Isaac Newton and Newcastle Diamonds: Difference between pages

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|clubname = Newcastle Diamonds

{{Infobox_Biography |

|image = [[Image:Newcastlediamonds.gif]]

subject_name=Sir Isaac Newton |

|founded = 1929

image_name=GodfreyKneller-IsaacNewton-1689.jpg |

|closed =

image_caption= Sir Isaac Newton at 46 in [[Godfrey Kneller]]'s 1689 portrait. |

|track = [[Brough Park Stadium]]<br>[[Fossway]]<br>[[Byker]]<br>[[Newcastle upon Tyne]]

dead=dead |

|country = [[England]]

date_of_birth={{OldStyleDate|4 January|1643|25 December 1642}} |

|tracksize = 300 metres

place_of_birth=[[Woolsthorpe-by-Colsterworth]], [[Lincolnshire]], [[England]] |

|colours = Black and White

date_of_death={{OldStyleDate|31 March|1727|20 March}} |

|honours =

place_of_death=[[Kensington]], [[London]]

|league = [[Speedway Premier League|Premier League]]

}}

|season = 2006

'''Sir Isaac Newton''', [[Presidents of the Royal Society|President of the Royal Society]], ([[4 January]] [[1643]] – [[31 March]] [[1727]]) <small><nowiki>[</nowiki>[[Old Style and New Style dates|OS]]: [[25 December]] [[1642]] – [[20 March]] [[1727]]<nowiki>]</nowiki></small> was an [[England|English]] [[mathematics|mathematician]], [[physics|physicist]], [[astronomy|astronomer]], [[alchemy|alchemist]], [[chemistry|chemist]], [[inventor]], and [[natural philosophy|natural philosopher]] who is generally regarded as one of the most influential [[scientists]] and [[mathematicians]] in history.

|position = 9th - Premier League

|website = [http://www.newcastlediamonds.com Official site]

}}and http://www.newcastlespeedwayhistory.co.uk

'''Newcastle Diamonds''' motorcycle [[Motorcycle speedway|Speedway]] currently compete in the British Premier League. The club has a reputation of importing young foreign talent and have given starts to the British careers of six times [[Speedway_World_Championship|World Champion]] [[Ivan Mauger]], three times [[Speedway_World_Championship|World Champion]] [[Ole Olsen]] and 2003 [[Speedway_World_Championship|World Champion]] [[Nicki Pedersen]]. Current [[Speedway Grand Prix]] rider [[Bjarne Pedersen]] also started his British career with the Diamonds.<ref>Bamford, R. & Shailes, G. (2002). ''A History of the World Speedway Championship''. Stroud: Tempus Publishing. ISBN 0-7524-2402-5</ref>

Newton wrote the ''[[Philosophiae Naturalis Principia Mathematica]]'' in which he described [[law of universal gravitation|universal gravitation]] and the three [[Newton's laws of motion|laws of motion]], laying the groundwork for [[classical mechanics]]. By deriving [[Kepler's laws of planetary motion]] from this system, he was the first to show that the motion of objects on Earth and of [[celestial mechanics|celestial]] bodies are governed by the same set of natural laws. The unifying and [[determinism|deterministic]] power of his laws was integral to the [[scientific revolution]] and the advancement of [[heliocentrism]].

[[Brough Park stadium]] is primarily a [[dog racing]] track with the [[Motorcycle speedway|Speedway]] track built in the centre.

Among other scientific discoveries, Newton realized that the spectrum of [[color|colour]]s observed when [[white]] [[light]] passes through a prism is inherent in the white light and not added by the prism (as [[Roger Bacon]] had claimed in the thirteenth century), and notably argued that [[wave-particle duality|light is composed of particles]]. He also developed a [[Newton's law of cooling|law of cooling]], describing the rate of cooling of objects when exposed to air. He enunciated the principles of [[Momentum|conservation of momentum]] and [[angular momentum]]. Finally, he studied the [[speed of sound]] in air, and voiced a theory of the origin of stars. Despite this renown in mainstream science, Newton spent more time working on either alchemy or chemistry rather than physics.

==2006 Team==

Newton played a major role in the [[history of calculus]], sharing credit with [[Gottfried Leibniz]]. He also made contributions to other areas of mathematics, for example the [[binomial theorem|generalized binomial theorem]]. The mathematician and [[mathematical physicist]] [[Joseph Louis Lagrange]] (1736&ndash;1813), said that "Newton was the greatest genius that ever existed and the most fortunate, for we cannot find more than once a system of the world to establish." {{fn|20}}

*{{player||CZE|[[George Stancl]]}}

==Biography==

===Early years===

{{IsaacNewtonSegments}}

{{Main|Isaac Newton's early life and achievements}}

*{{player||CZE|[[Josef Franc]]}}

Newton was born in [[Woolsthorpe-by-Colsterworth]] (at [[Woolsthorpe Manor]]), a [[Hamlet (place)|hamlet]] in the county of [[Lincolnshire]]. Newton was born [[Premature birth|prematurely]], and no one expected him to live; indeed, his mother, Hannah Ayscough Newton, is reported to have said that his body at that time could have fit inside a quart mug (Bell, 1937). His father, also named Isaac, had been a farmer and had died three months before Newton's birth. When Newton was two, his mother remarried and went to live with her new husband, leaving her son in the care of his grandmother.

*{{player||SCO|[[James Grieves]]}}

According to [[Eric Temple Bell|E.T. Bell]] (1937, Simon and Schuster) and H. Eves:

*{{player||AUS|[[Christian Henry]]}}

:''Newton began his schooling in the village schools and was later sent to [[The Kings Grammar School (Grantham)]] where he became the top boy in the school. At [[Kings]] he lodged with the local [[apothecary]], [[William Clarke (apothecary)|William Clarke]] and eventually became engaged to the apothecary's stepdaughter, Anne Storer, before he went off to [[University of Cambridge|Cambridge University]] at the age of 19. As Newton became engrossed in his studies, the romance cooled and Miss Storer married someone else. It is said he kept a warm memory of this love, but Newton had no other recorded 'sweethearts' and never married''.

