The Spread of Newtonian
Science
The Scientific Revolution Before Newton
Copernicus (1473 – 1543)
• Heliocentric universe
Kepler (1571 – 1630)
• Attempts to use “physics” to
explain Copernicus’ model.
• Elliptical orbits of planets.
• Magnetic forces.
Galileo (1564 – 1642)
• Kinematics.
• Circular inertia.
• Imprisoned for heresy.
Descartes (1596 – 1650)
• Seeks (in philosophy) to
achieve explanations equal
in clarity to mathematical
proof.
• Sees mathematics as a
perfect science.
• Cartesian geometry.
• Distinction of mind, physical
and heavenly worlds.
Francis Bacon (1561 – 1626)
• Experimental method
John Theophilus Desaguliers
• 1683 – 1744
• Born in La Rochelle, France
• Moved to England as a child.
• Graduated from Christ Church,
Oxford University.
• He was a priest, freemason,
engineer and natural
philosopher.
• Popularised Newtonian Sciences.
Desaguliers became
experimental assistant to
Isaac Newton in 1713 whilst
at Oxford.
He soon made a name for
himself as a public
experimental lecturer in
London.
• Desaguliers became experimenter for the
Royal Society, with Newton’s assistance, in
1714.
• Even today, the Society acts as a scientific
advisor to the British government, receiving a
parliamentary grant.
Desaguliers was awarded the
Society’s highest honour, the
Copley medal, three times in
1734, 1736 and 1741. His most
famous achievement was for
discoveries of the properties of
electricity.
Desaguliers was one of
many who tried to provide
introductory texts to
Newton’s Principia.
Something Newton always
refused to provide.
In 1720, Desaguliers translated,
“Mathematical Elements of Natural
Philosophy, Confirmed by experiments: or,
An Introduction to Sir Isaac Newton’s
Philosophy”, into English.
Originally written in Latin by WilliamJames Gravesande.
The Newtonian System of the world, the best model of
government and Allegorical Poem - 1728
But Newton the unparallel’d, whose Name
No Time will wear out of the Book of Fame,
Caelestial Science has promoted more,
Than all the Sages that have shone before.
Nature compell’d, his piercing Mind, obeys,
And gladly shews him all her secret Ways;
‘Gainst Mathematicks she has no Defence,
And yield t’experimental Consequence:
His tow’ring Genius, from its certain Cause,
Ev’ry Appearance, a priori draws,
And shews th’ Almighty Architect’s unalter’d Laws.
In 1734 his own book, Course of
Experimental Philosophy, was
published and became very
popular.
Desaguliers as an engineer
The water supply in Edinburgh
The ventilation of the houses
of parliament
The first Westminster bridge
Within the the Royal Society he
devised new experiments to
defend several of Newton’s
claims, such as the shape of the
Earth.
Universal Gravitation
Isaac Newton formulated the law of universal gravitation between two
objects. The law states that between two objects of masses m1 and m2, with
centers of mass a distance d apart, there is an attractive force magnitude.
G is the gravitational constant and in SI units has
a value of 6.67x10-11 kg-1 m3 s-1. The force F is
called the gravitation force.
The gravitational force of an object on the Earth’s
surface is often called the weight of the object.
Find the magnitude of the gravitational force of an object of
mass M on the Earth’s surface. Assume that the Earth is a
sphere of mass 5.98x1024 kg and a radius 6.37x106 m.
G is the gravitational constant and has a
value of 6.67x10-11 kg-1 m3 s-1.
We see that Newton’s universal law of gravitation gives the
familiar rule of the force of gravity or the weight of an object of
Do
you
recognise
-2the answer?
mass M as Mg, where g = 9.8ms .
Emilie du Châtelet
•
•
•
•
1706 – 1749
Born in Paris, France
Feminist
French mathematician,
physicist, and author
during The Age of
Enlightenment
Education
Early Education:
• Father
• Tutors
• Fluent in Latin, Italian, German and Greek
• Used her mathematical skills to devise
highly successful strategies for gambling
• Mother – conflicting information
Further Education:
• Continued with her studies after childbirth
• Tutors
• Dressed as a man!
Relationship with Voltaire
• Friendship
• Voltaire shared Newton’s
work
• Studied hard to advance
science
• Tested Newton’s theories
• Introductory book on
Newtonian philosophy
• “She dictated and I wrote”
Achievements in Scientific Research
Heat and Light:
• Research into the science of fire
• Predicted infrared radiation and
the nature of light.
Institutions de Physique (Lesson’s in Physics):
• A book for her son
• Review of new ideas
• But included complex ideas
Kinetic Energy Ideas:
• Newton’s theory
E α V (energy of moving object is proportional to velocity)
• Leibniz and Gravesande’s theory
E α V2 (energy of moving object is proportional to velocity
squared)
Newton’s Principia:
• Most outstanding achievement
• Translated Newton’s ‘Principia Mathematica’
into French
• Published in 1759
• Still the standard translation
Laura Bassi
born in Italy
1711 – 1778
Education
Father was a lawyer
Child prodigy
Gaetano Tacconi
Franceso Maria Zanotti
1732 admitted to the Bologna Academy of Science
Degree in Philosophy
Became a lecturer
This picture is reminiscent of classrooms of that time
Bassi, Manfredi and Newton
 First lecture was on Newtonian
science
 Maths v physics
 “Newtonianism for Ladies”
 Studied infinitesimal calculus
under Manfredi
Bassi’s work




Not allowed access to university laboratories
Had her laboratory at home
1745 Benedettina Academy
28 papers on chemistry, physics, hydraulics,
mathematics, mechanics and technology
 4 have survived
This may have been what the university laboratory looked like.
