Isaac Newton

Considered by many as one of the most revolutionary men in history, Isaac Newton transformed the world of mathematics and physics. Newton’s story began on the fourth of January sixteen-forty-three in Woolsthorpe, Lincolnshire. Going against his mother’s wishes of becoming a farmer, Newton instead put his focus on further education. Influenced by bullies, Newton soon became the top-ranking student at The King’s School in Grantham. He obtained his higher education at Cambridge University, and then followed by Trinity College. This time is referred as “the height” of his creativity due to his increased interest in mathematics, gravity and light composition. During this time, Newton also wrote his masterpiece, Mathematical Principles of Natural Philosophy. This monograph dealt with the application of gravity to all parts of the universe.

Newton’s gift for mathematics was advanced for his time period. His contributions were extensive and revolutionary to the world. His focus was mainly seen in fluxions or calculus. For example, Newton gained acknowledgment for his solutions to problems dealing with analytical geometry; drawing tangents to curves and defining areas bounded by curves. Newton also described the inverse relationship between these problems. As advanced and important that his discoveries were, they often delayed in their publishing thus hidden from the public.

Newton’s most often recognized achievements deals with mechanics and gravitation. The often common example that supposedly initiated his thought process on gravity is when Newton was sitting under a tree and an apple fell on his head which provoked his deep pondering. Upon initiating his analytical work on the subject, Newton was able to calculate the force needed to hold the moon in its orbit, the centripetal force needed to hold a stone in a sling and the relationship between the length of a pendulum and the time of its swing. Although these discoveries dealt with physical mechanics, they influenced and affected the knowledge held by the astronomy world. Further discoveries include the definition of gravity, the theory of fluids, and law of gravitational at work in the macrocosm. These discoveries were included in his work, Mathematical Principles of Natural Philosophy.

Isaac Newton’s mental capacities have named his as a contributor to humanity’s greatest achievements. His accomplishments though sometimes delayed in publishing have now come to be widely recognized and universally accepted. Newton allowed for human advancement to be a possibility and the world was revolutionized by his work.