About Him:
Sir Issac Newton was an English polymath who was a mathematician, physicist, astronomer, author and many other things. He was born on christmas day, 25th of December 1642, near Lincolnshire, England and passed away on the 31 of march 1727 near London. Throughout his lifetime he has made many ground-breaking discoveries such as: the laws of gravitation, the laws of motion, the laws of optics and calculus. Even though Newton has made countless breakthroughs and inventions, the one that he is most known for is his discovery of the laws of Gravity, which astonishingly was discovered through the help of an apple.
Education/Career:
Newton completed his higher studies at the Trinity College of Cambridge, where he earned his Bachelors of Arts in 1665 and Masters of Arts in 1668. Shortly after he achieved his BA, the Great Plague forced the University of Cambridge to close and so Newton returned back to his hometown. During this time Newton, by himself, developed early ideas of calculus, discovered the laws of gravity and deduced that white light composed of different colours led to experimentations with triangular prisms. In 1669, he became Lucasian Professor of Mathematics, which at the time was one of the most prestigious titles in the world. Then in 1687, he published “Philosophiæ Naturalis Principia Mathematica” which consisted of his explanations of the laws of motion and gravity, which revolutionised the science world.
The Apple:
Famously, Newton’s discovery of gravity was inspired by observing an random apple, which led him to question why apple falls down as opposed to upwards or even sideways. A common misconception is that the apple fell on his head, however in reality he was just observing a tree as the apple fell down towards the ground. Newton’s curiosity led him to discover the force that pulls objects towards the center of the Earth, which now is widely known as Gravity. The word “Gravity” derives from the latin word “Gravitas” which simply means weight.
He discovers the laws of gravity, the laws of motion and even calculus before turning 24 years of age, showing his unfathomable level of intellect.
A “Polymath” is a person who has great knowledge across a variety of different subjects/areas.
