You may not publish or distribute it electronically or in hard copy without written permission from Explorit or other cited copyright owner. The material is here for your entertainment or edification - you may of course pass the URL to whom ever you wish. He is claimed by many to be the greatest scientist in history. P ope is exagerating in his poetic acknowledgement of Newton's greatness and Newton is romanticising the process of discovery in his introspective thought. T here is no single road to discovery.
Discoverers have many different motives, goals, and approaches.
They take many wrong turns, travel tortuous paths, and sometimes arrive because of another's speculation or observation. Throughout history, science discoveries have involved chance and good luck, as well as focused, careful investigation. Most have relied on mental preparedness based on a background of knowledge gleaned from the work of other people. They have relied upon an ability to reflect, to make intuitive leaps of understanding, to recognize when a discovery has been made, and to comprehend its significance. During his investigations he observed the same thing that others had seen but, making an intuitive leap of understanding, recognized a fascinating discovery.