Gravity
Dimensions: 18” H X 24” W X 1.5” D. Landscape orientation.
Acrylic paint, open-sourced printed materials overlaid with high gloss varnish.
Original Artwork $750 + shipping.
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Isaac Newton
This Rosemary Cox Prize for Art (2020) award-winning collage celebrates the groundbreaking achievements of Isaac Newton. Born December 25, 1642, in Woolsthorpe, Lincolnshire, England, he was educated at The King's School and Trinity College, where he studied Latin, Greek, and mathematics. This collage highlights his many seminal works on gravity, calculus, economics, light, and his famous manuscript, "Philosophiae Naturalis Principia Mathematica" (Mathematical Principles of Natural Philosophy). "Principia" was written in Latin, published in 1687, and outlined Newton's three laws of motion. The formula for his second law of motion (F=ma), expressions representing calculus which he invented, his famous universal gravitational constant (G), Newton's formula for the law of universal gravitation (Fg=Gm1m2/r^2), and the SI (metric system) unit named after him (a Newton is a unit of force) are highlighted to show Newton's most impactful scientific discoveries. His discoveries changed the way people saw their world and governed all of physics until Einstein, using Newton's gravitational constant, proposed the general theory of relativity. The apple in the middle of the collage represents the famous story of how Newton sitting under an apple tree, was hit on the head by a falling apple and afterward came up with his famous law of gravity. A portrait of Newton is included to humanize him for the observer. Newton died on March 20, 1726, in Kensington, England. To find out more about the elements used in this collage, please see an explanation below.
Elements of Art
12251642
Laws of Motion
Gravity
Calculus
Reflector Telescope
Light
Philosophiae Naturalus Principia Mathematica (1687)
Treatise of the System of the World
Opticks: or, A Treatise of the Reflexions, Refractions, Inflexions, and Colours of Light. Also, Two Treatises of the Species and Magnitude of Curvilinear Figures.
La Methode des Fluxions et des Suites Infinities
F=ma (Newton’s second law in equation form)
Newton’s law of universal gravitation
Newton’s constant or universal gravitational constant
G=6.674 is more exact than 6.7 in the equation above
Calculus examples
Bucket experiment (Newton’s Bucket)
Explanation of Elements
12251642 = Newton was born
Newton’s Laws of Motion:
The first law of motion is often called the law of inertia and states that an object at rest will remain at rest unless acted on by an unbalanced force. An object in motion continues in motion with the same speed and in the same direction unless acted upon by an unbalanced force.
The second law of motion states that acceleration occurs when a force acts on a mass. The greater the object’s mass being accelerated, the greater the amount of force needed to accelerate the object. F=ma is the mathematical formula for the second law of motion. (F=force, m=mass of an object, a=acceleration).
The third law of motion states that for every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction.
Gravity is the force by which a planet or other body draws objects toward its center.
Calculus is the branch of mathematics that deals with the finding and properties of derivatives and integrals of functions, by methods originally based on the summation of infinitesimal differences.
Reflector Telescope:
Newton also engineered a new refracting telescope that didn’t suffer from chromatic aberration. Chromatic aberration is the fringes of color that surrounded bright objects seen through a glass lens. The glass lens bends light by different amounts separating white light into its color components. Newton solved this problem by replacing the primary glass lens with a polished, rounded, metal mirror made of 6 parts copper and 3 parts tin. It proved to be highly reflective, which provided a much better view of the sky without the colorful halo of chromatic aberration. He also added a secondary mirror to bounce the light into an eyepiece so his head wouldn’t get in the way!
Light:
Newton also developed a new theory of light. Newton argued that the laws of reflection and refraction could only be explained if the light was made of particles, which he referred to as corpuscles since waves don’t travel in straight lines. Also, Newton concluded that light is composed of colored particles that combine to appear white. White light is composed of colors
Philosophiae Naturalus Principia Mathematica (1687):
Newton is known best for his seminal work on motion, gravity, calculus, economics, light, and the invention of the reflector telescope. His most famous work was the “Philosophiae Naturalis Principia Mathematica.” This work was written in Latin and published in 1687. The English translation is the Mathematical Principles of Natural Philosophy. The book outlines Newton’s famous laws of motion
“A Treatise of the System of the World” was originally part of his "Principia" but was published in 1685. It included Kepler’s laws of planetary motion and Galileo’s research on the laws of gravity into a comprehensive understanding of the organization of the universe according to the law of universal gravitation.
Opticks: or, A Treatise of the Reflexions, Refractions, Inflexions, and Colours of Light. Also Two Treatises of the Species and Magnitude of Curvilinear Figures:
"Opticks" was published in English in 1704. This book by Isaac Newton explores the fundamental nature of light, and in it, he describes the refraction of light through experiments done with prisms and lenses, the diffraction of light by analyzing it’s behavior in closely spaced sheets of glass, and the behavior of color mixtures with spectral lights or pigment powders.
“La Methode des Flexions et des Suites Infinites” is a French interpretation of the book "Method of Flexions” by Sir Isaac Newton. This book was completed in 1671 and was published in 1736. In this book, Newton uses the word Flexion to refer to a derivative and outlines his creation of differential calculus.
F=ma (Newton’s second law in equation form)
(Newton’s law of universal gravitation):
Newton defined the law of universal gravitation using the mathematical formula, F1=F2=Gm1m2/r^2. He stated that the force of gravity is always attractive, works instantaneously at a distance, has an infinite range, and impacts everything with mass.
Newton (N) is the SI (metric system) unit of force. It is equal to the force that would give a mass of one kilogram an acceleration of one meter per second squared and is equivalent to 100,000 dynes. 1N=1kg m/s^2
(Newton’s universal gravitational constant)
The gravitational constant, denoted by the letter G, is an empirical physical constant involved in the calculation of gravitational effects in Sir Isaac Newton's law of universal gravitation and in Albert Einstein's general theory of relativity.
Calculus examples:
the fundamental Theory of Calculus
G=6.674 is more exact than 6.7 in the general equation
Absolute time and Absolute space:
Absolute space and absolute time were defined as separate forces until Einstein created the concept of space-time.
Absolute time:
According to Newton, absolute time exists independently of any perceiver and progresses at a consistent pace throughout the universe.
Absolute space:
Absolute space, in its own nature, without regard to anything external, remains always similar and immovable. (Isaac Newton quote from "Principia")
Bucket experiment (Newton’s Bucket):
Isaac Newton’s rotating bucket argument (also known as Newton’s bucket) was designed to demonstrate that true rotational motion can not be defined as the relative rotation of a body to another.
Reference:
“Isaac Newton.” Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 3 Nov. 2020, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Isaac_Newton.
“Oxford Languages and Google - English.” Oxford Languages, languages.oup.com/google-dictionary-en/.
“What Is Gravity?” NASA, NASA, 14 Sept. 2020, spaceplace.nasa.gov/what-is-gravity/en/.
