we dont know yet.....
Negative numbers were first recorded in ancient China, where they appeared in the Han Dynasty around the 2nd century BCE, primarily in the context of accounting and mathematics. The Chinese used red rods for positive numbers and black rods for negative ones. While other cultures, such as Indian mathematicians, also recognized negative numbers later on, it is China that is credited with their earliest documented use.
The use of negative numbers dates back to ancient civilizations, with the earliest documented use attributed to the Chinese during the Han Dynasty (around 200 BCE to 200 CE). They used negative numbers in calculations and to represent debts. The concept was later adopted and further developed by Indian mathematicians, such as Brahmagupta in the 7th century, who provided rules for arithmetic involving negative numbers.
The concept of negative numbers originated in ancient civilizations, with evidence found in Chinese texts dating back to around 200 BCE, where they were used to represent debts. Indian mathematicians further developed the concept by the 7th century, recognizing negative numbers as valid solutions to equations. The acceptance of negative numbers gradually spread to the Islamic world and then to Europe during the Renaissance, where they were formalized within the framework of mathematics.
Natural numbers, which were around before the concept of negative numbers
it was around the time of christ.Although the first set of rules for dealing with negative numbers was stated in the 7th century by the Indian mathematician Brahmagupta, it is surprising that in 1758 the British mathematician Francis Maseres was claiming that negative numbers "... darken the very whole doctrines of the equations and make dark of the things which are in their nature excessively obvious and simple" .Maseres and his contemporary, William Friend took the view that negative numbers did not exist. However, other mathematicians around the same time had decided that negative numbers could be used as long as they had been eliminated during the calculations where they appeared.It was not until the 19th century when British mathematicians like De Morgan, Peacock, and others, began to investigate the 'laws of arithmetic' in terms of logical definitions that the problem of negative numbers was finally sorted out.However, there were references to negative numbers far earlier...In 200 BCE the Chinese number rod system (see note1 below) represented positive numbers in Red and Negative numbers in black. An article describing this system can be found here . These were used for commercial and tax calculations where the black cancelled out the red. The amount sold was positive (because of receiving money) and the amount spent in purchasing something was negative (because of paying out); so a money balance was positive, and a deficit negative.Negative intergers were accepted around the time of Christ.
The concept of negative numbers was first documented by Chinese mathematicians around the 2nd century BC. These numbers were initially used to solve practical problems related to debt and payments.
Negative numbers were first recorded in ancient China, where they appeared in the Han Dynasty around the 2nd century BCE, primarily in the context of accounting and mathematics. The Chinese used red rods for positive numbers and black rods for negative ones. While other cultures, such as Indian mathematicians, also recognized negative numbers later on, it is China that is credited with their earliest documented use.
The use of negative numbers dates back to ancient civilizations, with the earliest documented use attributed to the Chinese during the Han Dynasty (around 200 BCE to 200 CE). They used negative numbers in calculations and to represent debts. The concept was later adopted and further developed by Indian mathematicians, such as Brahmagupta in the 7th century, who provided rules for arithmetic involving negative numbers.
The concept of negative numbers originated in ancient civilizations, with evidence found in Chinese texts dating back to around 200 BCE, where they were used to represent debts. Indian mathematicians further developed the concept by the 7th century, recognizing negative numbers as valid solutions to equations. The acceptance of negative numbers gradually spread to the Islamic world and then to Europe during the Renaissance, where they were formalized within the framework of mathematics.
Natural numbers, which were around before the concept of negative numbers
It seems that negative numbers have been used around the time of Christ, but it took centuries more before they were generally accepted. See here for some history: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Negative_numbers#History
it was around the time of christ.Although the first set of rules for dealing with negative numbers was stated in the 7th century by the Indian mathematician Brahmagupta, it is surprising that in 1758 the British mathematician Francis Maseres was claiming that negative numbers "... darken the very whole doctrines of the equations and make dark of the things which are in their nature excessively obvious and simple" .Maseres and his contemporary, William Friend took the view that negative numbers did not exist. However, other mathematicians around the same time had decided that negative numbers could be used as long as they had been eliminated during the calculations where they appeared.It was not until the 19th century when British mathematicians like De Morgan, Peacock, and others, began to investigate the 'laws of arithmetic' in terms of logical definitions that the problem of negative numbers was finally sorted out.However, there were references to negative numbers far earlier...In 200 BCE the Chinese number rod system (see note1 below) represented positive numbers in Red and Negative numbers in black. An article describing this system can be found here . These were used for commercial and tax calculations where the black cancelled out the red. The amount sold was positive (because of receiving money) and the amount spent in purchasing something was negative (because of paying out); so a money balance was positive, and a deficit negative.Negative intergers were accepted around the time of Christ.
it was around the time of christ.Although the first set of rules for dealing with negative numbers was stated in the 7th century by the Indian mathematician Brahmagupta, it is surprising that in 1758 the British mathematician Francis Maseres was claiming that negative numbers "... darken the very whole doctrines of the equations and make dark of the things which are in their nature excessively obvious and simple" .Maseres and his contemporary, William Friend took the view that negative numbers did not exist. However, other mathematicians around the same time had decided that negative numbers could be used as long as they had been eliminated during the calculations where they appeared.It was not until the 19th century when British mathematicians like De Morgan, Peacock, and others, began to investigate the 'laws of arithmetic' in terms of logical definitions that the problem of negative numbers was finally sorted out.However, there were references to negative numbers far earlier...In 200 BCE the Chinese number rod system (see note1 below) represented positive numbers in Red and Negative numbers in black. An article describing this system can be found here . These were used for commercial and tax calculations where the black cancelled out the red. The amount sold was positive (because of receiving money) and the amount spent in purchasing something was negative (because of paying out); so a money balance was positive, and a deficit negative.Negative intergers were accepted around the time of Christ.
by using the thermostat
The first place to use negative integers was China around 200 B.C
Temperature and Money Issues.
One source says that a Chinese text (Nine Chapters in the Mathematical Arts) from around 200 BC used red rods for positive numbers and black for negative. So the "inventor" must be older than that. European texts up until the Renaissance considered negative numbers as absurd.