Nothing
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- This article is on the abstract meaning of nothing. For alternate meanings, see Nothing (disambiguation)
Template:Wiktionarypar Nothing is a state of being. In a sense, it is the state of not being, of ceasing to exist. Nothing is the lack or absence of anything (including empty space). Colloquially, however, the term is often used to describe a particularly unimpressive person, event, or object.
The term "nothing" is rarely used mathematically, though it could be said that a set contains "nothing" if and only if it is the empty set, in which case its cardinality (or size) is zero. In other words, the word "nothing" is a colloqial term for an "empty set". "Nothing" and "zero" are closely related but not identical concepts, though, in common parlance, the word "nothing" can also mean "zero" which is a mathematic object that can, for example, symbolize a variable which is "lacking in value". This is why zero can be included in a set. Like "zero," the word "nothing" can symbolize the concept of "a lack of value". But as "nothing" is a linguistic term, it lacks any rigorous definition. Thus it can only be distinguished from context whether or not the word "nothing" represents what mathematicians would call an "empty set" (e.g. "There is nothing here"), or whether it represents what mathematicians would call a "zero" or a lack of value (e.g. "It is worth nothing"). This lack of rigorous definition can allow one to create statements which seem to be logical fallacies—If you have nothing except for nothing, do you have something or nothing?
From a philosophical point of view, the concept of "nothing" can have many interpretations. In fact, one can even say that nothing does not exist. One cannot sense, see, feel, or think nothing. There is no contact with nothing. Nothing is where everything isn't. Visualizing "nothing" would make "something". It could be seen as a physical void or as just a word which only has meaning when used to describe a relationship between different "somethings". A single "correct" definition of nothing could be considered impossible, since "right" and "wrong" do not fit within the confines of nothing.
The intriguing aspect of nothing is that, while not covering any factual matter, it does have a function attached to it; much depends on the structure in which the nothing is found. The easiest example to explain the importance of the overall structure is found with zero — though again, zero and nothing are not totally identical. Zero is found, for instance, in two different systems: the binary system and the decimal system. In the binary system zero is one of only two members, and its function is considered clearly very important, for instance, in computers. In the decimal system, however, zero is one of many, and since its function here seems to deliver the message of not-important, people do not even bother counting from zero, but start counting 1, 2, 3 etc. Only in a count down does zero become important again; in the decimal system, zero can easily be ignored. Mathematical evidence [[1]] suggests that zero always exists. Similar to zero, the label nothing gets perceived as either important or not-important depending on the actual system in which it is considered. Compare these two sentences in which nothing plays the central role: While traveling to the city nothing happened and so I arrived safely; while getting ready to pay I discovered that there was nothing in my wallet, and so I had to go wash the dishes.
The concept of "nothing" has been studied throughout history by philosophers and theologians; many have found that careful consideration of the notion can easily lead to the logical fallacy of reification. The understanding of "nothing" varies widely between cultures, especially between Western and Eastern cultures and philosophical traditions. For instance, nothing is considered a state of mind in Buddhism (See nirvana, Mu, Enlightenment). Existentialism and Heidegger have brought these two understandings closer together.