Who was Isaac Newton? (Short biography)

1. SUMMARY

Isaac Newton was an English physicist and mathematician of the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries (he was born on January 4, 1643 and died on March 31, 1727 at age 84) known mainly for:

– Laying the foundations of classical mechanics through his three laws of motion and his law of universal gravitation.

– Developing the integral and differential calculus (simultaneously and independently of Gottfried Leibniz).

– Discovering that white light is made up of the set of all colors.

 

2. ISAAC NEWTON BIOGRAPHY

Isaac Newton was born prematurely on January 4, 1643 to a peasant family in Woolsthorpe Manor, a small village in the county of Lincolnshire, England.

Newton had a complicated childhood. Three months before his birth his father died and at three years old his mother left him with his grandparents when her new husband refused to raise a stepchild. Newton would not return to his native village until the death of his stepfather in 1653.

During his childhood and youth he was an introvert. He had few friendships and little interest in his studies, although he did not lack intelligence, curiosity and imagination. At the age of 12, he began studying elementary studies at Grantham Elementary School. In 1661, at 18 years of age, he entered Trinity College at the University of Cambridge to study mathematics under Isaac Barrow.

After graduation, Newton devoted himself to study mathematics and philosophy. He later had momentous discoveries in the field of calculation (with the development of integral and differential calculus, and describing the motion of macroscopic bodies) and optics (with his theory of colors).

Newton highlights his studies and discoveries in “Mathematical Principles of Natural Philosophy” (Philosophiae Naturalis Principia Mathematica), published in 1687. Within this work he laid the foundations of modern physics and engineering through his laws of motion and the theory of gravity. This marks a before and after in the history of science. Nowadays, it is still widely considered as the most influential work in the history of physics.

Finally, after a long life devoted to the development of science and the understanding of the universe, Newton died on March 31, 1727 (84 years) in London. He died from kidney failure in his sleep. Eight days later, on April 8, 1727, he received the honor of being the first scientist buried in Westminster Abbey.

 

3. DOCUMENTARY ISAAC NEWTON

 

4. MORE INFORMATION AND REFERENCES

• Saber es práctico (2018). ¿Quién fue Isaac Newton? ¿Qué hizo? (Resumen). Text in Spanish. Avaliable [HERE].
• Sterling Documentaries – Youtube.com (2015). Secret Life of Isaac Newton – Full Documentary. Youtube.
• Wikipedia.org (2018). Isaac Newton. Text in Spanish. Avaliable [HERE].
• Wikipedia.org (2018). Isaac Newton. Avaliable [HERE].
• Gottfried Kniller (1689). Isaac Newton Portrait. Retrieved from Wikimedia Commons. Avaliable [HERE].