Just So Stories
Easy Explanations
Everyone knows that Isaac Newton discovered the law of gravity in a brilliant
flash of insight when he saw an
apple fall from a tree at his uncle's farm. Few people know that the facts are
very different from this charming story. In January 1680 Robert Hooke wrote a letter to Isaac Newton
proposing that the planets are attracted toward the sun by a force
inversely proportional to the distance squared. In November 1684 Newton wrote a
draft of De Motu including an error that reveals he had not yet
developed the concept of universal gravitation. Around 1717 Newton began
circulating the now-famous story that a falling apple set him on the chain of
thought that led to his discovery of universal gravitation. Presumably Newton
fabricated this just-so story to make plausible his false claim that he
understood universal gravitation many years earlier.
We love telling and retelling stories and the
best story often wins. Interesting
stories often displace the more difficult facts of the situation. This may be
accidental or deliberate; it is often easier to make up a story than to
investigate or disclose the facts. Investigate the
facts for yourself before deciding to believe the story. References:
Just So Stories for Little Children, Rudyard Kipling, 1902
Newton's Discovery of Gravity, I. Bernard Cohen, Scientific American, March
1981. |
Fear, Sadness, Anger, Joy, Surprise, Disgust, Contempt,
Anger, Envy, Jealousy, Fright, Anxiety, Guilt, Shame, Relief, Hope, Sadness, Depression, Happiness,
Pride, Love, Gratitude, Compassion, Aesthetic Experience,
Joy, Distress, Happy-for, Sorry-for, Resentment, Gloating, Pride, Shame, Admiration, Reproach,
Love, Hate, Hope, Fear, Satisfaction, Relief, Fears-confirmed, Disappointment, Gratification,
Gratitude, Anger, Remorse,
power, dominance, stature, relationships |