*{{player||AUT|[[Manuel Hauzinger]]}}

However, William Stukeley and Mrs Vincent, the source which Bell and Eves have embroidered so unhelpfully, merely say that Newton entertained 'a passion' for her while he lodged at the Clarke house. Mrs Vincent's maiden name was Katherine Storer, not Anne.

*{{player||ENG|[[Jamie Roberston]]}}

[[Image:newton.jpg|thumb|left|Engraving after Enoch Seeman's 1726 portrait of Newton]]

*{{player||SCO|[[Adam McKinna]]}}

From the age of about twelve until he was seventeen, Newton was educated at [[Grantham Grammar School|The King's School in Grantham]] (where his signature can still be seen upon a library window sill). He was removed from school and by Oct 1659 he was to be found at Woolsthorpe where his mother attempted to make a farmer of him. He was, by later reports of his contemporaries, thoroughly unhappy with the work. It appears to be Henry Stokes, master at the King's School, who persuaded his mother to send him back to school so that he might complete his education. This he did at the age of eighteen, achieving an admirable final report. His teacher said:

==2007 Team==

:''His genius now begins to mount upwards apace and shine out with more strength. He excels particularly in making verses. In everything he undertakes, he discovers an application equal to the pregnancy of his parts and exceeds even the most sanguine expectations I have conceived of him.''

In June 1661 he matriculated to [[Trinity College, Cambridge]]. At that time, the college's teachings were based on those of [[Aristotle]], but Newton preferred to read the more advanced ideas of modern philosophers such as [[René Descartes|Descartes]] and [[astronomers]] such as [[Galileo Galilei|Galileo]], [[Nicolaus Copernicus|Copernicus]] and [[Johannes Kepler|Kepler]]. In 1665 he discovered the [[binomial theorem|generalized binomial theorem]] and began to develop a mathematical theory that would later become [[calculus]]. Soon after Newton had obtained his degree in 1665, the University closed down as a precaution against the [[Great Plague]]. For the next 18 months Newton worked at home on calculus, [[optics]] and law of gravitation. Newton often did not share information he had discovered unless he was asked. For example he invented calculus 30 years before he told anyone else about it. <!--sentence does not really belong here-->

===Middle years===

====Mathematical research====

Newton became a fellow of [[Trinity College, Cambridge|Trinity College]] in 1669. In the same year he circulated his findings in ''De Analysi per Aequationes Numeri Terminorum Infinitas'' (''On Analysis by Infinite Series''), and later in ''De methodis serierum et fluxionum'' (''On the Methods of Series and Fluxions''), whose title gave rise to the "method of fluxions".

*{{player||DEN|[[Jonas Raun]]}}

Sir Newton and [[Gottfried Leibniz]] developed the calculus independently, using different notations. Although Newton had worked out his method years before Leibniz, he published almost nothing about it until 1693, and did not give a full account until 1704. Meanwhile, Leibniz began publishing a full account of his methods in 1684. Moreover, Leibniz's notation and "differential Method" were universally adopted on the Continent, and after 1820 or so, in the British Empire. Newton claimed that he had been reluctant to publish his calculus because he feared being mocked for it. Starting in 1699, other members of the [[Royal Society]] accused Leibniz of plagiarism, and the dispute broke out in full force in 1711. Thus began the bitter [[Newton v. Leibniz calculus controversy|calculus priority dispute]] with Leibniz, which marred the lives of both Newton and Leibniz until the latter's death in 1716. This dispute created a divide between British and Continental mathematicians that may have retarded the progress of British mathematics by at least a century. As for who really invented calculus first, a good argument can be made that it was [[Madhava of Sangamagrama]], who lived in southern India in the late [[Middle Ages]], a fact unknown to the Europeans of that time, though it is possible some of the knowledge percolated westward.

*{{player||SCO|[[Ross Brady]]}}

Newton is generally credited with the generalized [[binomial theorem]], valid for any exponent. He discovered [[Newton's identities]], [[Newton's method]], classified cubic plane curves (polynomials of degree three in two variables), made substantial contributions to the theory of [[finite differences]], and was the first to use fractional indices and to employ coordinate geometry to derive solutions to [[Diophantine equations]]. He approximated partial sums of the harmonic series by logarithms (a precursor to Euler's summation formula), and was the first to use power series with confidence and to revert power series. He discovered new formulae for [[pi]].

*{{player||CZE|[[Josef Franc]]}}

He was elected [[Lucasian professor]] of [[mathematics]] in 1669. In that day, any fellow of Cambridge or [[Oxford University|Oxford]] had to be an ordained Anglican priest. However, the terms of the Lucasian professorship required that the holder ''not'' be active in the church (presumably so as to have more time for science). Newton argued that this should exempt him from the ordination requirement, and [[Charles II of England|Charles II]], whose permission was needed, accepted this argument. Thus a conflict between Newton's religious views and Anglican orthodoxy was averted.

*{{player||AUS|[[Christian Henry]]}}

====Optics====

From 1670 to 1672 he lectured on [[optics]]. During this period he investigated the [[refraction]] of [[light]], demonstrating that a [[Prism (optics)|prism]] could decompose [[white light]] into a [[optical spectrum|spectrum]] of colours, and that a [[Lens (optics)|lens]] and a second prism could recompose the multicoloured spectrum into white light.

