I'm trying to work my way through Dwight E. Neuenschwander's excellent book, Emmy Noether`s Wonderful Theorem. It's proving a challenge, because I've forgotten some of the maths I learned half a century ago, and I'm struggling to learn it anew.
I was struck by this quote from the book: If you want Newton's laws or Hamilton's principle or Fermat's principle, you have to postulate them. They are informed conjectures, elevated to the status of axioms, from which the development of the theory flows.
Newton worked alone, interpreting the measurements of others. His ideas were not immediately accepted in Europe, because of petty prejudice - they conflicted with the work of Descartes. Voltaire was particularly resistant to new ideas, whether Newton's (not invented here) or Pierre Louis Maupertuis' (invented much closer to home). Science advances by comparing the predictions of different models, and by designing experiments to test them. Emilie du Châtelet did that.
I intend to write more on du Châtelet, Maupertuis, and perhaps Emmy Noether. Meanwhile, here are some links to Radio 4:
- In Our Time: Emilie du Châtelet
- In Our Time: Emmy Noether
