当牛顿忙于万有引力研究时，他同时在研究《圣经》里隐含的意义，以及炼金术的奥秘。他是一位真正的科学家吗？宗教和科学之间有冲突吗？真的是苹果砸到了牛顿的头才启发他发现万有引力吗？中科院物理所请到林磊教授为我们讲述牛顿和他的苹果的故事。
Isaac Newton (1642-1727), a natural philosopher and perhaps the greatest scientist of all time, had a tough childhood. He made all his great discoveries at age 23/24, right after he received his bachelor degree, and became chair professor at Cambridge University at 27. He was also a man with many “strange” behaviors, a true believer in God, and most likely a homosexual. While Newton was busy discovering the universal law of gravitation, he was also searching out hidden meanings in the Bible and pursuing the covert art of alchemy, what some people call pseudoscience today. Is he really a scientist? Is there any connection between creativity and sexuality? Is there any conflict between religious and scientific pursuits? Why did Newton wait 21 years to publish his great book Principia? And, did the apple credited to inspire Newton’s gravitational theory really fall on his head? In this talk, all these questions will be discussed and answered, by putting Newton’s case in the context of the bigger issues.