He also showed that the coloured light does not change its properties, by separating out a coloured beam and shining it on various objects. Newton noted that regardless of whether it was reflected or scattered or transmitted, it stayed the same colour. Thus the colours we observe are the result of how objects interact with the incident ''already-coloured'' light, '''not''' the result of objects ''generating'' the colour. For more details, see [[Isaac Newton's early life and achievements#Newton's theory of colour|Newton's theory of colour]]. Many of his findings in this field were criticized by later theorists, the most well-known being [[Johann Wolfgang von Goethe]], who postulated his own colour theories.

*{{player||ENG|[[Carl Wilkinson]]}}

[[Image:NewtonsTelescopeReplica.jpg|thumb|left|250px|A replica of Newton's 6-inch reflecting telescope of 1672 for the [[Royal Society]].]]

*{{player||SCO|[[Adam Mckinna]]}}

From this work he concluded that any refracting [[telescope]] would suffer from the [[dispersion (optics)|dispersion]] of light into colours, and invented a reflecting telescope (today, known as a [[Newtonian telescope]]) to bypass that problem. By grinding his own mirrors, using [[Newton's rings]] to judge the [[quality]] of the [[optics]] for his telescopes, he was able to produce a superior instrument to the refracting telescope, due primarily to the wider diameter of the mirror. (Only later, as glasses with a variety of refractive properties became available, did [[Lens (optics)#Chromatic aberration|achromatic]] lenses for refractors become feasible.) In 1671 the [[Royal Society]] asked for a demonstration of his reflecting telescope. Their interest encouraged him to publish his notes ''On Colour'', which he later expanded into his ''Opticks''. When [[Robert Hooke]] criticised some of Newton's ideas, Newton was so offended that he withdrew from public debate. The two men remained enemies until Hooke's death.

*{{player||SCO|[[Sean Stoddart]]}}

In one experiment, to prove that colour perception is caused by pressure on the eye, Newton slid a darning needle around the side of his eye until he could poke at its rear side, dispassionately noting "white, darke<!--sic--> & coloured circles" so long as he kept stirring with "y^e bodkin." <!--Christianson is not clear on what Newton concluded from this-->

==Club honours==

Newton argued that light is composed of particles, but he had to associate them with [[wave]]s to explain the [[diffraction]] of light (''Opticks'' Bk. II, Props. XII-XX). Later physicists instead favoured a purely wavelike explanation of light to account for diffraction. Today's [[quantum mechanics]] restores the idea of "[[wave-particle duality]]", although [[photon]]s bear very little resemblance to Newton's ''corpuscles'' (e.g., corpuscles refracted by accelerating toward the denser medium).

*Premier League Champions - 1964, 1976, 1982, 1983, 2001

*Knock-out Cup Winners - 1976, 1982

*Four Team Tournament Winners - 1976, 1982, 1983

*Gold Cup Winners - 1991, 1992<ref>Bamford, R.(2004). ''Speedway Yearbook 2004''. ISBN 0-7524-2955-8</ref>

==External Links==

{{dubious}}

*[http://www.newcastlediamonds.com Newcastle Diamonds Speedway Website]

Newton is believed to have been the first to explain precisely the formation of the [[rainbow]] from water droplets dispersed in the [[Earth's atmosphere|atmosphere]] in a rain shower. Figure 15 of Part II of Book One of the ''Opticks'' shows a perfect illustration of how this occurs.

*[http://www.british-speedway.co.uk British Speedway Promoters Association]

*[http://www.speedwaystar.net/subscribe.php Speedway Star Magazine] published by Pinegen Limited

== Notes ==

In his ''Hypothesis of Light'' of 1675, Newton posited the existence of the [[luminiferous aether|ether]] to transmit forces between particles. Newton was in contact with [[Henry More]], the [[Cambridge Platonists|Cambridge Platonist]] who was born in [[Grantham]], on [[alchemy]], and now his interest in the subject revived. He replaced the ether with occult forces based on [[Hermeticism|Hermetic]] ideas of attraction and repulsion between particles. [[John Maynard Keynes]], who acquired many of Newton's writings on alchemy, stated that "Newton was not the first of the age of reason: he was the last of the magicians."{{fn|21}} Newton's interest in alchemy cannot be isolated from his contributions to science.{{fn|2}} (This was at a time when there was no clear distinction between alchemy and science.) Had he not relied on the [[occult]] idea of [[action at a distance (physics)|action at a distance]], across a vacuum, he might not have developed his theory of gravity. (See also [[Isaac Newton's occult studies]].)

<references/>

{{Speedway Premier League}}

In 1704 Newton wrote ''[[Opticks]]'', in which he expounded his corpuscular theory of light. He considered light to be made up of extremely subtle corpuscles, that ordinary matter was made of grosser corpuscles and speculated that through a kind of alchemical transmutation "Are not gross Bodies and Light convertible into one another,...and may not Bodies receive much of their Activity from the Particles of Light which enter their Composition?"{{fn|22}} Newton also constructed a primitive form of a frictional [[electrostatic generator]], using a [[glass]] globe (Optics, 8th Query).

[[Category:Speedway Premier League teams]]

====Gravity and motion====

[[Category:Sport in Newcastle upon Tyne]]

[[Image:NewtonsPrincipia.jpg|thumb|250px|right|Newton's own copy of his Principia, with hand written corrections for the second edition.]]

{{further|[[the writing of Principia Mathematica]]}}

{{sport-team-stub}}

In 1679, Newton returned to his work on [[classical mechanics|mechanics]], i.e., gravitation and its effect on the orbits of [[planet]]s, with reference to [[Johannes Kepler|Kepler's]] [[Kepler's laws of planetary motion|laws of motion]], and consulting with Hooke and [[John Flamsteed|Flamsteed]] on the subject. He published his results in ''De Motu Corporum'' (1684). This contained the beginnings of the laws of motion that would inform the ''Principia''.

