The Renaissance was a time of many advances in the field of science. One of the most prominent and most
contributing scientists of that time is Sir Isaac Newton. Newton helped propel
the scientific line of thinking from a religious standpoint into a modern
science, acting as a catalyst for the scientific revolution. Newton made large
contributions in the fields of optics, mathematics, physics, and set many laws
and guidelines for modern science. One of Newton’s most prominent achievements
are his laws of motion and proposal for a law of gravitation. Newton’s three
laws of motion include, “The Law of Inertia”, the law of acceleration and
force, and the law that states for every reaction there is a reaction. Newton
started to construct his ideas of gravity after seeing the apple fall from a
tree. He established through “experiments and astronomical observations that all bodies about the earth, gravitate toward
the earth; and that in proportion to the quantity of matter which they severally
contain.” (Modern History Sourcebook: Isaac Newton: The Mathematical Principles of Natural
Philosophy). These laws are still to be disproven today and had provided a basis for improvement in today’s
physics. As well as his major contributions to the physics, Newton also
contributed in the field of optics. His book, known as Opticks, encompassed his
studies on optics, including his work on the telescope, which Newton was
credited with inventing the first working reflecting one. Also in his book
Opticks, Newton reported on his theory of the refraction of white light,
actually being many different colors that, when combined, create plain white
light. Newton, at the age of twenty six, invented the differential and integral
calculus, a system of mathematics that is studied and practiced today. Newton
was considered to be one of the most famous scientists of his time, yet he
managed to excel so greatly by picking up where others left off. Newton built on
the ideas of Copernicus, Kepler, and Galileo of a solar system with a sun in the
middle and other theories. “ If I have seen further... it is by standing upon the shoulders of giants.” Newton
picked up where others left off, improving many scientific works as well as
creating and inventing his own.