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Sir Isaac Newton (25 Dec 1642 - 20 Mar 1727) English physicist and mathematician who made seminal discoveries in several areas of science, and was the leading scientist of his era. Short biography of Sir Isaac Newton >>

Isaac Newton
“Every body perseveres in its state of being at rest”

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“Every body perseveres in its state of being at rest or of moving uniformly straight forward, except insofar as it is compelled to change its state by forces impressed.”

— Isaac Newton

From The Principia, First Law of Motion.

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Newton wrote his famous three laws of motion in his magnum opus on mechanics, Philosophiæ Naturalis Principia Mathematica. Translated into English, the title is The Principia: Mathematical Principles of Natural Philosophy, familiarly known as simply the Principia. It was first published on 5 Jul 1687, and as the title suggests, it was written in Latin, the language then commonly used by scientists. As it was originally written, the first law of motion appeared in print as:

“Lex I: Corpus omne perseverare in statu suo quiescendi vel movendi uniformiter in directum, nisi quatenus illud a viribus impressis cogitur statum illum mutare.”

Newton did not publish a version in English, though various translations have been made since then. The quote as given above is as translated by I. B. Cohen and Anne Whitman (1999). It is very faithful to the original Latin, as seen by comparing with a direct version from Google Translate:

Law I: Every body perseveres in its state of rest, or of uniform motion in a right line, unless in so far as it is compelled to change that state by forces impressed thereon.

The word “perseveres” can be translated as “continues” to be more modern.

After stating his first law, Newton gives a further explanation (with 1846 translation by Andrew Motte):

“Projectilia perseverant in motibus suis nisi quatenus a resistentia aeris retardantur & vi gravitatis impelluntur deorsum. Trochus, cujus partes cohaerendo perpetuo retrahunt sese a motibus rectilineis, non cessat rotari nisi quatenus ab aere retardatur. Majora autem Planetarum & Cometarum corpora motus suos & progressivos & circulars in spatiis minus resistentibus factos conservant diutius.”

“Projectiles persevere in their motions, so far as they are not retarded by the resistance of the air, or impelled downwards by the force of gravity. A top, whose parts by their cohesion are perpetually drawn aside from rectilinear motions, does not cease its rotation, otherwise than as it is retarded by the air. The greater bodies of the planets and comets, meeting with less resistance in more free spaces, preserve then motions both progressive and circular for a much longer time.”

Every student of introductory physics will have worked problems on the motion of projectiles (such as a thrown ball or a bullet), and will remember that the motion is resolved into two perpendicular components, the vertical motion accelerated due to gravity, and the horizontal component of motion which is always treated as uniform motion at a constant speed. Usually introductory problems allow simplification with the phrase “neglecting air resistance.” Little may the student realize that their teachers have so closely echoed Newton's words for centuries!

Also interesting is Newton's insight into the fact that outer space is free of resistance. No longer was it necessary to regard the motion of planets to be due to invisible winged angels pushing them along. Now Newton explained they naturally retained their forward motion as a basic law of nature.

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Nature bears long with those who wrong her. She is patient under abuse. But when abuse has gone too far, when the time of reckoning finally comes, she is equally slow to be appeased and to turn away her wrath. (1882) -- Nathaniel Egleston, who was writing then about deforestation, but speaks equally well about the danger of climate change today.

Carl Sagan: In science it often happens that scientists say, 'You know that's a really good argument; my position is mistaken,' and then they would actually change their minds and you never hear that old view from them again. They really do it. It doesn't happen as often as it should, because scientists are human and change is sometimes painful. But it happens every day. I cannot recall the last time something like that happened in politics or religion. (1987) ...(more by Sagan)

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