Title: Isaac Newton, adventurer in thought /
Authors: Hall, A. Rupert 1920-
Publisher: Blackwell,
Year: 1992
Subjects: Newton, Isaac,; Newton, Isaac,; Physicists Great Britain Biography
Abstract: "In this elegant and absorbing biography of Isaac Newton (1642-1727) Rupert Hall surveys the vast field of modern scholarship in order to interpret Newton's mathematical and experimental approach to nature. Mathematics was always the deepest, the most innovative and the most productive of Newton's interests. However, Newton as historian, theologian, chemist, civil servant and natural philosopher is also part of the picture. Clearly these many diverse studies were to some extent unified in Newton's single design as a Christian to explore every facet of God's creation, not least his ways and purposes in relation to humanity." "The story of Isaac Newton's life and discoveries has been greatly altered by exploration of his huge manuscript legacy during the last thirty to forty years. This research has thrown new light upon both his personality and his intellect. Rupert Hall's discussion of his research shows that Newton cannot be simply explained as a Platonist, mystic or magus. He remains a complex and enigmatic genius with a mind both immensely imaginative and immensely commonsensical."--Jacket.
Contents: The Hopeful Youth, 1642-1664 -- "The prime of my age for invention", 1664-1667 -- Widening Horizons, 1667-1669 -- The Professor of Mathematics, 1669-1673 -- Publication and Polemic, 1672-1678 -- Life in Cambridge, 1675-1685 -- The Chemical Philosopher, 1669-1695 -- The Mathematical Principles of Natural Philosophy, 1679-1687 -- Private and Public Life, 1685-1696 -- Fluxions and Fury, 1677-1712 -- Opticks, or a Treatise of Light, 1687-1704 -- Life in London, 1696-1718 -- A Man of Authority and Learning, 1692-1727 -- Later Books, 1706-1726 -- Kensington, 1725-1727 -- App. A. Newton's Alchemical Studies and his Idea of the Atomic Structure of Matter -- App. B. Newton's Portraits -- App. C. Newton's London Homes -- App. D. Jonathan Swift and Catherine Barton -- App. E. The Fate of Newton's Papers and his Library.