The ''[[Philosophiae Naturalis Principia Mathematica]]'' (now known as the ''Principia'') was published on [[5 July]], [[1687]]{{fn|1}} with encouragement and financial help from [[Edmond Halley]]. In this work Newton stated the three universal laws of motion that were not to be improved upon for more than two hundred years. He used the Latin word ''gravitas'' (weight) for the force that would become known as [[gravity]], and defined the law of [[universal gravitation]]. In the same work he presented the first analytical determination, based on [[Boyle's law]], of the [[speed of sound]] in air.

With the ''Principia'', Newton became internationally recognised. He acquired a circle of admirers, including the [[Switzerland|Swiss]]-born mathematician [[Nicolas Fatio de Duillier]], with whom he formed an intense relationship that lasted until 1693. The end of this friendship led Newton to a [[nervous breakdown]].

===Later life===

[[Image:Newtonshair.JPG|left|thumb|229px|A lock of Newton's hair in [[Trinity College, Cambridge]].]]

{{details|Isaac Newton's later life}}

In the 1690s Newton wrote a number of religious tracts dealing with the literal interpretation of the [[Bible]]. [[Henry More]]'s belief in the [[infinity]] of the universe and rejection of [[Cartesian dualism]] may have influenced Newton's religious ideas. A manuscript he sent to [[John Locke]] in which he disputed the existence of the [[Trinity]] was never published. Later works — ''The Chronology of Ancient Kingdoms Amended'' (1728) and ''Observations Upon the Prophecies of Daniel and the Apocalypse of St. John'' (1733) — were published after his death. He also devoted a great deal of time to alchemy (see above){{fn|2}}.

Newton was also a member of the [[Parliament of England]] from 1689 to 1690 and in 1701, but his only recorded comments were to complain about a cold draft in the chamber and request that the window be closed.

Newton moved to [[London]] to take up the post of warden of the [[Royal Mint]] in 1696, a position that he had obtained through the patronage of [[Charles Montagu, 1st Earl of Halifax]], then [[Chancellor of the Exchequer]]. He took charge of England's great recoining, somewhat treading on the toes of Master Lucas (and finagling [[Edmond Halley]] into the job of deputy comptroller of the temporary Chester branch). Newton became [[Master of the Mint]] upon Lucas' death in 1699. These appointments were intended as [[sinecure]]s, but Newton took them seriously, exercising his power to reform the currency and punish clippers and counterfeiters. He retired from his Cambridge duties in 1701. Ironically, it was his work at the Mint, rather than his contributions to science, which earned him a [[knighthood]] from [[Anne of Great Britain|Queen Anne]] in 1705.

Newton was made President of the [[Royal Society]] in 1703 and an associate of the French [[French Academy of Sciences|Académie des Sciences]]. In his position at the Royal Society, Newton made an enemy of [[John Flamsteed]], the [[Astronomer Royal]], by prematurely publishing Flamsteed's star catalogue.

[[Image:Isaac Newton grave in Westminster Abbey.jpg|thumb|Newton's grave in Westminster Abbey]]

Newton died in [[London]] on March 20th, 1727, and was buried in [[Westminster Abbey]]. His niece, [[Catherine Barton Conduitt]]{{fn|3}}, served as his hostess in social affairs at his house on [[Jermyn Street]] in London; he was her "very loving Uncle" {{fn|4}}, according to his letter to her when she was recovering from [[smallpox]].

After his death, Newton's body was discovered to have had massive amounts of mercury in it, probably resulting from his alchemical pursuits. Mercury poisoning could explain Newton's eccentricity in late life. [http://scienceworld.wolfram.com/biography/Newton.html]

==Religious views==

[[Image:Bolton-newton.jpg|thumb|right|Isaac Newton (''Bolton, Sarah K. Famous Men of Science. NY: Thomas Y. Crowell & Co., 1889'')]]

{{main|Isaac Newton's religious views}}

{{see also|Isaac Newton's occult studies}}

The law of gravity became Newton's best-known discovery. He warned against using it to view the universe as a mere machine, like a great clock. He said, "Gravity explains the motions of the planets, but it cannot explain who set the planets in motion. God governs all things and knows all that is or can be done."{{citeneeded}}

His scientific fame notwithstanding, Newton's study of the [[Bible]] and of the early [[Church Fathers]] were among his greatest passions. He devoted more time to the study of the Scriptures, the Fathers, and to [[Alchemy]] than to science, and said, "I have a fundamental belief in the Bible as the Word of God, written by those who were inspired. I study the Bible daily."{{citeneeded}} Newton himself wrote works on [[textual criticism]], most notably ''[[An Historical Account of Two Notable Corruptions of Scripture]]''. Newton also placed the crucifixion of [[Jesus Christ]] at [[3 April]], AD [[33]], which is now the accepted traditional date. He also attempted, unsuccessfully, to find hidden messages within the Bible (See [[Bible code]]). Despite his focus in theology and alchemy, Newton tested and investigated these ideas with the [[scientific method]], observing, hypothesizing, and testing his theories. To Newton, his scientific and religious experiments were one and the same, observing and understanding how the world functioned.

Newton rejected the church's doctrine of the [[Trinity|trinity]], and was probably a follower of [[arianism]]. In a minority view, [[T.C. Pfizenmaier]] argues that he more likely held the [[Eastern Orthodox]] view of the Trinity rather than the Western one held by [[Roman Catholic]]s, [[Anglican]]s, and most [[Protestant]]s {{fn|7}}. In his own day, he was also accused of being a [[Rosicrucianism|Rosicrucian]] (as were many in the Royal Society and in the court of Charles II).{{fn|8}}

In his own lifetime, Newton wrote more on religion than he did on natural science. He believed in a rationally immanent world, but he rejected the [[hylozoism]] implicit in Leibniz and [[Baruch Spinoza]]. Thus, the ordered and dynamically informed [[universe]] could be understood, and must be understood, by an active reason, but this universe, to be perfect and ordained, had to be regular.