Summary
• Laura was a prominent female of the 18th
century
• She was the first female to teach in a
European university and the first to gain a full
professorship when she was appointed Chair
in Experimental Physics
• A medal was made in her honour
• A street in Bologna is named after her
• A school has been named for her
Francesco Algoratti
Newtonism for Ladies
Who was Algarotti?
• Algarotti was a
philosopher and art
critic.
• He also completed
engravings
• He was from Italy.
• He lived for 52 years
only! (1712 – 1764)
What is Philosophy?
• Philosophy comes from the Greek word
‘philosophia’meaning ‘Love of Wisdom’
• Philosophy is the study of general and fundamental
problems. Eg. problems related to existence, knowledge, values, reason, mind, and language
• Whats different about Philosophers and other
problem solvers?
• Philosphy deals with these problems using Critical,
Systematic approach and therefore it relies on
rational argument.
Francesco Algarotti
•
Algarotti was born on 11.12.1712 in Venice. His father was a rich merchant.
•
He studied natural Sciences and mathematics in Rome and Bologna.
•
The young 20 year old Francesco went to Paris and there he met Voltaire. There he
produced his work on Optics called ‘Newtonism for Ladies’.
•
In 1754, after seven years' residence partly in Berlin, he returned to Italy, living at
Venice and then at Pisa, where he died.
•
Frederick the Great erected to his memory a monument on the Campo santo at
Pisa. He was "one of the first beaux esprits of the age", a man of wide knowledge,
a connoisseur in art and music, and the friend of most of the leading authors of his
time.
Optics
• Branch of Physics
• Study of the way light
behaves
• Study of light
properties eg. Light interactions
with matter, light dispertion (in a prism,
material dispersion causes different colors to
refract at different angles, slitting white light
into a rainbow.
• Construction of
instruments that use
light or detect light.
Royal Society
• At the age of 22, Francesco was made a fellow of the Royal Society in
London.
• For improving general knowledge
• A learned Society for science (This is an organization that promotes one or several academic disciplines)
• Possibly the oldest such society in existence founded in November 1660
where the founders intended it to be a place of research and discussion.
• Today Royal Society acts as a scientific advisor to the British government.
• It also acts as the UK’s Academy of Sciences and funds research
fellowships and scientific start-up companies.
For more info on Schemes visit: http://royalsociety.org
Maria Gaetana Agnesi
Childhood
• Maria Gaetana Agnesi was born in Milan on
16th May 1718.
• Her father was a Professor at the University of
Bologna.
• Maria was able to speak Italian (her mother
tongue) and French by 9, and by 13 she was
able to speak in Greek, Hebrew, Spanish,
German and Latin.
Education
• Maria was educated from her early years.
• Her father took her to gatherings to read and
debate philosophical questions with the bright
minds of the day.
• Maria really wanted to join a convent.
• She studied Differential and Integral Calculus
and taught her brothers and sisters.
Contributions to Mathematics
• Maria created the ‘Treatise on Analysis for the
use of Italian Youth’, which was translated into
English and French.
The Witch?
• Maria’s best known contribution to
mathematics was her work on a curve which
Maria named “Versiera” in 1748. The name
comes from the Italian “to turn”.
Unfortunately the name was mistranslated
and in English became known as the ‘Witch of
Agnesi’, which has also followed through to
Spanish.
Versiera Curve also known as The
Witch of Agnesi
• The intersection of l and m is point P. This is the
point whose locus is traced, as A moves
Parametric Equations
• Parabola
• For example, the simplest equation for a parabola,
• The parabola above can be written in parametric form by using a free
parameter t, and setting;
More Parametric Equations
Circle
We can also write the equation of a circle with radius a where t
is the angle between the x-axis and the point on the curve :
Important: where t is in the range 0 to 2π.
Integrating Parametric Equations
• We cannot do simple integration in the form
• when using parametric equations we need to use the
integral of the form
(Comes from the
chain rule).
• Thus for the parabola before;
=
=
=
Later Years
• Pope Benedict XIV wrote to Maria to appoint
her as the chair of mathematics in 1750.
• In 1752 Maria’s father died and she devoted
her time to charity and she did no further
work on mathematics, unless as a hobby.
Compose your own
I've got a great notion
That force is a changer of motion.
Let's put it this way:
F equals ma
The rest is just sweat and devotion.
Compose your own
This is what Emilie is like:
Beautiful; a good friend, too
Imagination blossoming and true
Her mind is lively, nay, sublime
With too much wit some of the time.
She has a genius that is rare
Worthy of Newton, I do swear;
Yet even so she spends her days
With all the world and its petty ways
Playing at cards with gamblers and the like."
Philosophical Implications of Newton
Mathemetization of physics
• More logical (rational) world views
Experimental induction (vs. deduction by
hypothesis)
• More scope for sciences.
Political & theological implications
• The Enlightenment
• Deism
• Order in society