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.
1. Who was better dressed?
2. Who had better hair?
3. Who was more handsome?
4. Who got more action with the chicks?
Pro-Newton scientists argue he led the transition from an era of superstition and dogma to the modern scientific method.
This gets my vote. As I write, this battle is still being waged.
Einstein is like a fine wine that needs to be aged before the full impact of his ideas can be appreciated.
Your picture did more for my theories of relativity than Einstein ever did. Snicker...
That is really funny!
Newton was the greatest scientist/mathematician of all time. He has no serious competitors. This guy invented calculus and gave us the method for computing the motion of the planets around the sun, navigating to the moon (with a little tweak from Albert) and the flight of a bullet. Amazing.
I think he died a virgin. Someone should check that out. If so it just goes to show how much more we could accomplish if we weren't being distracted all the time by the ladies.
You're suggesting a bias then?
Mrs. Einstein: "mc cubed? Albert, haven't I told you not to drink and derive?"
Right. Heavier things fall faster. He didn't even run experiments to see whether or not it was true or when it was true. What's an experiment?
Write the Principia, define the laws of motion, invent calculus, invent the Newtonian telescope, figure out gravity, and on and on.
What a showoff.
(P.S. An American poll would have probably named Bill Nye as history's greatest scientist.)
Tesla more important than both, put together, to modern life.
How many devices invented by Newton or Einstein are in daily use in today's world? There are billions of devices operating today that use parts and pieces invented by Nikola Tesla.
Not a contest.
Greatest scientist: Josiah Willard Gibbs. Greatest mathematician: Karl Friedrich Gauss.
"If I have seen farther, it is by standing on the shoulder of giants." ~Isaac Newton
Why are all the cute ones gay? Kind of hard to check that out now, though, isn't it?
You'd be so lucky to be so distracted by the ladies! ROFL! (Just kidding!)
An apple fell on Newtons head and he said "Gravity made it fall on my head"
Well DUH! No sheit Sherlock!
Einstein on the other hand invented E=MC2 which means Eminem is twice the MC of other rappers, and Einstein was right boyyyy!
-PJ
Newton did say he stood on the shoulders of giants. Actually, Newton explained Kepler's Third Law mathematically, which was kind of amazing, too. He used his own gravitational attraction equation and the definition of cnetripetal (radial inward) acceleration. To Kepler, the law was just numerical relationships, but he didn't understand why. Newton actually showed mathematically that all 3 of Kepler's laws are variations of the same relationship.
NEWTON HANDS DOWN!!!! INVENTED CALCULUS TO EXPLAIN HIS UNDERSTANDING OF REALITY!!!!!!
Did Newton invent calculus? Don't think so.
What ever happened to Newtonian physics, though?
Yeah, Bill Nye, the Science Guy!
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