Sabato
Everyone knows the story of Newtonâs apple. The theory of gravity is today the most basic scientific principle. However, in Newtonâs day the idea of gravity as a fundamental force in the universe was a very strange one. In fact, to most people back then, invisible forces acting on things from a distance was either demonic or divine.
Newton himself had a difficult time accepting the reality of âaction at a distance.â In fact he discouraged people from trying to figure out the true cause of gravity and to instead focus on the fact that his math and his experiments worked.
Using the lens of our contemporary time management culture, sitting in your garden in a âcontemplative moodâ is a complete waste of time. This (lack of) activity might indicate to some HR person that Newton was not necessarily a reliable employee. Did Newton have to add â5 pm: sit in garden, contemplate falling objectsâ to his to-do list? Does any reasonable person think that Sir Isaac Newton had a to-do list?
Newton was in fact known for his obsessive work ethic. He could sit in his garden and do nothing because it would never have occurred to Newton that sitting in his garden contemplating was the same thing as wasting time.
Today we find popular magazines telling us we need to schedule âdowntimeâ because the demands of corporate-controlled schedules are inhuman. Of course people are not explicit about the root of the problem, and we are advised to âscheduleâ the time off as long as it doesnât conflict with our obligations. Downtime is actually advised as a way to optimize your productivity.
In the most literal sense, Newton was his own boss. He worked when he wanted to work, and he sat in his garden when it suited him. Naturally you will point out that this is impractical and unrealistic in the current economy. And I would say that we therefore deserve the paucity of intellectual dynamism that our economy compels.
Natural science before Newton was in a transformative phase. The period between the late 15th and 18th centuries is what many see as the crucial scientific revolution in human history. During time Copernicus, Kepler, Galileo, Brahe, and Newton each made enormous contributions to the advancement of the sciences. The 17th century especially saw an intellectual explosion that suddenly and massively increased our comprehension of the universe. Our knowledge about the natural world began expanding at an ever-accelerating rate that continues to this day. Human understanding of nature went from superstitious folk-belief to real science.
It was during this revolution that a scientific community came into being that published journals and started having meetings much like todayâs scientific conferences. In the centuries since Newton, natural science has met with astonishing success. Typically we think of Newton seeing the apple fall as some kind of serendipitous moment in the history of science. Whatever the origin of the story really is, after seeing the apple fall and after working out his theory Newton wrote one of the most significant scientific publications in history: the Philosophiae naturalis principia mathematica , in which the formal theory of gravity is introduced.
Newton wasnât holed up in his study tearing his hair out trying to figure out why objects move toward earth and the planets orbit the Sun, stressing about a looming deadline. Nor was a productivity expert looking over Newtonâs shoulder to make sure he was working efficiently. We can imagine that as he relaxed on a warm evening in his garden, the soothing noises of birds singing and leaves blowing in the breeze surrounding him, he either closed his eyes or looked at nothing in particular.
He would have had a feeling of well-being and sensations of positive emotions might have washed over him. All this would put him in a nice âcontemplative mood.â His default mode network would have
Everyone knows the story of Newtonâs apple. The theory of gravity is today the most basic scientific principle. However, in Newtonâs day the idea of gravity as a fundamental force in the universe was a very strange one. In fact, to most people back then, invisible forces acting on things from a distance was either demonic or divine.
Newton himself had a difficult time accepting the reality of âaction at a distance.â In fact he discouraged people from trying to figure out the true cause of gravity and to instead focus on the fact that his math and his experiments worked.
Using the lens of our contemporary time management culture, sitting in your garden in a âcontemplative moodâ is a complete waste of time. This (lack of) activity might indicate to some HR person that Newton was not necessarily a reliable employee. Did Newton have to add â5 pm: sit in garden, contemplate falling objectsâ to his to-do list? Does any reasonable person think that Sir Isaac Newton had a to-do list?
Newton was in fact known for his obsessive work ethic. He could sit in his garden and do nothing because it would never have occurred to Newton that sitting in his garden contemplating was the same thing as wasting time.
Today we find popular magazines telling us we need to schedule âdowntimeâ because the demands of corporate-controlled schedules are inhuman. Of course people are not explicit about the root of the problem, and we are advised to âscheduleâ the time off as long as it doesnât conflict with our obligations. Downtime is actually advised as a way to optimize your productivity.
In the most literal sense, Newton was his own boss. He worked when he wanted to work, and he sat in his garden when it suited him. Naturally you will point out that this is impractical and unrealistic in the current economy. And I would say that we therefore deserve the paucity of intellectual dynamism that our economy compels.
Natural science before Newton was in a transformative phase. The period between the late 15th and 18th centuries is what many see as the crucial scientific revolution in human history. During time Copernicus, Kepler, Galileo, Brahe, and Newton each made enormous contributions to the advancement of the sciences. The 17th century especially saw an intellectual explosion that suddenly and massively increased our comprehension of the universe. Our knowledge about the natural world began expanding at an ever-accelerating rate that continues to this day. Human understanding of nature went from superstitious folk-belief to real science.
It was during this revolution that a scientific community came into being that published journals and started having meetings much like todayâs scientific conferences. In the centuries since Newton, natural science has met with astonishing success. Typically we think of Newton seeing the apple fall as some kind of serendipitous moment in the history of science. Whatever the origin of the story really is, after seeing the apple fall and after working out his theory Newton wrote one of the most significant scientific publications in history: the Philosophiae naturalis principia mathematica , in which the formal theory of gravity is introduced.
Newton wasnât holed up in his study tearing his hair out trying to figure out why objects move toward earth and the planets orbit the Sun, stressing about a looming deadline. Nor was a productivity expert looking over Newtonâs shoulder to make sure he was working efficiently. We can imagine that as he relaxed on a warm evening in his garden, the soothing noises of birds singing and leaves blowing in the breeze surrounding him, he either closed his eyes or looked at nothing in particular.
He would have had a feeling of well-being and sensations of positive emotions might have washed over him. All this would put him in a nice âcontemplative mood.â His default mode network would have
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