5 ms·

Negative numbers work fine for bookkeeping too. You owe someone 3 oranges.

• agumonkey 5y ago
  it seems there's a little issue in math, in that the concept and notation often assume enough intuition and imagination from the reader -3 looks odd if you interpret it as material existence but as you say, read in bookkeeping context, it's totally natural (npi). it's a bit like numbers 10 is actually 10 (base 10) but we elude it
  • jobigoud 5y ago
    > 10 (base 10) Even this notation assumes base ten for the number written inside the parenthesis. Otherwise it works for any base.
    • mc32 5y ago
      So 10 (base ten).
• tonyedgecombe 5y ago
  On the other hand double entry was invented so bookkeepers didn't need to deal with negative numbers.