Newton, Sir Isaac (1642-1727), English natural philosopher, generally regarded as the ost original and in!

luential theorist in the history o! science" In addition to his in#ention o! the in!initesi al calculus and a new theory o! light and color, Newton trans!or ed the structure o! physical science with his three laws o! otion and the law o! uni#ersal gra#itation" $s the %eystone o! the scienti!ic re#olution o! the 17th century, Newton&s wor% co 'ined the contri'utions o! (opernicus, )epler, *alileo, +escartes, and others into a new and power!ul synthesis" ,hree centuries later the resulting structure - classical echanics - continues to 'e a use!ul 'ut no less elegant onu ent to his genius" Life & Character - Isaac Newton was 'orn pre aturely on (hrist as day 1642 (4 -anuary 164., New Style) in /oolsthorpe, a ha let near *rantha in 0incolnshire" ,he posthu ous son o! an illiterate yeo an (also na ed Isaac), the !atherless in!ant was s all enough at 'irth to !it &into a 1uartpot"& /hen he was 'arely three years old Newton&s other, 2anna ($yscough), placed her !irst 'orn with his grand other in order to re arry and raise a second !a ily with 3arna'as S ith, a wealthy rector !ro near'y North /itha " 4uch has 'een ade o! Newton&s posthu ous 'irth, his prolonged separation !ro his other, and his unri#aled hatred o! his step!ather" 5ntil 2anna returned to /oolsthorpe in 166. a!ter the death o! her second hus'and, Newton was denied his other&s attention, a possi'le clue to his co ple7 character" Newton&s childhood was anything 'ut happy, and throughout his li!e he #erged on e otional collapse, occasionally !alling into #iolent and #indicti#e attac%s against !riend and !oe ali%e" /ith his other&s return to /oolsthorpe in 166., Newton was ta%en !ro school to !ul!ill his 'irthright as a !ar er" 2appily, he !ailed in this calling, and returned to )ing&s School at *rantha to prepare !or entrance to ,rinity (ollege, (a 'ridge" Nu erous anecdotes sur#i#e !ro this period a'out Newton&s a'sent- indedness as a !ledging !ar er and his lac%luster per!or ance as a student" 3ut the turning point in Newton&s li!e ca e in -une 1661 when he le!t /oolsthorpe !or (a 'ridge 5ni#ersity" 2ere Newton entered a new world, one he could e#entually call his own" $lthough (a 'ridge was an outstanding center o! learning, the spirit o! the scienti!ic re#olution had yet to penetrate its ancient and so ewhat ossi!ied curriculu " 0ittle is %nown o! Newton&s !or al studies as an undergraduate, 'ut he li%ely recei#ed large doses o! $ristotle as well as other classical authors" $nd 'y all appearances his acade ic per!or ance was undistinguished" In 1664 Isaac 3arrow, 0ucasian 8ro!essor o! 4athe atics at (a 'ridge, e7a ined Newton&s understanding o! Euclid and !ound it sorely lac%ing" /e now %now that during his undergraduate years Newton was deeply engrossed in pri#ate study, that he pri#ately astered the wor%s o! 9en: +escartes, 8ierre *assendi, ,ho as 2o''es, and other a;or !igures o! the scienti!ic re#olution" $ series o! e7tant note'oo%s shows that 'y 1664 Newton had 'egun to aster +escartes& Gomtrie and other !or s o! athe atics !ar in ad#ance o! Euclid&s Elements" 3arrow, hi sel! a gi!ted athe atician, had yet to appreciate Newton&s genius" In 1666 Newton too% his 'achelor&s degree at (a 'ridge without honors or distinction" Since the uni#ersity was closed !or the ne7t two years 'ecause o! plague, Newton returned to /oolsthorpe in idyear" ,here, in the !ollowing 1< onths, he ade a series o! original contri'utions to science" $s he later recalled, &$ll this was in the two plague years o! 1666 and 1666, !or in those days I was in y pri e o! age !or in#ention, and inded athe atics and philosophy

