Isaac Newton, one of the most influential scientists in history, played a fundamental role in the development of science, especially in Physics and Mathematics.
By formulating three laws that revolutionized our understanding of the dynamics of bodies, Newton promoted a lasting transformation in Physics.
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However, a new study suggests that since its description more than three centuries ago, we may have interpreted the first of these laws, the Law of Inertia, in a slightly mistaken way.
But after all, what could be wrong with Newton's Law of Inertia?
“Every body continues in its state of rest or of uniform motion in a straight line, unless it is forced to change that state by forces applied to it.”
In other words, according to the Law of Inertia, objects do not naturally change their state of motion on their own; they need a force to alter their state. However, the translation of the original text into English was made in 1729.
Therefore, when reviewing the terms, the philosopher Daniel Hoek identified an error that was never rectified in the original writings: the expression “unless”.
In his review of the records, Hoek noted that the expression “a minus” had been translated from the Latin “quatenus,” which actually means “in measure.” This discovery was made in 1999 and is considered significant by the philosopher, as it changes the interpretation of Law of Inertiato a certain extent.
With this correction, the philosopher believes that Newton was actually stating that any change in the state of motion uniformity or rest of a body occurs due to an external force, rather than implying that these forces do not previously act about it.
Although it may seem like just a semantic error that does not affect the physics itself, this correction clarifies the purpose of the Law of Inertia and Newton's intention in formulating it.
According to Newton's view, all bodies in the universe are subject to forces, especially gravity. Therefore, strictly speaking, bodies completely free of forces do not exist.
This raises questions about the purpose of a natural law that governs nothing and why it was designated Newton's First Law of Motion.
However, when we analyze more carefully, we realize that external forces, such as gravity and friction, are always present and active.
It is difficult to believe that Newton, the discoverer of the Law of Universal Gravitation, would not take these forces into account when formulating the Law of Inertia.
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