Nick Murphy's PBS-aired The Story of 1 is not just the story of the first number, but also the history of humankind's development of the concept of numbers itself: how organized warfare and powerful monarchies created the need for really big numbers, how “zero” revolutionized mathematical thinking, and how taxes and accounting led to the changeover from Roman to Arabic numerals (which are, in fact, Indian). Terry Jones hosts this BBC-produced documentary, and—as might be expected from a Monty Python alum—he brings a whimsical and cheeky tone to the proceedings. But The Story of 1 is, overall, a rather superficial introduction to some extraordinary ideas: mildly entertaining, yes, but still on the level of basic math. Optional. Aud: J, H, P. (M. Johanson)
The Story of 1
(2005) 60 min. VHS: $24.99, DVD: $29.99. PBS Video. Color cover. Closed captioned. ISBN: 0-7936-9208-3 (dvd). Volume 21, Issue 5
The Story of 1
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