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　　IsaacNewton'sLife

　　SpecialthankstotheMicrosoftCorporationfortheircontributiontooursite.ThefollowinginformationcamefromMicrosoftEncarta.

　　IINTRODUCTION

　　Newton,SirIsaac(1642-1727),mathematicianandphysicist,oneoftheforemostscientificintellectsofalltime.BornatWoolsthorpe,nearGranthaminLincolnshire,whereheattendedschool,heenteredCambridgeUniversityin1661;hewaselectedaFellowofTrinityCollegein1667,andLucasianProfessorofMathematicsin1669.Heremainedattheuniversity,lecturinginmostyears,until1696.OftheseCambridgeyears,inwhichNewtonwasattheheightofhiscreativepower,hesingledout1665-1666(spentlargelyinLincolnshirebecauseofplagueinCambridge)as"theprimeofmyageforinvention".DuringtwotothreeyearsofintensementalefforthepreparedPhilosophiaeNaturalisPrincipiaMathematica(MathematicalPrinciplesofNaturalPhilosophy)commonlyknownasthePrincipia,althoughthiswasnotpublisheduntil1687.

　　AsafirmopponentoftheattemptbyKingJamesIItomaketheuniversitiesintoCatholicinstitutions,NewtonwaselectedMemberofParliamentfortheUniversityofCambridgetotheConventionParliamentof1689,andsatagainin1701-1702.Meanwhile,in1696hehadmovedtoLondonasWardenoftheRoyalMint.HebecameMasteroftheMintin1699,anofficeheretainedtohisdeath.HewaselectedaFellowoftheRoyalSocietyofLondonin1671,andin1703hebecamePresident,beingannuallyre-electedfortherestofhislife.Hismajorwork,Opticks,appearedthenextyear;hewasknightedinCambridgein1705.

　　AsNewtoniansciencebecameincreasinglyacceptedontheContinent,andespeciallyafterageneralpeacewasrestoredin1714,followingtheWaroftheSpanishSuccession,NewtonbecamethemosthighlyesteemednaturalphilosopherinEurope.Hislastdecadeswerepassedinrevisinghismajorworks,polishinghisstudiesofancienthistory,anddefendinghimselfagainstcritics,aswellascarryingouthisofficialduties.Newtonwasmodest,diffident,andamanofsimpletastes.Hewasangeredbycriticismoropposition,andharbouredresentment;hewasharshtowardsenemiesbutgeneroustofriends.Ingovernment,andattheRoyalSociety,heprovedanableadministrator.Henevermarriedandlivedmodestly,butwasburiedwithgreatpompinWestminsterAbbey.

　　Newtonhasbeenregardedforalmost300yearsasthefoundingexamplarofmodernphysicalscience,hisachievementsinexperimentalinvestigationbeingasinnovativeasthoseinmathematicalresearch.Withequal,ifnotgreater,energyandoriginalityhealsoplungedintochemistry,theearlyhistoryofWesterncivilization,andtheology;amonghisspecialstudieswasaninvestigationoftheformanddimensions,asdescribedintheBible,ofSolomon'sTempleinJerusalem.

　　IIOPTICS

　　In1664,whilestillastudent,NewtonreadrecentworkonopticsandlightbytheEnglishphysicistsRobertBoyleandRobertHooke;healsostudiedboththemathematicsandthephysicsoftheFrenchphilosopherandscientistRenéDescartes.Heinvestigatedtherefractionoflightbyaglassprism;developingoverafewyearsaseriesofincreasinglyelaborate,refined,andexactexperiments,Newtondiscoveredmeasurable,mathematicalpatternsinthephenomenonofcolour.Hefoundwhitelighttobeamixtureofinfinitelyvariedcolouredray