Readings in the History of Science

The history of science meetup group is opening a new chapter. We've now discussed scientific developments up to and including Newton at some length. The focus going forward will be post-Newton. The 19th century was a golden age for analytical work in mathematics. Correspondingly analytical mechanics and thermodynamics also developed and, not surprisingly, these met the needs of the burgeoning industrial revolution. New concepts of work and energy were developed. These and related issues will be the focus of our new chapter.
In our May 21 meeting we will discuss Niccolo Guiecciardini's Dotage: Newton's mathematical legacy in the 18th century'. A link to the article is https://www.jstor.org/stable/4130350?seq=1
Subsequent readings will include:
Jan Rychlewski, ‘The origins of Newton’s mechanics. mass, force, and gravity’
Sandro Caparrini and Craig Fraser, ‘Mechanics in the Eighteenth Century’
Helmut Pulte, ‘Jacobi’s Criticism of Lagrange: The Changing Role of Mathematics. If you need a copy of the Janiak or Ducheyne articles send a note to [kacheolme@gmail.com](mailto:kacheolme@gmail.com) with Janiak Ducheyne in the subject line.

Note: after our May 21 meeting we will resume meeting weekly.