Zero: The Biography of a Dangerous Idea (Paperback)

by Charles Seife (Author)
4.7 out of 5 stars See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
RRP: £9.99
Price: £7.49 & this item Delivered FREE in the UK with Super Saver Delivery. See details and conditions
You Save: £2.50 (25%)
o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o
In stock.
Dispatched from and sold by Amazon.co.uk. Gift-wrap available.

Want guaranteed delivery by Wednesday, July 15? Choose Express delivery at checkout. See Details
21 new from £4.18 13 used from £2.75
Other Editions: RRP: Our Price: Other Offers:
Hardcover 7 used & new from £7.32
Paperback 17 used & new from £4.80

Frequently Bought Together

Zero: The Biography of a Dangerous Idea + "e": The Story of a Number (Princeton Science Library) + An Imaginary Tale: The Story of "i" [the square root of minus one]: The Story of "I" (the Square Root of Minus One)
Price For All Three: £27.97

Show availability and shipping details

Customers Who Bought This Item Also Bought

"e": The Story of a Number (Princeton Science Library)

"e": The Story of a Number (Princeton Science Library)

by Eli Maor
4.8 out of 5 stars (5)  £8.99
An Imaginary Tale: The Story of "i" [the square root of minus one]: The Story of "I" (the Square Root of Minus One)

An Imaginary Tale: The Story of "i" [the square root of minus one]: The Story of "I" (the Square Root of Minus One)

by Paul J. Nahin
4.0 out of 5 stars (5)  £11.49
Brief History of Infinity: The Quest to Think the Unthinkable

Brief History of Infinity: The Quest to Think the Unthinkable

by Brian Clegg
4.2 out of 5 stars (16)  £6.74
Fermat's Last Theorem

Fermat's Last Theorem

by Simon Singh
4.8 out of 5 stars (133)  £6.49
A History of Pi

A History of Pi

by Petr Beckmann
3.5 out of 5 stars (15)  £11.50
› Explore similar items

Product details

  • Paperback: 256 pages
  • Publisher: Souvenir Press Ltd; New Ed edition (12 Oct 2000)
  • Language English
  • ISBN-10: 0285635948
  • ISBN-13: 978-0285635944
  • Product Dimensions: 21.4 x 13.4 x 2.2 cm
  • Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
  • Amazon.co.uk Sales Rank: 41,743 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

    Popular in these categories:

    #4 in  Books > Scientific, Technical & Medical > Mathematics > Mathematical Theory > Philosophy of Mathematics
    #4 in  Books > Science & Nature > Mathematics > Philosophy of Mathematics
    #4 in  Books > Science & Nature > History & Philosophy > Mathematics

    •  Would you like to update product info or give feedback on images?

Product Description

Review
This is one of the best-written popular science books to have come this way for quite a while... Seife has a neat turn of phrase, an easy yet respectful familiarity with his subject that helps the maths slip down easily. --Nicholas Lezard, 'The Guardian'

A witty but lucid account... A must for armchair logicians. --'BBC Focus'

A breathless tour of the dangerous idea of zero. --'New Scientist'

'Focus', July 2003
a witty but lucid account... A must for armchair logicians.

See all Product Description

Tags Customers Associate with This Product

 (What's this?)
Click on a tag to find related items, discussions, and people.
Check the boxes next to the tags you consider relevant or enter your own tags in the field below
(1)
(1)
(1)
(1)
(1)

Your tags: Add your first tag
 
See most popular tags

What Do Customers Ultimately Buy After Viewing This Item?

Zero: The Biography of a Dangerous Idea
84% buy the item featured on this page:
Zero: The Biography of a Dangerous Idea 4.7 out of 5 stars (6)
£7.49
"e": The Story of a Number (Princeton Science Library)
7% buy
"e": The Story of a Number (Princeton Science Library) 4.8 out of 5 stars (5)
£8.99
An Imaginary Tale: The Story of "i" [the square root of minus one]: The Story of "I" (the Square Root of Minus One)
3% buy
An Imaginary Tale: The Story of "i" [the square root of minus one]: The Story of "I" (the Square Root of Minus One) 4.0 out of 5 stars (5)
£11.49
Fermat's Last Theorem
3% buy
Fermat's Last Theorem 4.8 out of 5 stars (133)
£6.49
Explore similar items
 

Customer Reviews

6 Reviews
5 star:
 (4)
4 star:
 (2)
3 star:    (0)
2 star:    (0)
1 star:    (0)
 
 
 
 
 
Average Customer Review
4.7 out of 5 stars (6 customer reviews)
 
 
 
 
Share your thoughts with other customers:
Most Helpful Customer Reviews

 
33 of 35 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars Review for Zero:the Biography of a Dangerous Idea, 30 Jul 2002
By A Customer
This book was absolutely wonderful, it delves into the history of mathematics, as far back as the creation of numbers themselves. It looks at the contribution that the Greeks, Babylonians and Hindus made to mathematics, and how religion had restricted the development of mathematics. The book was written very well, it felt like a story book, rather than a factual book. I recommend this book for everyone with an interest in Maths, you do not need to be a mathematician to enjoy this book.
Comment Comment | Permalink | Was this review helpful to you? Yes No (Report this)



 
7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars Zero and infinity, 7 Aug 2007
By Mikko Saari (Tampere, Finland) - See all my reviews
Babylonians invented it, Indians worshipped it, Greeks abhorred it. Zero has been a problematic number for a long time. European mathematicians followed Greek footsteps, until they finally realized how important thing zero was for advanced mathematics.