===Newton's effect on religious thought===

[[Image:Newton-WilliamBlake.jpg|thumb|left|Newton, by [[William Blake]]]]

Newton and [[Robert Boyle]]’s mechanical philosophy was promoted by [[rationalist]] [[pamphleteer]]s as a viable alternative to the [[pantheism|pantheists]] and [[enthusiasm|enthusiasts]], and was accepted hesitantly by orthodox preachers as well as dissident preachers like the [[latitudinarian]]s.{{fn|9}} Thus, the clarity and simplicity of science was seen as a way to combat the emotional and [[metaphysics|metaphysical]] superlatives of both [[superstition|superstitious]] enthusiasm and the threat of [[atheism]]{{fn|10}}, and, at the same time, the second wave of English [[deism|deists]] used Newton's discoveries to demonstrate the possibility of a "Natural Religion."

The attacks made against pre-[[Age of Enlightenment|Enlightenment]] "magical thinking," and the [[Christian mysticism|mystical elements of Christianity]], were given their foundation with Boyle’s mechanical conception of the [[universe]]. Newton gave Boyle’s ideas their completion through [[mathematical proof]]s, and more importantly was very successful in popularising them.{{fn|11}} Newton refashioned the world governed by an interventionist God into a world crafted by a God that designs along rational and universal principles.{{fn|12}} These principles were available for all people to discover, allowed man to pursue his own aims fruitfully in this life, not [[afterlife|the next]], and to perfect himself with his own rational powers.{{fn|13}} The perceived ability of Newtonians to explain the world, both physical and social, through logical calculations alone is the crucial idea in the disenchantment of Christianity.{{fn|14}}

Newton saw God as the master creator whose existence could not be denied in the face of the grandeur of all creation {{fn|5}}{{fn|6}}{{fn|14}} But the unforeseen [[Christian theology|theological]] consequence of his conception of God, as Leibniz pointed out, was that God was now entirely removed from the world’s affairs, since the need for intervention would only evidence some imperfection in God’s creation, something impossible for a perfect and [[omnipotent]] creator.{{fn|15}} Leibniz's [[theodicy]] cleared God from the responsibility for ''"[[Problem of evil|l'origine du mal]]"'' by making God removed from participation in his creation. The understanding of the world was now brought down to the level of simple human reason, and humans, as [[Odo Marquard]] argued, became responsible for the correction and elimination of evil.{{fn|16}}

On the other hand, latitudinarian and Newtonian ideas taken too far resulted in the [[millenarian]]s, a religious [[faction]] dedicated to the concept of a mechanical universe, but finding in it the same enthusiasm and mysticism that the Enlightenment had fought so hard to extinguish.{{fn|17}}

==Newton and the counterfeiters==

As warden of the royal mint, Newton estimated that 20% of the coins taken in during The [[Great Recoinage]] were [[counterfeit]]. Counterfeiting was [[treason]], punishable by death by [[drawing and quartering]]. Despite this, convictions of the most flagrant criminals could be extremely difficult to achieve; however, Newton proved to be equal to the task.

He assembled facts and proved his theories with the same brilliance in law that he had shown in science.{{citation needed}} He gathered much of that evidence himself, disguised, while he hung out at bars and taverns. For all the barriers placed to prosecution, and separating the branches of government, [[English law]] still had ancient and formidable customs of authority. Newton was made a [[justice of the peace]] and between June 1698 and Christmas 1699 conducted some 200 cross-examinations of witnesses, informers and suspects. Newton later ordered all records of his interrogations to be destroyed.{{citation needed}} Newton won his convictions and in February 1699, he had ten prisoners waiting to be executed.

Newton's greatest triumph as the king's attorney was against [[William Chaloner]]. One of Chaloner's schemes was to set up phoney conspiracies of [[Catholicism|Catholics]] and then turned in the hapless conspirators whom he entrapped. Chaloner made himself rich enough to posture as a gentleman. Petitioning [[Parliament of England|Parliament]], Chaloner accused the Mint of providing tools to counterfeiters (a charge also made by others). He proposed that he be allowed to inspect the Mint's processes in order to improve them. He petitioned Parliament to adopt his plans for a coinage that could not be counterfeited. All the time, he struck false coins, or so Newton eventually proved to a court of competent jurisdiction. On [[March 23]] [[1699]], Chaloner was [[hanged, drawn and quartered]].{{citation needed}}

==Enlightenment philosophers==

Enlightenment philosophers chose a short history of scientific predecessors—[[Galileo Galilei|Galileo]], Boyle, and Newton principally—as the guides and guarantors of their applications of the singular concept of [[Nature]] and [[Natural law|Natural Law]] to every physical and social field of the day. In this respect, the lessons of history and the social structures built upon it could be discarded.{{fn|19}}

It was Newton’s conception of the universe based upon Natural and rationally understandable laws that became the seed for Enlightenment [[ideology]]. [[John Locke|Locke]] and [[Voltaire]] applied concepts of Natural Law to political systems advocating intrinsic rights; the [[physiocrat]]s and [[Adam Smith]] applied Natural conceptions of [[psychology]] and [[self-interest]] to economic systems and the [[sociology|sociologists]] criticised the current [[social order]] for trying to fit history into Natural models of [[progress]].

==Newton's legacy==

[[Image:StatueOfIsaacNewton.jpg|thumb|left|Statue of Newton by [[Louis-François Roubiliac]] in the antechapel of [[Trinity College, Cambridge]]]]

Newton's [[Newton's laws of motion|laws of motion]] and gravity provided a basis for predicting a wide variety of different scientific or engineering situations, especially the motion of [[celestial bodies]]. His [[calculus]] proved vitally important to the development of further scientific theories. Finally, he unified many of the isolated physics facts that had been discovered earlier into a satisfying system of laws. Newton's conceptions of gravity and mechanics, though not entirely correct in light of Einstein's [[Theory of Relativity]], still represent an enormous step in the evolution of human understanding of the universe. For this reason, he is generally considered one of history's greatest scientists.

