Isaac Newton

- Born in England, Isaac Newton was a highly influential physicist, astronomer, mathematician, philosopher, alchemist and theologian.

- In 1687, Newton published Philosophae Naturalis Principia Mathematica, what is widely regarded to be one of the important books in the history of science. In it he describes universal gravitation and the three laws of motion, concepts that remained at the forefront of science for centuries after.

- Newton’s three laws of motion relate the forces acting on a body to it’s motion. The first is the law of inertia, it states that ‘every object in motion will stay in motion until acted upon by an outside force’. The second is commonly stated as ‘force equals mass times acceleration’, or F = ma. The third and final law is commonly known as ‘to every action there is an equal and opposite reaction’.

- Newton moved to London in 1696 and took up a role as the Warden of the Royal Mint, overseeing the production of the Pound Sterling.

- Newton was known to have said that his work on formulating a theory of gravitation was inspired by watching an apple fall from a tree. A story well publicized to this very day.

- Famous Isaac Newton quotes include “Plato is my friend - Aristotle is my friend - but my greatest friend is truth.”“I can calculate the motions of the heavenly bodies, but not the madness of people.”“Truth is ever to be found in simplicity, and not in the multiplicity and confusion of things.”