Sir Isaac Newton

Introduction

Sir Isaac Newton was a philosopher, mathematician, astronomer, theologian, physicist, and alchemist. He had worked on various theories and hypotheses like the theory of relativity, gravity, binomial theory, and Opticks. He was connected to Trinity College and Cambridge University. Furthermore, he refused the doctrine of the trinity and dedicated most of his life to alchemy and biblical chronology besides science.

Early life

• Sir Isaac Newton was born at Woolsthrope manor, a hamlet in Lincolnshire, on 4^th January 1643 or 25^th December 1642 according to the Julian calendar.

• He was born prematurely and was a posthumous child. His biological father was Isaac Newton and his mother was Hannah Ayscough. She remarried later.

• He was in The King’s School until he was seventeen years old and taught Latin and ancient Greek. He conveyed his interest in Maths. He was removed from school in 1659. His school teacher Henry Stokes motivated him to return to school. He became top-ranked by making windmills and sundial models.

• In 1661, he was admitted to the Trinity College of Cambridge University.

• In 1664, he got a scholarship that covered his education till his M.A. he made a question series on mechanical philosophy.

• In 1665, he discovered the binomial theorem and developed the calculus theory. The same year he obtained a bachelor’s degree and for the next two years, he studied at his home and developed optics theory and the law of gravitation.

• In 1667, he was elected as a fellow of Trinity and impressed professor Isaac Barrow.

• In 1669, he obtained his master’s degree and was appointed as Lucasian mathematics professor by the recommendation of Barrow.

• In 1672, the Royal Society elected him as a fellow.

Sir Isaac Newton as found on the rear of a one-pound note

Work

Calculus

• 1666- His works on calculus were published in a manuscript.

• 1669- Isaac Barrow sent newtons “De analysi per aequationes numero terminorum infinitas” to John Collins.

• There is a controversy related to Leibniz- Newton calculus. Leibniz had a notation on a differential equation. He worked broadly on the geometric form of calculus based on limiting values of vanishingly small quantities in “Principia” whereas Newton explained his expositions in “the method of first and last ratios”.

• 1684- “de motu corporum in gyrum” and his papers on motions represented the use of method griping “one or more orders of the infinitesimally small”.

He invented Newton’s identities and method, cubic plane curves classification, theory of infinite differences, Diophantine equation, and partial sums of logarithm’s harmonic series.

Optics

• 1666- Studied the colour spectrum emission from the prism.

• 1670-1672- gave a speech on optics and researched light refraction.

• Invented Newton’s colour theory, chromatic aberration, and Newton’s telescope.

• 1668- Invented the first reflecting telescope.

• 1675-Hypothesis of light.

• 1704- Published Opticks.

Law of Gravity

• 1679- Worked on celestial mechanics, considering Kepler’s laws.

• 5^th July 1687- Published Principia.

• Invented the law of gravitation.

• 1713- Principia second edition.

• Hypotheses non-fingo.

• 1710- Categorized 72-78 cubic curves species into 4 types.

• 1731- Proved the plane projection theory.

Later Life

• 1690- Wrote several religious scribes.

• 1689 and 1701- a member of the parliament of England.

• 1696- Warden of the Royal Mint of London.

• 1701- Retired from Cambridge.

• 1703- Became the president of the Royal Society and French Académie des sciences associate.

• 1705- Accepted Knighthood by Queen Anne.

• He passed away on 20th March 1726 and was buried in Westminster Abbey.

Personality

• He died unmarried and was never irrational of common frailties of mankind, passion, according to Voltaire.

• In 1693, he suffered a nervous breakdown. Due to this, he was perplexed and had the unexplained end of friendships.

• Later in 2015, it was detected that he had a high-functioning autism named Asperger syndrome.

Theology

• He had an inborn Christian faith.

• He documented Christianity as a divine arbitrator between man and god.

• He had an interest in prophecy.

• He said that it’s an elementary sin to think of Christ as a god.

• He was an Antitrinitarian monotheist.

• He studied the bible and worked on textual criticism, An historical account of two notable corruptions of scripture, and Observations upon the prophecies of Daniel, and the Apocalypse of St. John.

• He positioned a Jesus crucifixion on 3^rd April, AD 33.

• He had an interest in occult studies too.

Alchemy

• He wrote about 1 million papers about alchemy and was auctioned. Cambridge University kept a small amount and returned the rest to the Earl of Portsmouth.

• His papers are put in online projects at Indiana University.

Legacy

• According to the mathematician Joseph-Louis Lagrange, he was a genius who ever lived.

• All of his works and greatness were inscribed in his monument of Westminster Abbey.

• The SI-derived force unit was Newton in his honour

• His tooth is the most valuable tooth according to Guinness World Records 2002.

• The apple story of gravity was a myth. The apple did never fall on his head, but he got that idea from the falling of the apple. It is recorded in Stukeley’s Mémoires of Sir Isaac Newton’s Life.

• A statue is in the Oxford university museum of natural history.

The Enlightenment

• The historians and the philosophers of the enlightenment have apprehended that the Principia was a revolution to science.

• He believed that natural laws are the base of the universe. It was the starting point for the enlightenment of ideology.

Works

Published during his lifetime

• (1669, published 1711)- De analysi per aequationes numero terminorum infinitas

• (unpublished, c. 1671–75)- Of Natures Obvious Laws & Processes in Vegetation

• (1684)- De motu corporum in gyrum

• (1687)- Philosophiæ Naturalis Principia Mathematica

• (1701)- Scala graduum Caloris. Calorum Descriptiones & signa

• (1704)- Opticks

• (1701–1725)- Reports as Master of the Mint

• (1707)- Arithmetica Universalis

Published after his Death

• (1728)- De mundi systemate (The System of the World), Optical Lectures, The Chronology of Ancient Kingdoms Amended

• (1733)- Observations on Daniel and The Apocalypse of St. John

• (1671, published 1736)- Method of Fluxions

• (1754)- An Historical Account of Two Notable Corruptions of Scripture

Conclusion

New was one of the greatest scientists of all time. He had many other sides other than science. He had an interest in alchemy, theology, philosophy, math, etc. He invented gravity, the theory of lights, the first reflected telescope, and many more. He had many unpublished papers that were published posthumously.

FAQs

Q1. Name the scientist whose picture Einstein kept on his study wall.

Ans. Einstein kept the picture of Michael Faraday, James Clerk, and Newton on his wall.

Q2. Define enlightenment.

Ans. Newton’s philosophical revolution key figures are defined as enlightenment.

Q3. Name his first-ever published book.

Ans. In 1687, he published Mathematical principles of natural philosophy.