Indian digits or Arabic letters?
Al-Khwarizmi writing his book of algebra faces a choice: adopt the new Indian digits 0-9 easing calculation but strange to readers, or keep the Arabic letters and words everyone knows? The decision: precision of symbols or closeness of words?
The positions
the digits party
zero opens the arithmetic letters close
The evidence
the digits entered inheritance and trade arithmetic and spread
Sources: person/al-khwarizmiconcept/algebra
the words party
algebra is read in the tongue people understand, not strange shapes
The evidence
he wrote in full prose so his book schooled generations
Sources: person/al-khwarizmiconcept/algebra
You decide
Which would have served your book more: symbol or word? Write your reason.
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