Physics - General & Miscellaneous, Physicists - Biography, History of Science, Occultism

Isaac Newton

Name: Isaac Newton
Author: Michael White
ISBN: 9780201483017

by Michael White

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Overview

It is no exaggeration to say that almost everything we do in the modern world - from looking at the stars through reflecting telescopes to solving problems by means of calculus - is based on Sir Isaac Newton's enormous scientific achievements. But, as Michael White so deftly reveals in this ground-breaking biography, Newton was not the pure scientist of lore. Unknown to all but a hero-worshipping inner circle, Newton was a practicing alchemist who dabbled with the occult. He did not discover gravity by watching an apple fall - that was a myth created to disguise the messier, perhaps more embarrassing, truth. In reality, Newton's great theories were grasped within the charred base of the crucible and the alchemist's fire. White confirms that a handful of Newton's friends must have known during his life time: that Newton, driven to investigate everything that puzzled him, expended a vast amount of time and effort studying the chronology of the Bible, examining prophecy, investigating natural magic - perhaps even the black arts - and attempting to unravel the hermetic secrets, the prisca sapientia. Most remarkable, however, is White's assertion that, far from being a distraction, these alchemical diversions were in fact the key to Newton's world-changing discoveries in science: his alchemical work and his science were inextricably linked.

About the Author, Michael White

Michael White was a science lecturer and director of studies at d’Overbroeck’s College, Oxford for ten years before becoming a full-time writer and journalist. He is the co-author (with John Gribben) of the best seller, Stephen Hawking: A Life In Science which has been translated into 25 languages and has sold in excess of 250,000 copies worldwide. He is a regular contributor to The Sunday Times, The Observer, The Daily Telegraph, GQ, Focus and New Scientist, writing on subjects ranging from pure science to music. He lives in London.

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Editorials

Library Journal

Considering the large number of books written about Isaac Newton, another such volume hardly seems necessary. Nevertheless, this revisionist biography clearly deserves consideration. White, coauthor of Stephen Hawking: A Life in Science (LJ 5/1/92) and a regular contributor to numerous scholarly and popular periodicals including New Scientist, reveals a Newton who was not only a brilliant scientist but also a man who spent a large part of his life intensely involved with alchemy, leaving us over one million words on the subject. Newton also spent a considerable amount of time studying biblical prophecy, astrology, numerology, and natural magic. Noting that the distinction between science and magic in the 1600s was not as clear-cut as it is today, White does not intend to dethrone Newton; rather he asks us to see Newton as a man and to accept his peculiarities and failings along with his skills and talents. Well written and researched, White's book is recommended for public and academic libraries.James Olson, Northeastern Illinois Univ. Lib., Chicago

Booknews

An intellectual biography which argues that not only was Newton not the pure scientist he is commonly portrayed as, but that his investigations into such subjects as the chronology of the Bible, prophecy, natural magic, and alchemy profoundly influenced his scientific work. The author examines both sides of the argument in a discussion that treats Newton's scientific and religious beliefs, as well as his personal eccentricities. Annotation c. by Book News, Inc., Portland, Or.