More or less exactly what it says on the tin. Start with a group of cavemen on prehistoric earth, discovering fire, language, wheels, etc, and walk them along the path to civilization, but with one major difference: at no point will anyone ever think of the concept of mathematical zero.

How big of an obstacle would this be? Exactly how many technologies could have been invented without zero-inclusive math? You could have things like pottery, smelting, and agriculture all just fine. You might even be able to stumble into some of the more basic technologies such as the printing press or the cotton gin without any awareness of zero. But things like physics or economics would be tricky, or maybe even impossible. Exactly how much of our modern society is reliant in some way upon zero, and how far could we have gotten without it?

Some details:

• Base 10 doesn't exist, we're probably running off base 9
• Anything that involves math more complicated than basic algebra is completely out of the question (orbital physics, advanced electronics, etc)
• Anything that could feasibly be figured out without doing the math first is fair game, but not if it has a prerequisite discovery that would require math. so for example, you could probably invent a steam engine just by knowing enough about steam pressure and how it behaves in a confined space, but you probably couldn't invent a radio. Also, it might not be a very good steam engine, because you might not be easily able to calculate the forces acting upon the metal that makes the boiler, so the whole thing might explode.
• A lot of this will probably have to do with larger organizational structures. In other words, it's not inventing the train, it's making sure the train runs on time.

More or less exactly what it says on the tin. Start with a group of cavemen on prehistoric earth, discovering fire, language, wheels, etc, and walk them along the path to civilization, but with one major difference: at no point will anyone ever think of the concept of mathematical zero.

How big of an obstacle would this be? Exactly how many technologies could have been invented without zero-inclusive math? You could have things like pottery, smelting, and agriculture all just fine. You might even be able to stumble into some of the more basic technologies such as the printing press or the cotton gin without any awareness of zero. But things like physics or economics would be tricky, or maybe even impossible. Exactly how much of our modern society is reliant in some way upon zero, and how far could we have gotten without it?

Some details:

• Base 10 doesn't exist, we're probably running off base 9
• Anything that involves math more complicated than basic algebra is completely out of the question (orbital physics, advanced electronics, etc)
• Anything that could feasibly be figured out without doing the math first is fair game, but not if it has a prerequisite discovery that would require math. So for example, you could probably invent a steam engine just by knowing enough about steam pressure and how it behaves in a confined space, but you probably couldn't invent a radio. Also, it might not be a very good steam engine, because you might not be easily able to calculate the forces acting upon the metal that makes the boiler, so the whole thing might explode.
• A lot of this will probably have to do with larger organizational structures. In other words, it's not inventing the train, it's making sure the train runs on time.

More or less exactly what it says on the tin. Start with a group of cavemen on prehistoric earth, discovering fire, language, wheels, etc, and walk them along the path to civilization, but with one major difference: at no point will anyone ever think of the concept of mathematical zero.

How big of an obstacle would this be? Exactly how many technologies could have been invented without zero-inclusive math? You could have things like pottery, smelting, and agriculture all just fine. You might even be able to stumble into some of the more basic technologies such as the printing press or the cotton gin without any awareness of zero. But things like physics or economics would be tricky, or maybe even impossible. Exactly how much of our modern society is reliant in some way upon zero, and how far could we have gotten without it?

More or less exactly what it says on the tin. Start with a group of cavemen on prehistoric earth, discovering fire, language, wheels, etc, and walk them along the path to civilization, but with one major difference: at no point will anyone ever think of the concept of mathematical zero.

How big of an obstacle would this be? Exactly how many technologies could have been invented without zero-inclusive math? You could have things like pottery, smelting, and agriculture all just fine. You might even be able to stumble into some of the more basic technologies such as the printing press or the cotton gin without any awareness of zero. But things like physics or economics would be tricky, or maybe even impossible. Exactly how much of our modern society is reliant in some way upon zero, and how far could we have gotten without it?

Some details:

• Base 10 doesn't exist, we're probably running off base 9
• Anything that involves math more complicated than basic algebra is completely out of the question (orbital physics, advanced electronics, etc)
• Anything that could feasibly be figured out without doing the math first is fair game, but not if it has a prerequisite discovery that would require math. so for example, you could probably invent a steam engine just by knowing enough about steam pressure and how it behaves in a confined space, but you probably couldn't invent a radio. Also, it might not be a very good steam engine, because you might not be easily able to calculate the forces acting upon the metal that makes the boiler, so the whole thing might explode.
• A lot of this will probably have to do with larger organizational structures. In other words, it's not inventing the train, it's making sure the train runs on time.