Newton
Newton's work unified terrestrial and celestial mechanics. This topic is part of Scientists within Science & Nature. This page currently draws on 22 supporting questions, with answers and bonus facts available below.
Newton trivia questions
Isaac Newton formulated laws of motion and what force?
Answer: Gravity
Bonus fact: Newton's work unified terrestrial and celestial mechanics.
What major mathematical field did Newton develop independently alongside Leibniz?
Answer: Calculus
Bonus fact: Newton called his method fluxions.
Which of Newton's laws is often called the law of inertia?
Answer: First law
Bonus fact: Newton's first law describes inertia.
How many laws of motion did Newton formulate?
Answer: Three
Bonus fact: The three laws underpin classical mechanics.
What major work did Newton publish in 1687?
Answer: Principia Mathematica
Bonus fact: The Principia presented his laws of motion and universal gravitation.
Newton's first law is also called the law of what?
Answer: Inertia
Bonus fact: Objects resist changes in motion.
According to Newton's first law, an object at rest stays at rest unless acted on by what?
Answer: Net external force
Bonus fact: The same principle applies to constant straight-line motion.
Which reference frames are the natural setting for Newton's first law?
Answer: Inertial frames
Bonus fact: In inertial frames, force-free objects move at constant velocity.
Newton's second law relates force, mass, and what?
Answer: Acceleration
Bonus fact: The familiar form is F = ma.
What equation summarizes Newton's second law for constant mass?
Answer: F = ma
Bonus fact: Net force equals mass times acceleration.
Newton's third law says every action has an equal and opposite what?
Answer: Reaction
Bonus fact: Forces occur in interacting pairs.
According to Newton's gravitation law, gravitational force decreases with the square of what?
Answer: Distance between masses
Bonus fact: Doubling separation reduces force to one-quarter.