Albert Einstein may have made the discoveries that led to nuclear and solar power, lasers and even a physical description of space and time, but Sir Isaac Newton had a greater impact on science and mankind, according to a poll published Wednesday.
Posted on 11/23/2005 6:04:12 PM PST by PatrickHenry
Newton, the 17th-century English scientist most famous for describing the laws of gravity and motion, beat Einstein in two polls conducted by eminent London-based scientific academy, the Royal Society.
More than 1,300 members of the public and 345 Royal Society scientists were asked separately which famous scientist made a bigger overall contribution to science, given the state of knowledge during his time, and which made a bigger positive contribution to humankind.
Newton was the winner on all counts, though he beat the German-born Einstein by only 0.2 of a percentage point (50.1 percent to 49.9 percent) in the public poll on who made the bigger contribution to mankind.
The margin was greater among scientists: 60.9 percent for Newton and 39.1 percent for Einstein.
The results were announced ahead of the "Einstein vs. Newton" debate, a public lecture at the Royal Society on Wednesday evening.
"Many people would say that comparing Newton and Einstein is like comparing apples and oranges, but what really matters is that people are appreciating the huge amount that both these physicists achieved, and that their impact on the world stretched far beyond the laboratory and the equation," said Royal Society president Lord Peter May.
Pro-Newton scientists argue he led the transition from an era of superstition and dogma to the modern scientific method.
His greatest work, the "Principia Mathematica", showed that gravity was a universal force that applied to all objects in the universe, finally ruling out the belief that the laws of motion were different for objects on Earth and in the heavens.
Einstein's supporters point out that his celebrated theory of relativity disproved Newton's beliefs on space and time and led to theories about the creation of the universe, black holes and parallel universes.
He also proved mathematically that atoms exist and that light is made of particles called photons, setting the theoretical foundations for nuclear bombs and solar power.
This is reminiscent of non-Euclidean geometry.
I'm glad you brought up the dart because I was about to say that this thread was pointless...
I liked your example on the moon and orbital velocity. That was funny.
Yes. :)
No scientist is truly irreplacable, even Einstein. Eventually, someone would have done what Newton did. Same for Einstein. They just were smart enough and got born earlier.
I read somewhere that there is one insight Einstein had (no it was not e=mc squared) that others in time are not likely to have fathomed, and one thing Newton did, that others would not have grasped onto either, for a very long time indeed. What are those? I don't remember!
Cai Lu(China) the inventor of paper is # 7 according to his list. I think the inventor of the Alphabet should be ranked more important than Cai Lu, some Phoenician guy called Kadmous. Anyway, I think this list is the opinion of the author Hart. Jesus Christ is # 1 without any competition.
Source:http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_100
You cheater you. Who invented the alphabet? Which alphabet? Was it done by one guy?
With that pointed remark, I am going to bed. I'll see all of you in the morning after the kids and I shovel the cars out. Only got a few inches tonight, but who knows what lake effect snow will blow in off Lake Erie with 40 mi/h gusts over night.
Yup, Newton was terrifed of women. He was probably gay.
Would be fascinating to see the results of this poll if taken on a U.S. campus, where both men have been vilified by feminists for the past couple decades. Newton for being the author of a rape manual (the Principia) and Einstein for his famous "sexed equation" (e=mc2).
I did not make this up. If you don't believe me google it.
Oh Kadmous. No he didn't make the list at all. :)
Thanks for the ping!
"Yeah, Bill Nye, the Science Guy!"
Yea - the great supporter of Democrats. Clinton, Gore, Kerry, you name it. More aptly named "Bill Nye, the Liberal Guy."
Ah come on, the nationalism here is plainly evident. A bunch of Brit scientists picked the Brit guy over the naturalized German American.
Thanks. You might email Hart.
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