ore than at any ti e since"& In athe atics Newton concei#ed his & ethod o! !lu7ions& (in!initesi al calculus), laid the !oundations !or his theory o! light and color, and achie#ed signi!icant insight into the pro'le o! planetary otion, insights that e#entually led to the pu'lication o! his Principia (16<7)" In $pril 1667, Newton returned to (a 'ridge and, against sti!! odds, was elected a inor !ellow at ,rinity" Success !ollowed good !ortune" In the ne7t year he 'eca e a senior !ellow upon ta%ing his aster o! arts degree, and in 166=, 'e!ore he had reached his 27th 'irthday, he succeeded Isaac 3arrow as 0ucasian 8ro!essor o! 4athe atics" ,he duties o! this appoint ent o!!ered Newton the opportunity to organi>e the results o! his earlier optical researches, and in 1672, shortly a!ter his election to the 9oyal Society, he co unicated his !irst pu'lic paper, a 'rilliant 'ut no less contro#ersial study on the nature o! color" In the !irst o! a series o! 'itter disputes, Newton loc%ed horns with the society&s cele'rated curator o! e7peri ents, the 'right 'ut 'rittle 9o'ert 2oo%e" ,he ensuing contro#ersy, which continued until 167<, esta'lished a pattern in Newton&s 'eha#ior" $!ter an initial s%ir ish, he 1uietly retreated" Nonetheless, in 1676 Newton #entured another yet another paper, which again drew lightning, this ti e charged with clai s that he had plagiari>ed !ro 2oo%e" ,he charges were entirely ungrounded" ,wice 'urned, Newton withdrew" In 167<, Newton su!!ered a serious e otional 'rea%down, and in the !ollowing year his other died" Newton&s response was to cut o!! contact with others and engross hi sel! in alche ical research" ,hese studies, once an e 'arrass ent to Newton scholars, were not isguided usings 'ut rigorous in#estigations into the hidden !orces o! nature" Newton&s alche ical studies opened theoretical a#enues not !ound in the echanical philosophy, the world #iew that sustained his early wor%" /hile the echanical philosophy reduced all pheno ena to the i pact o! atter in otion, the alche ical tradition upheld the possi'ility o! attraction and repulsion at the particulate le#el" Newton&s later insights in celestial echanics can 'e traced in part to his alche ical interests" 3y co 'ining action-at-a-distance and athe atics, Newton trans!or ed the echanical philosophy 'y adding a ysterious 'ut no less easura'le 1uantity, gra#itational !orce" In 1666, as tradition has it, Newton o'ser#ed the !all o! an apple in his garden at /oolsthorpe, later recalling, &In the sa e year I 'egan to thin% o! gra#ity e7tending to the or' o! the 4oon"& Newton&s e ory was not accurate" In !act, all e#idence suggests that the concept o! uni#ersal gra#itation did not spring !ull-'lown !ro Newton&s head in 1666 'ut was nearly 2? years in gestation" Ironically, 9o'ert 2oo%e helped gi#e it li!e" In No#e 'er 167=, 2oo%e initiated an e7change o! letters that 'ore on the 1uestion o! planetary otion" $lthough Newton hastily 'ro%e o!! the correspondence, 2oo%e&s letters pro#ided a conceptual lin% 'etween central attraction and a !orce !alling o!! with the s1uare o! distance" So eti e in early 16<?, Newton appears to ha#e 1uietly drawn his own conclusions" 4eanwhile, in the co!!eehouses o! 0ondon, 2oo%e, Ed und 2alley, and (hristopher /ren struggled unsuccess!ully with the pro'le o! planetary otion" @inally, in $ugust 16<4, 2alley paid a legendary #isit to Newton in (a 'ridge, hoping !or an answer to his riddleA /hat type o! cur#e does a planet descri'e in its or'it around the sun, assu ing an in#erse s1uare law o! attractionB /hen 2alley posed the 1uestion, Newton&s ready response was &an ellipse"& /hen as%ed how he %new it was an ellipse Newton replied that he had already calculated it" $lthough Newton had pri#ately

