Philosophy
Whatever life may have in store for you, chances are you will never amount to anything even remotely resembling the kind of immortal legacy that Sir Isaac Newton was able to secure for himself: rock star scientist and genius, discoverer of fundamental laws of nature (before people even knew there may be such things!), masked superhero (oh yeah...). Then again, he was a total dick and kind of a woo-worshiper, so maybe you don't want to resemble him too much either...
You are probably familiar with the fact he performed ground-breaking experiments into the nature of light (proving that white light is a complex combination of all other colors and not a simple color, as had been thought previously), that he developed a theory of gravity that would reign supreme for about three hundred years, or even that he freaking invented calculus! But did you know about his obsession with alchemy and the occult? Or about how much more time he spent trying to decipher secret codes in The Bible than he actually spent doing science? Or about the fact that he really was a masked vigilante even though he didn't have a Batmobile? And did you know you could learn a lot of these things while sitting back and watching the following amusing documentary with Mark Steel?
If you want more laughs, check out the rest of the episodes in this series.
- An Interview With I. Newton
An amusing narrative... Some years ago I happened to be listening to a lecture given by Gregory Chaitin on what he called as ”digital philosophy.” In the following night, just before falling asleep, I was lying on my bed wondering what Isaac Newton,...
- Newton And Early Chemistry
"Moonlighting as a Conjurer of Chemicals" by Natalie Angier October 11th, 2010 The New York Times Sir Isaac Newton was a towering genius in the history of science, he knew he was a genius, and he didn’t like wasting his time. Born on Dec. 25, 1642,...
- "isaac Newton And Physics For Kids"--book Review
"Isaac Newton and Physics for Kids" by Kathy Ceceri June 26th, 2010 Wired A lot of nonfiction for kids in upper elementary and middle school is what I think of as “book report books.” They’re packed with facts, but not presented in a way that...
- Newton's Alchemy
Yes, NOVA [ "Newton's Dark Secrets"--transcript ] had a special [highly dramatized] program on Newton and his interest in alchemy. "IU team reveals secret life of Isaac Newton on new website" June 14th, 2010 Indiana University Sir Isaac Newton,...
- More On Isaac Newton's Birthday
"The Ten Days of Newton" by Olivia Judson December 23rd, 2008 The New York Times Some years ago, the evolutionist and atheist Richard Dawkins pointed out to me that Sir Isaac Newton, the founder of modern physics and mathematics, and arguably the greatest...
Philosophy
The Mark Steel Lectures - Newton
You are probably familiar with the fact he performed ground-breaking experiments into the nature of light (proving that white light is a complex combination of all other colors and not a simple color, as had been thought previously), that he developed a theory of gravity that would reign supreme for about three hundred years, or even that he freaking invented calculus! But did you know about his obsession with alchemy and the occult? Or about how much more time he spent trying to decipher secret codes in The Bible than he actually spent doing science? Or about the fact that he really was a masked vigilante even though he didn't have a Batmobile? And did you know you could learn a lot of these things while sitting back and watching the following amusing documentary with Mark Steel?
If you want more laughs, check out the rest of the episodes in this series.
- An Interview With I. Newton
An amusing narrative... Some years ago I happened to be listening to a lecture given by Gregory Chaitin on what he called as ”digital philosophy.” In the following night, just before falling asleep, I was lying on my bed wondering what Isaac Newton,...
- Newton And Early Chemistry
"Moonlighting as a Conjurer of Chemicals" by Natalie Angier October 11th, 2010 The New York Times Sir Isaac Newton was a towering genius in the history of science, he knew he was a genius, and he didn’t like wasting his time. Born on Dec. 25, 1642,...
- "isaac Newton And Physics For Kids"--book Review
"Isaac Newton and Physics for Kids" by Kathy Ceceri June 26th, 2010 Wired A lot of nonfiction for kids in upper elementary and middle school is what I think of as “book report books.” They’re packed with facts, but not presented in a way that...
- Newton's Alchemy
Yes, NOVA [ "Newton's Dark Secrets"--transcript ] had a special [highly dramatized] program on Newton and his interest in alchemy. "IU team reveals secret life of Isaac Newton on new website" June 14th, 2010 Indiana University Sir Isaac Newton,...
- More On Isaac Newton's Birthday
"The Ten Days of Newton" by Olivia Judson December 23rd, 2008 The New York Times Some years ago, the evolutionist and atheist Richard Dawkins pointed out to me that Sir Isaac Newton, the founder of modern physics and mathematics, and arguably the greatest...