German mathematician who proposed an axiomatic definition of the set of integers as well as an explicit construction of real numbers based on rational numbers. Dedekind introduced the notation [latex]\mathbb{N}[/latex] in 1888 to refer to the set of non-zero natural numbers. Today, this set is denoted by [latex]\mathbb{N}[/latex]*. Dedekind also proposed the use of the symbol [latex]\mathbb{R}[/latex] to refer to the set of real numbers and the use of the symbol [latex]\mathbb{Z}[/latex] to refer to the set of integers. Richard Dedekind (1831-1916)