/sci/ - Science & Math

Brainlet here, I just started doing algebra after not having touched since rote learning it high school, and I had this thought:

Where does the axiom "the product of two negatives is a positive" come from?

What is it based off of?

Where do we see it in nature?

What is the correct perception of this axiom to have to truly conceptualize it?

The more I think about, the more I realize I have no idea why we do this. Why can't I grip this abstract idea, it almost seems arbitrary like there's no answer -- like we use this axiom simply because everything else is untrue.

Please help me understand this