Newton's Principia for the common reader
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Newton's Principia for the common reader
Clarendon Press , Oxford University Press, 1995
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Description and Table of Contents
Description
Newton's Philosophiae Naturalis Principia Mathematica provides a coherent and deductive presentation of his discovery of the universal law of gravity. The Principia is, in fact, a model for all mathematical physics.
Representing a decade's work from one of the world's most distinguished physicists, this major publication is, as far as is known, the first comprehensive analysis of Newton's Principia without recourse to secondary sources. Chandrasekhar analyses some 150 propositions which form a direct chain leading to Newton's formulation of his universal law of gravitation. In each case, Newton's proofs are arranged in a linear sequence of equations and arguments, avoiding the need to unravel the
necessarily convoluted style of Newton's connected prose. In almost every case, a modern version of the proofs is given to bring into sharp focus the beauty, clarity, and breathtaking economy of Newton's methods. Chandrasehkar's work is an attempt by a distinguished practising scientist to read and
comprehend the enormous intellectual achievement of the Principia. This book will stimulate great interest and debate among the scientific community, illuminating the brilliance of Newton's work under the steady gaze of Chandrasekhar's rare perception.
Table of Contents
- Prologue
- 1. The beginnings and the writing of the Principia
- 2. Basic concepts: definition and axioms
- 3. On the notion of limits and the ratios of evanescent quantities
- 4. On the motion of particles under centripetal attraction: an introduction to Newton's treatment
- 5. The law of areas and some relations which follow
- 6. The motion of bodies along conic sections
- 7. Kepler's equation and its solution
- 8. The rectilinear ascent and descent of bodies
- 9. The conservation of energy and the initial value problem
- 10. On revolving orbits
- 11. A pause
- 12. The two-body problem
- 13. The method of the variations of the elements of a Kepler orbit and Newton's lunar theory: an introduction to propositions LXV-LXIX
- 14. The three body problem: the foundations of Newton's lunar theory
- 15. The superb theorems
- 16. Attraction by non-spherical bodies
- 17. A digression into Opticks
- 18. Prolegomenon
- 19. The universal law of gravitation
- 20. The figure of the earth and of the planets
- 21. On the theory of tides
- 22. The lunar theory
- 23. The precession of the equinoxes
- 24. On the comets
- 25. The effect of air-drag on the descent of bodies
- 26. The solid of least resistance
- 27. The problem of the brachistochrone
- 28. The velocity of sound and long waves in canals
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