In 1717, the [[Kingdom of Great Britain]] went on to an unofficial [[gold standard]] when Newton, then Master of the Mint, established[http://socserv2.socsci.mcmaster.ca/~econ/ugcm/3ll3/newton/newton.htm] a fixed price of 44½ [[guinea]]s per standard (22 carat) [[troy pound]], equal to just over £4 0s 4d (£4.017) per [[ounce|standard ounce]] or just under £4 7s 8d (£4.383) per [[ounce|fine ounce]]. Under the gold standard the value of the [[pound sterling|pound]] (measured in gold weight) remained largely constant until the beginning of the 20th century.

Newton is reputed to have invented the [[cat flap]]. This was said to be done so that he would not have to disrupt his optical experiments, conducted in a darkened room, to let his cat in or out.

[[Newtonmas]] is a holiday celebrated by some scientists as an alternative to [[Christmas]], taking advantage of the fact that Newton's birthday fell on [[25 December]] in the Julian calendar in use at the time of his birth.

In July 1992, the [[Isaac Newton Institute|Isaac Newton Institute for Mathematical Sciences]] was opened at Cambridge University - it is regarded as the [[United Kingdom]]'s national institute for mathematical research.

To this day, Newton's achievements have been immortalized in popular culture. Almost all schoolchildren are familiar with the apocryphal story of Newton's apple and his subsequent discovery of gravity; even the likeness of Newton holding an apple under a tree is a well-known image of science. English poet [[Alexander Pope]] was sufficiently moved by Newton's accomplishments to write the famous epitaph:

<blockquote>

''"Nature and nature's laws lay hid in night;''<br />

''God said 'Let Newton be' and all was light."''

</blockquote>

Newton has also been mentioned in several works of fiction and at least one well known hoax. Newton was a central theme in the [[Dan Brown]] novel [[The Da Vinci Code]]. Additionally, Newton was listed as a "Grand Master of the [[Priory of Sion]]." A hoax created by [[Pierre Plantard]].

== Newton's Laws of Motion ==

{{main|Newton's Laws of Motion}}

The famous three laws of Newton are:

# Newton's First Law (also known as the Law of [[Inertia]]) states that an object at rest tends to stay at rest and that an object in uniform motion tends to stay in uniform motion unless acted upon by a net external force.

# Newton's Second Law states that an applied force equals the rate of change of momentum. For constant mass: [[F=ma]], or [[force]] equals [[mass]] times [[acceleration]]. In other words, the acceleration produced by a net force on an object is directly proportional to the magnitude of the net force and inversely proportional to the mass. In the MKS system of measurement, mass is given in kilograms, acceleration in meters per second squared, and force in [[newton]]s (named in his honor).

# Newton's Third Law states that for every action there is an equal and opposite reaction.

==Newton's apple==

[[Image:Newton's tree, Botanic Gardens, Cambridge.JPG|thumb|right|A reputed descendant of Newton's apple tree, found in the Botanic Gardens in [[Cambridge]], [[England]].]]

A popular story claims that Newton was inspired to formulate his theory of universal gravitation by the fall of an apple from a tree. Cartoons have gone further to suggest the apple actually hit Newton's head, and that its impact somehow made him aware of the force of gravity. There is no basis to '''''that''''' interpretation, but the story of the apple may have something to it. John Conduitt, Newton's assistant at the royal mint and husband of Newton's niece, described the event when he wrote about Newton's life:

<blockquote>

In the year 1666 he retired again from Cambridge ... to his mother in Lincolnshire & whilst he was musing in a garden it came into his thought that the power of gravity (which brought an apple from a tree to the ground) was not limited to a certain distance from earth, but that this power must extend much further than was usually thought. Why not as high as the Moon said he to himself & if so, that must influence her motion & perhaps retain her in her orbit, whereupon he fell a calculating what would be the effect of that supposition... (King's College, Cambridge, Keynes Ms. 130.4: ''Conduitt's account of Newton's life at Cambridge'' (c.1727-8) [http://www.newtonproject.ic.ac.uk/texts/viewtext.php?id=THEM00167&mode=diplomatic])

</blockquote>

The question was not whether gravity existed, but whether it extended so far from Earth that it could also be the force holding the moon to its orbit. Newton showed that if the force decreased as the inverse square of the distance, one could indeed [http://www.phy6.org/stargaze/Sgravity/htm calculate the Moon's orbital period], and get good agreement. He guessed the same force was responsible for other orbital motions, and hence named it '''universal gravitation'''.

A contemporary writer, [[William Stukeley]], recorded in his ''Memoirs of Sir Isaac Newton's Life'' a conversation with Newton in Kensington on [[15 April]] [[1726]], in which Newton recalled "when formerly, the notion of gravitation came into his mind. It was occasioned by the fall of an apple, as he sat in contemplative mood. Why should that apple always descend perpendicularly to the ground, thought he to himself. Why should it not go sideways or upwards, but constantly to the earth's centre." In similar terms, [[Voltaire]] wrote in his ''Essay on Epic Poetry'' (1727), "Sir Isaac Newton walking in his gardens, had the first thought of his system of gravitation, upon seeing an apple falling from a tree." These accounts are probably exaggerations of Newton's own tale about sitting by a window in his home ([[Woolsthorpe Manor]]) and watching an apple fall from a tree. Various trees are claimed to be 'the' apple tree which Newton describes, the [[Grantham Grammar School|King's School]], [[Grantham]], claims that the tree was purchased by the school, uprooted and transported to the headmaster's garden some years later, the staff of the [now] [[National Trust for Places of Historic Interest or Natural Beauty|National Trust]]-owned Woolsthrope Manor dispute this, and claim that a tree present in their gardens is the one described by Newton. It is also claimed that the tree was replanted in front of the council buildings in Grantham, which is unlikely, considering that they were built over 300 years after Newton's death.

