Sir Isaac Newton

Introduction

Isaac Newton was born in 1642 at Woolsthorpe, near Grantham, Lincolnshire, England, three months after his father, yeoman farmer Isaac, died. Newton's mother, Hannah Ayscough, married the Reverend Barnabas Smith and left Newton with his grandparents at age three. He grew up to hate his stepfather and never psychologically recovered from his mother's abandonment. By the time Smith died in 1653, Newton's personality had been forged; he became distrustful, hesitant in dealing with others, and emotionally unstable; these would be lifelong traits.

Discussion

Newton attended day school in the nearby village and the Kings's Grammar School at Grantham. He worked on ...