Re: [Phys-l] History of MASS

["John M Clement" <clement@hal-pc.org>]

The rivalry between Newton and Hooke was legendary and so unnecessary. 
Hooke was really an experimentalist, but he did make some suggestions 
to Newton about the inverse square law, but was not acknowledged. 
Newton was mor a theoretician.  Hooke produced early drawings of 
microscopic things, and titillated the public with them.  People could 
really see what fleas looked like.  While he is primarily known in 
physics for Hooke's law, his reputation in biology is much greater. 
In many ways he was the equal of Newton, but different.

I believe there was an article about this in The Physics Teacher.  Of 
course the statment by Newton can be interpreted in different ways, 
but the slur against Hooke is a very reasonable one.  Newton could be 
very nasty.  In some ways he is shadowy like Shakespeare.  We have no 
indication of any sort of love life at all!!!

John M. Clement
Houston, TX


> "Newton was not kidding when he said he stood on the shoulders
> of giants."
>
> I thought it was a science cultural myth that Newton was worse than 
> kidding, the giant a reference to short Hooke.
>
> Here's some evidence:  [select # 2 16 => 19 cents.]
>
> http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Standing_on_the_shoulders_of_giants#References_during_the_sixteenth_to_nineteenth_centuries
>
> It's rather revealing that the Royal society's only portrait of 
> Hooke was lost in the move supervised by Newton.
>
> bc