03-08-2020, 11:06 AM
(30-07-2020, 07:38 PM)Mark Knowles wrote: You are not allowed to view links. Register or Login to view.A few quotes from Newton:
"I was like a boy playing on the sea-shore, and diverting myself now and then finding a smoother pebble or a prettier shell than ordinary, whilst the great ocean of truth lay all undiscovered before me.”
“Truth is the offspring of silence and meditation.”
“Whence arises all that order and beauty we see in the world.”
Those do not sound like the words of someone motivated solely by fame or money.
This shows that Newton had some literary capability and could be philosophical in the modern sense of the word.
To understand the mentality of scientific progress in his times, it is worth reading about the problems of plagiarism, and the steps people took to be able to defend oneself, when accused of it. There are good books and articles, but a You are not allowed to view links. Register or Login to view. may suffice for the present purpose.
These were not people doing things just as "an entertaining pastime".
They might have felt good about what they achieved.