Newton made a claim that states "every object in the universe attracts every other object." From just looking at the moon, planets and stars he came up with this HUGE claim that included the universe...isn't that a bit egotistical? This was the first law made by a scientist, mathematician, observer person and it applied to the whole universe. He did it so well that it's still a law today! For example: because Earth is so massive, it attracts you and your desk more strongly than you and your desk attract each other. That’s why you and the desk remain in place on the floor rather than moving toward one another. AND, the moon is closer to Earth than it is to the more massive SUN, so the force of gravity is greater between the moon and Earth than between the Moon and the Sun. That’s why the moon circles around Earth rather than the Sun. Other scientists can't disprove the idea so it became a law and stays the law. Newton also proposed that, if you fired the cannonball with enough energy, it could fly all the way around the Earth and never land, because the Earth would be curving away underneath the ball at the same rate as the ball fell. In other words, the ball would now be in orbit around the Earth. Newton's equation is so simple and it truly changed how we view our universe. If we plug in the numbers you can predict the positions of all the planets, moons and comets you might ever want to watch, anywhere in the solar system and beyond! I think we all can agree to that.
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Mrs. TaylorI love science! Everything about the world is interesting and never boring. I love to study plants, animals, insects, and people. My favorite subjects are my students who are the most unique organisms on the planet! Categories |