Seife presents us the history of zero and its sister concept infinity, not only in mathematics, but also in physics and quantum mechanics. Zero is an entertaining book, if a bit light. For quick popular science entertainment purposes it's a good choice. (Review based on the Finnish translation.)
Comment Comment | Permalink | Was this review helpful to you? Yes No (Report this)



 
13 of 14 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars one of the best maths books around, 8 Dec 2006
By marthiemoo (bristol, uk) - See all my reviews
Being an undergraduate philosopher I've had to read a lot of maths books, and this is by far the best. It's true that you don't need much maths background to understand it, but it's also highly enjoyable for those with a lot of maths or physics knowledge - it links up and explains general assumptions in a way which seems never to occur to most teachers of sciences courses. The proof of 0=1 (and, extrapolating, that winston churchill = a carrot) is excellent and well worth committing to memory just to freak out any maths nerds one knows. Also worth a go is the step-by-step guide to making your own wormhole time machine (Step 1: Make a small wormhole, and attach one end to something really heavy). Really excellent, buy everyone you know a copy for christmas.
Comment Comment | Permalink | Was this review helpful to you? Yes No (Report this)


Share your thoughts with other customers: Create your own review
 
 
 
Most Recent Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5 stars This book will fascinate, surprise and confuse in equal measures
It has been awhile since anyone has reviewed this book so I thought I should show that even though it was published a few years ago it is still a very well written and breathless... Read more
Published 4 months ago by J. Duducu

4.0 out of 5 stars Mathematics history
A very readable book. This book covers the life story of the number zero, and it is a facinating story which is being told. Read more
Published on 11 April 2003 by Steve Trumpet

5.0 out of 5 stars Highly Recommended
This is an excellent history of number Zero. Charles Seife takes you from the start, tracing the ideas of zero and inifity through time and how their concepts have been feared and... Read more
Published on 23 Sep 2001

Only search this product's reviews


Customer Discussions

 Beta (What's this?)
This product's forum (0 discussions)
  Discussion Replies Latest Post
  No discussions yet

Ask questions, Share opinions, Gain insight
Start a new discussion
Topic:
First post:
Prompts for sign-in
  [Cancel]


Active discussions in related forums
   
Related forums

Listmania!

Create a Listmania! list

Look for similar items by category

Feedback

The Body Shop

The Body Shop - Vitamin C Skin Boost
Protect and boost your glow with The Body Shop Vitamin C Skin Boost.

›Shop The Body Shop

  

Beauty without the Beast

Olay Regenerist Daily 3 Point Treatment Cream
From au naturel to party glam, we have all the best names in cosmetics and skincare.

›Discover Beauty at Amazon.co.uk

  

Boys Smell

Lynx Africa Body Spray and After Shave Gift set
But we make sure they smell good...

›Discover male grooming at Amazon.co.uk

  

Treat Someone

Amazon.co.uk Gift Certificates--available in any amount from £5 to £500 With an Amazon.co.uk Gift Certificate, you can get them what they want (even if you don't know what that is).

›Learn more about Gift Certificates

  
Ad

Where's My Stuff?

Delivery and Returns

Need Help?

Your Recent History

  (What's this?)
You have no recently viewed items or searches.

After viewing product detail pages or search results, look here to find an easy way to navigate back to pages you are interested in.

Look to the right column to find helpful suggestions for your shopping session.
Continue Shopping: Top Sellers
The Girl Who Played with Fire
The Girl Who Played with Fire by Stieg Larsson
4.5 out of 5 stars (75)£3.86
 Breaking Dawn (Twilight Saga)
Breaking Dawn (Twilight Saga) by Stephenie Meyer
4.1 out of 5 stars (464)£6.49
 The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo
The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson
4.1 out of 5 stars (165)£3.99
 The Host
The Host by Stephenie Meyer
4.2 out of 5 stars (82)£3.86

amazon.co.uk Amazon Home
International Sites:  United States  |  Germany  |  France  |  Japan  |  Canada  |  China
Business Programs: Sell on Amazon  |  Fulfilment by Amazon  |  Join Associates  |  Join Advantage
Customer Service  |  Help  |  View Basket  |  Your Account
About Amazon.co.uk  |  Careers at Amazon
Conditions of Use & Sale |  Privacy Notice  © 1996-2009, Amazon.com, Inc. and its affiliates