In Newton’s correspondence with Richard Bentley, Newton rejected the possibility of remote action, even though he accepted it in the Principia. Practically, Newton’s natural philosophy is indissolubly linked to his conception of God. The knowledge of God seems to be essentially immutable, unlike the laws of nature that can be subjected to refining, revision and rejection procedures. As Newton later states in Opticks, the cause of gravity is an active principle in matter, but this active principle is not an (...) essential aspect of matter, but something that must have been added to matter by God, arguing in the same Query of Opticks even the need for divine intervention. DOI: 10.13140/RG.2.2.16732.44162 . (shrink)

Dans sa correspondance avec Richard Bentley, Newton a rejeté la possibilité d'une action à distance, bien qu'il l'ait acceptée en Principia. L’environnement introduit par Newton à la question 21 d'Opticks se compose d’une part de corps matériels extrêmement petits, séparés dans l’espace, et d’un principe actif non mécanique produisant et médiatisant les forces de répulsion entre ces corps. À la question 28, il a clairement fait valoir qu'un environnement mécanique devrait être rejeté. L'éther traverse les corps, il est donc (...) sans importance. DOI: 10.13140/RG.2.2.23101.41446. (shrink)

Wie sich das Licht blauer und roter Leuchtdioden additiv mischt und Purpur liefert, demonstrierte die Lichtinstallation "Farb-Licht-Nebel" von Bachmann und Pericin auf der Tagung Farbe als Experiment des Deutschen Farbenzentrums (Wuppertal, 25.-26.9.2014). Die Künstler nutzten eine Technik der Farbdarstellung, die Goethe in seiner Farbenlehre (1810) für seinen Angriff auf Newtons Opticks (1704) publik gemacht hatte. Während die Künstler sich mit ihrem Blick auf grünes Licht stark von Goethe absetzten und stattdessen der von Newton geprägten Orthodoxie folgten, passt ihre Purpur-Darstellung (...) gut zu Goethes Farbenlehre. Sie ist bis heute ernstzunehmen. (shrink)

Different authors have attempted to clarify the aspects of remote action and God's involvement on the basis of textual investigations, mainly from the Mathematical Principles of Natural Philosophy, (Newton, 1999b) Newton's correspondence with Richard Bentley (1692/93), (Bentley 1693) and Queries that Newton introduced at the end of the Opticks book in the first three editions (between 1704 and 1721). (Newton 1952) DOI: 10.13140/RG.2.2.12870.11844/1.

Reading Tamás Demeter's recent book, "David Hume and the Culture of Scottish Newtonianism," feels like visiting a curiosity shop. There are some general themes that are meant to harmonize the work, such as the emphasis on the conceptual and methodological unity of natural and moral philosophy. This merging of cultures of inquiry is nicely illustrated with the case study of anger in the period. There is the main thesis: that Hume's science of mind was influenced, not as much by Newton's (...) Principia, as by Newton's Opticks. Newton's Opticks informs the "sciences of quality," such as chemistry and physiology in eighteenth-century Scotland, and then chemical and anatomical thinking makes its way to Hume's science of... (shrink)

The interpretation of Isaac Newton's texts has sparked controversy to this day. One of the most heated debates relates to the action between two bodies distant from each other (the gravitational attraction), and to what extent Newton involved God in this case. Practically, most of the papers discuss four types of gravitational attractions in the case of remote bodies: direct distance action as intrinsic property of bodies in epicurean sense; direct remote action divinely mediated by God; remote action mediated by (...) a material ether; or remote action mediated by an immaterial ether. The purpose of this paper is to argue that Newton categorically rejected the types of direct action as the intrinsic property of bodies, and remote action mediated by a material ether. Concerning the other two types of action, direct through divine intervention and mediated through an immaterial environment, Newton has repeatedly stated that he does not know the exact cause of gravity, but in both cases, he has directly involved God, directly in the first case and as the primary cause (the environment/ether being the secondary cause) in immaterial mediated action. But since recognition of direct distance action could have given some credit to those who thought gravity could be essential to matter, and hence to atheism, Newton never openly acknowledged the possibility of such an idea. -/- Keywords: Isaac Newton, action at a distance, God, gravity, gravity law, gravitation -/- CONTENTS -/- Abstract Introduction Principia Correspondence with Richard Bentley Queries in Opticks Conclusions Bibliography -/- ISBN 978-606-033-201-5, DOI: 10.58679/TW14959. (shrink)

L'interprétation des textes d'Isaac Newton a suscité une controverse à ce jour. L'un des débats les plus animés a trait à l'action entre deux corps distants l'un de l'autre (l'attraction gravitationnelle), et à la mesure dans laquelle Newton a impliqué Dieu dans ce cas. Pratiquement, la plupart des articles traitent quatre types d’attractions gravitationnelles dans le cas des corps distants : l’action directe à la distance en tant que propriété intrinsèque des corps au sens épicurien du terme ; action directe (...) à distance divinement médiée par Dieu ; action à distance médiée par un éther matériel ; ou action à distance médiée par un éther immatériel. Le but de cet article est d'argumenter que Newton a catégoriquement rejeté les types d'action directe en tant que propriété intrinsèque des corps et l'action à distance médiée par un éther matériel. En ce qui concerne les deux autres types d’actions, directe par intervention divine et médiatisée par un environnement immatériel, Newton a répété à plusieurs reprises qu’il ne connaissait pas la cause exacte de la gravité, mais dans les deux cas, il avait directement impliqué Dieu, directement dans le premier cas. et comme cause principale (l'environnement/éther étant la cause secondaire) dans l'action médiatisée immatérielle. Mais comme la reconnaissance de l'action directe à distance aurait pu donner quelque crédit à ceux qui pensaient que la gravité pouvait être essentielle à la matière, et donc à l'athéisme, Newton n'a jamais ouvertement reconnu la possibilité d'une telle idée. Vers la fin de sa vie, Newton s'est penché davantage vers une action à distance médiée par un éther immatériel. -/- SOMMAIRE: -/- Abstract Introduction Principia Correspondance avec Richard Bentley Questions de l'Opticks Conclusions Bibliographie -/- DOI: 10.13140/RG.2.2.31322.70080 . (shrink)

Tamas Demeter presents a clear and compelling new perspective of Hume’s methodology and conceptual structure in David Hume and the Culture of Scottish Newtonianism. Hume, he argues, is a Newtonian of the Scottish tradition, but not the mechanical kind that is modeled after the Principia. Instead, Hume should be understood as a kind of European Enlightenment “vitalist.” As a result, his work reflects the more organic methodology that defines Newton’s Opticks.

Newton a sugerat, în timp, mai multe tipuri de eter care ar putea media acțiunea la distanță. Dar, consecvent ideii sale că nu va născoci ipoteze care nu se bazează pe dovezi experimentale, nu a promovat niciodată aceste sugestii la nivelul unor ipoteze științifice. Trebuia să împace mecaniciștii, astfel încât a mers pe ideea unui eter din particule atât de fine încât masa e neglijabilă (practic, un eter imaterial). Mediul pe care Newton l-a introdus în Interogarea 21 constă din corpuri (...) materiale extrem de mici care sunt separate spațial, pe de o parte, și din principiul activ non-mecanic care produce și mediază forțele repulsive dintre aceste corpuri, pe de altă parte. DOI: 10.13140/RG.2.2.30606.72002. (shrink)