==Writings by Newton==

* ''[[Method of Fluxions]]'' (1671)

* ''[[De Motu Corporum in Gyrum]]'' (1684)

* ''[[Philosophiae Naturalis Principia Mathematica]]'' (1687)

* ''[[Opticks]]'' (1704)

* ''[http://www.pierre-marteau.com/editions/1701-25-mint-reports.html Reports as Master of the Mint]'' (1701-1725)

* ''[[Arithmetica Universalis]]'' (1707)

* ''[[An Historical Account of Two Notable Corruptions of Scripture]]'' (1754)

* ''Short Chronicle'', ''The System of the World'', ''Optical Lectures'', ''The Chronology of Ancient Kingdoms, Amended'' and ''De mundi systemate'' were published posthumously in 1728.

==Notes==

* {{fnb|1}} The remainder of the dates in this article follow the Gregorian calendar.

* {{fnb|2}} [[Richard S. Westfall|Westfall]] (pp. 530–531) notes that Newton apparently abandoned his alchemical researches.

* {{fnb|3}} Westfall, p. 44.

* {{fnb|4}} Westfall, p. 595.

* {{fnb|5}} ''Principia'', Book '''III'''; cited in; ''Newton’s Philosophy of Nature: Selections from his writings'', p. 42, ed. H.S. Thayer, Hafner Library of Classics, NY, 1953.

* {{fnb|6}} ''A Short Scheme of the True Religion'', manuscript quoted in ''Memoirs of the Life, Writings and Discoveries of Sir Isaac Newton'' by Sir David Brewster, Edinburgh, 1850; cited in; ''ibid'', p. 65.

* {{fnb|7}} Pfizenmaier, T.C., "Was Isaac Newton an Arian?" ''Journal of the History of Ideas'' '''68'''(1):57–80, 1997.

* {{fnb|8}} Yates, Frances A. ''The Rosicrucian Enlightenment.'' London: Routledge and Kegan Paul, 1972.

* {{fnb|8}} Jacob, Margaret C. ''The Newtonians and the English Revolution: 1689-1720.'' p28.

* {{fnb|9}} Jacob, Margaret C. ''The Newtonians and the English Revolution: 1689-1720.'' p37 and p44.

* {{fnb|10}} Westfall, Richard S. ''Science and Religion in Seventeenth-Century England.'' Yale University Press, New Haven: 1958. p200.

* {{fnb|11}} Fitzpatrick, Martin. ed. Knud Haakonssen. “The Enlightenment, politics and providence: some Scottish and English comparisons.” ''Enlightenment and Religion: Rational Dissent in eighteenth-century Britain.'' Cambridge University Press, Cambridge: 1996. p64.

* {{fnb|12}} Frankel, Charles. ''The Faith of Reason: The Idea of Progress in the French Enlightenment.'' King’s Crown Press, New York: 1948. p1.

* {{fnb|13}} Germain, Gilbert G. ''A Discourse on Disenchantment: Reflections on Politics and Technology.'' p28.

* {{fnb|14}} Webb, R.K. ed. Knud Haakonssen. “The emergence of Rational Dissent.” ''Enlightenment and Religion: Rational Dissent in eighteenth-century Britain.'' Cambridge University Press, Cambridge: 1996. p19.

* {{fnb|15}} Westfall, Richard S. ''Science and Religion in Seventeenth-Century England.'' p201.

* {{fnb|16}} Marquard, Odo. "Burdened and Disemburdened Man and the Flight into Unindictability," in ''Farewell to Matters of Principle.'' Robert M. Wallace trans. London: Oxford UP, 1989.

* {{fnb|17}} Jacob, Margaret C. ''The Newtonians and the English Revolution: 1689-1720.'' p100-101.

* {{fnb|18}} Jacob, Margaret C. ''The Newtonians and the English Revolution: 1689-1720.'' p61.

* {{fnb|19}} Cassels, Alan. ''Ideology and International Relations in the Modern World.'' p2.

* {{fnb|20}} Delambre, M. "Notice sur la vie et les ouvrages de M. le comte J. L. Lagrange," in ''Oeuvres de Lagrange'', I. Paris, 1867, p. xx. [http://www.rit.edu/~flwstv/newton.html (cited by Fred L. Wilson)]

* {{fnb|21}} Keynes, John Maynard ''Essays in Biography'', ''"Newton, The Man"'' p363-364 The Collected Writtings of John Maynard Keynes, Volume X, MacMillan St. Martin's Press, The Royal Economic Society: 1972.

* {{fnb|22}} ''Opticks'', quoted in Dobbs, B. J. T. "Netwon's Alchemy and his Theory of Matter." ''Isis'', 73(1982)523.

==See also==

* [[History of calculus]]

* [[Newton v. Leibniz calculus controversy]]

* "[[Standing on the shoulders of giants]]"

* [[Newton-Cotes formulas]]

* [[Gauss-Newton algorithm]]

* [[Newton fractal]]

* [[Newton polygon]]

==Resources==

===References===

* {{cite book | authorlink = Eric Temple Bell | last = Bell | first = E.T. | title = Men of Mathematics | ___location = New York | publisher = Simon and Schuster | year = 1937 | id = ISBN 0671464000 }} [http://scidiv.bcc.ctc.edu/Math/Newton.html Excerpt]

* {{cite book | last = Christianson | first = Gale | title = In the Presence of the Creator: Isaac Newton & his times | ___location = New York | publisher = Free Press | year = 1984 | id = ISBN 0029051908 }} This well documented work provides, in particular, valuable information regarding Newton's knowledge of [[Patristics]]

