Newton’s end-of-the-world fascination will be explored in the documentary Newton: The Dark Heretic on BBC2 on Saturday, March 1. The documentary argues that the image of Newton as the great rational thinker was created after his death–Newton was actually a puritanical zealot, a secret heretic who raged against the Anglican Church, delighted in the suffering of Catholics and felt God had given him special powers.
“What has been coming out over the past 10 years is what an apocalyptic thinker Newton was,” says the documentary’s producer, Malcolm Neaum. “He spent something like 50 years and wrote 4,500 pages trying to predict when the end of the world was coming. But until now it was not known that he ever wrote down a final figure. He was very reluctant to do so.”
Raphael Weiser, director of the library’s manuscripts and archives department, told CTV News that Stephen Snobelen had worked extensively on its Newton collection and had brought a BBC camera crew with him, but that he had not seen whatever document BBC intends to present as evidence. “They came here two months ago with a researcher from Nova Scotia. He found in one of our folios this note and they are going to show it on their program.” Weiser said he could not confirm the manuscript’s contents or authenticity until it is revealed in the BBC film. “I didn’t see it with my own eyes. When they show it on TV, we will see it.”
Newton’s prediction of the End of the World for 2060 A.D. seems just about right.
AIDS should have wiped out a billion or so people by then; North Korea, Iran, and other nations will have nuclear weapons; and new forms of bioengineered viruses, designed as weapons of war, will be in the arsenals of nations, corporations, and, probably, individuals.
Natural systems throughout the world will be in a rapid state of collapse, especially the arctic, antarctic, and forested regions. Tropical diseases will be migrating both northward and southward as global warming accelerates. Nations will fight brutal wars over ever-diminishing natural resources.
Worst of all, perhaps, will be a generalized sense of spiritual anomie as people, sensing the fact of their powerlessness in the face of such unimaginable destruction and anarchy, turn to drugs and mystery cults in an attempt to find meaning in their lives, or abandon hope and fling themselves into an abyss of hedonism and nihilism.
We won’t know whether or not Sir Isaac is right or not until 2060, of course, but all of our actions seem to be in fulfillment of his perhaps-not-so-crazy prophecy.
I just wondered why you illustrate an article on Newton with a picture of Einstein?
Einstein is just a topic icon for physics in general. Click on “Browse by topics” in the navigation bar to see all of the icons.
it’s the end of the world as we know it….and i feel fine!
I believe the world will end before then.. 2012!!!
The world is too bad…and God will have enough of all our sins and end it all!!
watch and see!!!!