Like everyone else in the family, Mirim had lots of work to do. Even when she was very little, Mirim had helped her mother grind grain for bread and pick berries and grapes. But now that she was...
Stop at ten
Before people began to count, they probably had no name for any number but one. Suppose a hunter wanted to tell about a small herd of four to six deer he had seen. He might just say it was a "hand"...
Fingers for numbers
It was early morning as Amu, the shepherd boy, trudged toward the sheep pen, whistling merrily. His feet were bare. His only clothing was a short skirt made of animal skin. In one hand he carried his...
Counting sheep
How many sheep are there, here? Two, of course. You didn't have to count them to know that. You could tell at a glance. And you probably don't have to count these sheep either, to know that there...
Fingers, pebbles, and wiggly marks
What would we do without numbers? Why, we couldn't even count! We couldn't keep track of birthdays, Or of any other amount. But have there always been numbers? Were they always just "lying around"?...
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