answered one o! the riddles o! the uni#erse--and he alone possessed the athe atical a'ility to do so--he had characteristically isplaced the calculation" $!ter !urther discussion he pro ised to send 2alley a !resh calculation !orthwith" In partial !ul!ill ent o! his pro ise Newton produced his De Motu o! 16<4" @ro that seed, a!ter nearly two years o! intense la'or, the Philosophiae Naturalis Principia Mathematica appeared" $rgua'ly, it is the ost i portant 'oo% pu'lished in the history o! science" 3ut i! the Principia was Newton&s 'rainchild, 2oo%e and 2alley were nothing less than idwi#es" $lthough the Principia was well recei#ed, its !uture was cast in dou't 'e!ore it appeared" 2ere again 2oo%e was center stage, this ti e clai ing (not without ;usti!ication) that his letters o! 167=-16<? earned hi a role in Newton&s disco#ery" 3ut to no e!!ect" Newton was so !urious with 2oo%e that he threatened to suppress 3oo% III o! the Principia altogether, !inally denouncing science as &an i pertinently litigious lady"& Newton cal ed down and !inally consented to pu'lication" 3ut instead o! ac%nowledging 2oo%e&s contri'ution Newton syste atically deleted e#ery possi'le ention o! 2oo%e&s na e" Newton&s hatred !or 2oo%e was consu pti#e" Indeed, Newton later withheld pu'lication o! his Opticks (17?4) and #irtually withdrew !ro the 9oyal Society until 2oo%e&s death in 17?." $!ter pu'lishing the Principia, Newton 'eca e ore in#ol#ed in pu'lic a!!airs" In 16<= he was elected to represent (a 'ridge in 8arlia ent, and during his stay in 0ondon he 'eca e ac1uainted with -ohn 0oc%e, the !a ous philosopher, and Nicolas @atio de +uillier, a 'rilliant young athe atician who 'eca e an inti ate !riend" In 16=., howe#er, Newton su!!ered a se#ere ner#ous disorder, not unli%e his 'rea%down o! 1677-167<" ,he cause is open to interpretationA o#erwor%C the stress o! contro#ersyC the une7plained loss o! !riendship with @atioC or perhaps chronic ercury poisoning, the result o! nearly three decades o! alche ical research" Each !actor ay ha#e played a role" /e only %now 0oc%e and Sa uel 8epys recei#ed strange and see ingly deranged letters that pro pted concern !or Newton&s &disco posure in head, or ind, or 'oth"& /hate#er the cause, shortly a!ter his reco#ery Newton sought a new position in 0ondon" In 16=6, with the help o! (harles 4ontague, a !ellow o! ,rinity and later earl o! 2ali!a7, Newton was appointed /arden and then 4aster o! the 4int" 2is new position pro#ed & ost proper,& and he le!t (a 'ridge !or 0ondon without regret" +uring his 0ondon years Newton en;oyed power and worldly success" 2is position at the 4int assured a co !orta'le social and econo ic status, and he was an acti#e and a'le ad inistrator" $!ter the death o! 2oo%e in 17?., Newton was elected president o! the 9oyal Society and was annually reelected until his death" In 17?4 he pu'lished his second a;or wor%, the Opticks, 'ased largely on wor% co pleted decades 'e!ore" 2e was %nighted in 17?6" $lthough his creati#e years had passed, Newton continued to e7ercise a pro!ound in!luence on the de#elop ent o! science" In e!!ect, the 9oyal Society was Newton&s instru ent, and he played it to his personal ad#antage" 2is tenure as president has 'een descri'ed as tyrannical and autocratic, and his control o#er the li#es and careers o! younger disciples was all 'ut a'solute" Newton could not a'ide contradiction or contro#ersy - his 1uarrels with 2oo%e pro#ide singular e7a ples" 3ut in later disputes, as president o! the 9oyal Society, Newton arshaled all the !orces at his co and" @or e7a ple, he pu'lished @la steed&s astrono ical o'ser#ations - the la'or o! a li!eti e - without the author&s per issionC and in his priority dispute with 0ei'ni> concerning the

calculus, Newton enlisted younger en to !ight his war o! words, while 'ehind the lines he secretly directed charge and countercharge" In the end, the actions o! the Society were little ore than e7tensions o! Newton&s will, and until his death he do inated the landscape o! science without ri#al" 2e died in 0ondon on 4arch 2?, 1727 (4arch .1, New Style)"