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A celebrated work in the history of science and a monument of British book design. First book to be printed in Caslon's Great Primer Roman

Isaac Newton was indisputably one of the greatest scientists in history. His achievements in mathematics and physics marked the culmination of the movement that brought modern science into being. Richard Westfall's biography captures in engaging detail both his private life and scientific career, presenting a complex picture of Newton the man, and as scientist, philosopher, theologian, alchemist and public figure, President of the Royal Society and Warden of the Royal Mint. An abridged version of his magisterial study Never at Rest, this concise biography is now published for the first time in paperback and makes Westfall's highly acclaimed portrait of Newton newly accessible to general readers.

Destined to become the standard biography of Isaac Newton, this meticulously detailed work centers on his scientific career, but also deals with every facet of his life. Westfall has drawn on recent research which has fundamentally altered our perception of Newton.

The rainbow, the moon, a spinning top, a comet, the ebb and flow of the oceans, a falling apple. There is only one universe and it fell to Isaac Newton to discover its secrets. Newton was arguably the greatest scientific genius of all time, and yet he remains a mysterious figure. Brilliantly written and illustrated by William Rankin, this graphic guide explains the extraordinary ideas of a man who sifted through the accumulated knowledge of centuries, tossed out mistaken beliefs, and single-handedly made enormous advances in mathematics, mechanics and optics. By the age of twnety-five, entirely self-taught, he had sketched out a system of the world. Einstein's theories are unthinkable without Newton's founding system. He was also a secret heretic, a mystic and an alchemist, the man of whom Edmond Halley said, 'Nearer to the gods may no man approach!'

Newtonian scholarship took great leaps forward in the second half of the 20th century. The completion of critical editions of Newton's mathematical papers and of his scientific correspondence, as well as the publication of the first volume of his optical papers and of variant readings of the "Principia" in the original Latin, have made most of Newton's scientific work available for study and analysis for the first time. This has provided a better understanding of Newton's "Principia" and "Optics" especially regarding their origin and interpretation, much of which has remained obscure for several centuries. Some of the new developments and insights are presented in this volume, by several of the scholars who have made these primary sources accessible, and by others who are using them to elucidate Newton's work. Most of the papers included were presented at the "Symposium on the Foundations of Newtonian Scholarship", held at the Royal Society in London in March 1997.