* {{cite web | url = http://www.wamu.org/audio/dr/03/06/r2030613.ram | title = interview with James Gleick: "Isaac Newton" (Pantheon) | work = WAMU's The Diane Rehm Show Friday, June 13, 2003 (RealAudio stream) | accessyear = 2005 | accessdate = March 8 }}

* {{cite web | url = http://www-history.mcs.st-andrews.ac.uk/Mathematicians/Newton.html | title = Sir Isaac Newton | work = School of Mathematics and Statistics, University of St. Andrews, Scotland | accessyear = 2005 | accessdate = March 8 }}

* {{cite web | url = http://www.newtonproject.ic.ac.uk/ | title = The Newton Project | work = Imperial College London | accessyear = 2005 | accessdate = March 8 }}

* {{cite book | authorlink = Richard S. Westfall | last = Westfall | first = Richard S. | title = Never at Rest | publisher = Cambridge University Press | year = 1980, 1998 | id = ISBN 0521274354 }}

* {{cite book | last = Craig | first=John | chapter = Isaac Newton and the Counterfeiters | title = Notes and Records of the Royal Society (18) | ___location= London | publisher=The Royal Society | year = 1963 }}

*"The Invisible Science." ''Magical Egypt''. Chance Gardner and John Anthony West. 2005.

===Further reading===

*[[David Berlinski|Berlinski, David]], ''Newton's Gift:How Sir Isaac Newton Unlocked the System of our World'', ISBN 0684843927 (hardback), also in paperback, Simon & Schuster, 2000

* Christianson, Gale E. ''In the Presence of the Creator: Isaac Newton and His Times''. Collier MacMillan, 1984. 608 pages

* Dampier, William C. & M. Dampier. ''Readings in the Literature of Science''. Harper & Row, New York, 1959.

* Gleick, James. ''Isaac Newton''. Knopf, 2003. hardcover, 288 pages, ISBN 0375422331

* [[Stephen Hawking|Hawking, Stephen]], ed. ''On the Shoulders of Giants''. ISBN 0-7624-1348-5 Places selections from Newton's ''Principia'' in the context of selected writings by [[Copernicus]], [[Johannes Kepler|Kepler]], [[Galileo Galilei|Galileo]] and [[Albert Einstein|Einstein]].

* [[Michael H. Hart|Hart, Michael J.]] ''[[The 100]]''. Carol Publishing Group, July 1992, paperback, 576 pages, ISBN 0806513500

* [[John Maynard Keynes|Keynes, John Maynard]]. ''Essays in Biography''. W W Norton & Co, 1963, paperback, ISBN 039300189X. Keynes had taken a close interest in Newton and owned many of Newton's private papers.

* Newton, Isaac. ''Papers and Letters in Natural Philosophy'', edited by [[I. Bernard Cohen]]. Harvard University Press, 1958,1978. ISBN 0-674-46853-8

* Newton, Isaac (1642-1727). ''The Principia'': a new Translation, Guide by I. Bernard Cohen ISBN 0-520-08817-4 University of California 1999 ''Warning: common mistranslations exposed!''

* Shapley, Harlow, S. Rapport, and H. Wright. ''A Treasury of Science''; "Newtonia" pp. 147-9; "Discoveries" pp. 150-4. Harper & Bros., New York, 1946.

* Simmons, J. ''The giant book of scientists -- The 100 greatest minds of all time'', Sydney: The Book Company, (1996)

==External links==

{{wikiquote}}

{{wikisource author}}

{{commons|Isaac Newton}}

*[http://burndy.mit.edu/Collections/Babson/Online/Principia/ PDF copies of Newton's Principia in the 1687, 1713, and 1726 editions available for download]

*[http://www.antiquebooks.net/readpage.html#newton Newton's Principia free to read and search]Online First American Edition, 1846, including Motte's 1729 Translation and Chittenden's Biography.

*[http://www-groups.dcs.st-and.ac.uk/~history/PictDisplay/Newton.html Portraits of Issac Newton]

*{{gutenberg author|id=Isaac_Newton|name=Isaac Newton}}

*[http://www.lucidcafe.com/library/95dec/newton.html ''Sir Isaac Newton Scientist and Mathematician'' by Lucidcafé]

*[http://www.dmoz.org/Science/Physics/History/People/Newton,_Isaac/ Isaac Newton Directory]

*[http://www.newtonproject.ic.ac.uk/ Newton Research Project]

*[http://www.skepticreport.com/astrology/newton.htm Rebuttal of Newton as an astrologer]

*[http://www.galilean-library.org/snobelen.html Newton Reconsidered], an interview with Newton scholar Stephen D. Snobelen

*[http://www.huntington.org/LibraryDiv/Newton/Newtonexhibit.htm March 5-June 12, 2005 Isaac Newton's personal copy of Principia on display at] [[Huntington Library]]

*[http://www.pierre-marteau.com/editions/1701-25-mint-reports.html Newton's Reports as Master of the Royal Mint]

*[http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/newton/ Newton's Dark Secrets] [[Nova (TV series)|NOVA]] television programme.

* {{MacTutor Biography|id=Newton}}

*[http://plato.stanford.edu/entries/newton-stm/ Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy entry on Newton's views on space, time, and motion]

*[http://fermatslasttheorem.blogspot.com/2005/09/sir-isaac-newton.html Sir Isaac Newton] an article that traces his life and achievements.

*[http://www.tqnyc.org/NYC051308/index.htm Newton's Castle] Educational material about Newton

*[http://www.dlib.indiana.edu/collections/newton The Chymistry of Isaac Newton] Research about Isaac Newton's Alchemical writings

*[http://www.newton.cam.ac.uk/ The Isaac Newton Institute for Mathematical Sciences]

**[http://www.newton.cam.ac.uk/newtlife.html Biography at Isaac Newton Institute]

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