Coffee with Isaac Newton

...

Newton had always strived for excellence in his work. From his earliest days at Cambridge, Newton was dedicated to astronomy. But, at the same time, he was frustrated by the poor quality of telescopes he could obtain. Never being a man to accept what was handed down to him if he believed he could do better, he decided to take and entirely different approach. Unlike Galileo’s refracting telescopes, he made a practical reflecting telescope. I admire his perseverance so much, as he made all the parts of it himself. He grinded his own lens and made his own tubes and mountings. Eventually, he got a beautiful, perfect telescope, what he deserved.

Apart from being an outstanding scientist, Newton was also a great leader. In the beginning, the Royal Society was little more than an informal club concerning science. After Newton became the president, he first found a home for the Society, a property in London. Then, he made it as a meeting place for the greatest minds of the age – not just pure scientists but also polymathic figures with a keen interest in science. The simple act of meeting, talking and lecturing was crucial. After that, he funded and organized many experiments. Most of these were conducted far from the spotlight, while other are demonstrations for all members to witness. Also, there were publications financed by the Royal Society. Newton created the first scientific journal ever. Under his leadership, the Society produced a template for all scientific publishing and offered a unique system for the researcher. A Fellow could write about a piece of research he had conducted and publish it for the other members to study and comment upon. That created a healthy and progressive forum for intellectual advance. Now we can see that Newton contributed to the progress of science not only in laboratories, but in many other aspects.

All in all, I was greatly inspired by this book. I am not going to be a scientist in the future, but there is still a lot I can learn from Isaac Newton. To me, Newton is the most successful scientist in history. He never lost his interest in science. His passion, enthusiasm and perseverance in searching new knowledge are highly respectable and admirable. I would like to recommend this book to others so that all of us can learn from the great scientist Isaac Newton.