Path: utzoo!attcan!uunet!husc6!cmcl2!nrl-cmf!ames!pasteur!ucbvax!decwrl!labrea!sri-unix!garth!smryan
From: smryan@garth.UUCP (Steven Ryan)
Newsgroups: comp.lang.ada
Subject: Re: Type NATURAL isn't
Message-ID: <802@garth.UUCP>
Date: 25 Jun 88 00:06:27 GMT
References: <8806231808.AA15365@spp3.SPP>
Reply-To: smryan@garth.UUCP (Steven Ryan)
Organization: INTERGRAPH (APD) -- Palo Alto, CA
Lines: 11

In article <8806231808.AA15365@spp3.SPP> simpson@spp3.UUCP (Scott Simpson) writes:
>Natural numbers start at 1!  Any mathematician would assume it
>to be the same declaration as POSITIVE.

Number theory which deals with the properties of natural numbers starts at
zero. Before appealing to a mathematical definition, be aware some people use
natural to refer to {0,1,2,...} and others use {1,2,3,...} and whole as
{0,1,2,...}. Whatever the authour finds useful.

A word means what I say means, nothing more or less.
                   - H Dumpty