Most likely, you know about Newton a story connected with an apple falling on his head. In fact, he achieved much more in science. His grave in Westminster says that he was the greatest man who ever lived on the planet. If it seems to you that this is too bold a statement, you should just get to know Newton's achievements better. He was a real genius - an expert in astronomy, chemistry, mathematics, physics, theology. His endless curiosity helped him solve problems of all sizes. His findings, theories, laws made the scientist a real legend. Let's take a look at his most significant achievements - the top 10 will help with this.
Space cannon
It's surprising that the apple story became the main legend about Newton - after all, it is rather boring! In fact, Newton's ideas about gravity were much more fascinating. Describing the law of gravity, Newton imagined a mountain so large that its top reached space, and there was a huge cannon. No, he hadn't planned to fight the aliens at all. A space gun is a speculative experiment describing how to launch an object into orbit. If you use too little or too much gunpowder, the core will simply fall to Earth or fly into space. If everything is calculated correctly, the core will fly around the planet in orbit. Newton's works published in 1687 taught that all particles are affected by gravity, and that gravity itself is affected by mass and distance. Einstein later expanded on these ideas,but it was Newton who laid a solid foundation for modern concepts of gravity.
Doors for cats
When the scientist was not busy working on the issues of the universe, he was engaged in other problems - for example, figured out how to get cats to stop scratching doors. Newton never had a wife, he had few friends, but he had pets. Different sources have different data on this matter. Some believe that he was very fond of animals, and some, on the contrary, contain strange stories about a dog named Diamond. One way or another, there is a story about how, at Cambridge University, Newton was constantly interfered with by cats who scratched at the door. As a result, he called the carpenter and ordered him to make two holes in the door: a large one for a large cat and a small one for kittens. Of course, the kittens were just following the cat, so the little hole was useless. It may not have happened, but the Cambridge door has survived to this day. Assumingthat these holes were not made by Newton's order, it turns out that a man with the strange hobby of drilling holes once roamed the university.
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Three laws of motion
Maybe the stories about animals are not very true, but it is absolutely certain that the discoveries in physics were made by Newton. He not only described gravity, but also derived three laws of motion. According to the first, the object remains at rest if it is not influenced by an external force. The second says that the movement of an object changes depending on the impact of force. The third says that for every action there is opposition. Based on these simple laws, more sophisticated modern formulations have emerged, which are a fundamental concept. Before Newton, no one had succeeded in describing the process so clearly, although both Greek thinkers and prominent French philosophers dealt with the issue.
Philosopher's Stone
Newton's thirst for knowledge led him not only to scientific discoveries, but also to original alchemical studies. For example, he was looking for the famous Philosopher's Stone. It is described as a stone or solution that can cause the transformation of various substances into gold, heal diseases and even transform a cow without a head into a swarm of bees! At the time of Newton, the scientific revolution was just beginning, so that alchemy retained its place among the sciences. He wanted to discover unlimited power over nature and experimented in every possible way, trying to create a philosopher's stone. However, all attempts were fruitless.
Arithmetic
Newton quickly discovered that algebra in his day simply did not meet the needs of scientists. For example, in those days, mathematicians could calculate the speed of a ship, but they did not know its acceleration. When Newton spent 18 months in seclusion during the plague epidemic, he transformed the system of calculus and created a surprisingly convenient tool that is still used by physicists, economists and others today.
Refraction of light
In 1704, Newton wrote a book on the refraction of light, telling incredible information for those times about the nature of light and color. Before the scientist, no one knew why the rainbow is so colorful. People thought that water somehow colored the sun's rays. Using a lamp and a prism, Newton demonstrated the refraction of light and explained the principle of the appearance of the rainbow!
Mirror telescope
In Newton's time, only telescopes with glass lenses were used to magnify the image. The scientist was the first to suggest using a system of reflecting mirrors in telescopes. This way the image is clearer and the telescope can be smaller. Newton personally created a prototype of the telescope and presented it to the scientific community. Most modern observatories use the models developed then by Newton.
Perfect coin
The inventor was really busy with many topics at once - for example, he wanted to defeat the counterfeiters. In the 17th century, the English system was in crisis. The coins were silver, and sometimes silver was worth more than the denomination of the coin made from it. As a result, people melted coins for sale in France. There were coins of different sizes and so different types in use that sometimes it was difficult even to understand whether it was really British money - all this also made it easier for counterfeiters to work. Newton created quality coins in a uniform size that would be difficult to counterfeit. As a result, the problem of counterfeiters began to decline. Ever notice the notches on the edges of coins? It was Newton who suggested them!
Cooling
Newton wondered how the cooling took place. He conducted many experiments with red-hot balls. He noticed that the rate of heat loss was proportional to the temperature difference between the atmosphere and the object. So he developed the law of cooling. His work became the basis for many subsequent discoveries, including the principle of operation of a nuclear reactor and safety rules for travel into space.
Apocalypse
People have always been afraid of the apocalypse, but it was not in Newton's rules to take a terrible story on faith, without thinking about it. When, at the beginning of the eighteenth century, people began to whip up hysteria about the end of the world, the scientist sat down to books and decided to study the issue in detail. He was well versed in theology, so he was quite able to decipher the Bible verses. He was convinced that the Bible contained ancient wisdom that a learned man could recognize. As a result, Newton came to the conclusion that the end of the world would not come before 2060. This information helped to somewhat reduce the level of panic in society. With his research, Newton put people in the place of spreading terrible rumors, and allowed everyone to make sure that, in general, there was nothing to fear.