Newton's Three Laws

Sir Isaac Newton (1642-1727) compiled three laws of motion and published his thinking in Philosophia Naturalis Principia Mathematica in 1687 while he was teaching at Cambridge University in England. Newton used the three laws to explain and investigate the motion of many physical objects and systems. His thinking is responsible for developments in the field of classical mechanics, which is the study of physical laws describing the motion of bodies in a system. Galileo, Tycho Brahe and Johannes Kepler also participated in the early development of classical mechanics.

Schooled in mathematics, natural philosophy, physics, astronomy and theology, Newton is considered to be one of the most influential individuals of all time and a founder of physical science as we know it today. His thinking dominated the scientific view of the physical universe for the next three centuries. We remember him primarily for his description of the principle of gravitation and the three laws of motion. He showed that the motions of objects on Earth and of celestial bodies are governed by the same set of natural laws. By demonstrating the consistency between Kepler's laws of planetary motion and his theory of gravitation, he removed the last doubts about the sun’s being the center of the solar system and advanced the thinking of the Scientific Revolution.

From Threes, Chapter 3, "Threes in Science"