THE WISE KNOWLEDGE OF GRAVITATIONAL FORCE: A PERSPECTIVE FROM NEWTONS PRINCIPIA

Abstract

Newton’s conception of gravitational force has undergone changes over the years, raising questions
about the true nature of this Wise Knowledge, as, in the way it is taught, it is intertwined with
various contributions from other scientists who succeeded Newton. Thus, in this research, the
aim was to investigate how the Wise Knowledge of the concept of Newtonian gravitational force
is structured according to the Principia? Initially, a literature review on Newtonian gravitational
force was conducted, including analyses of theses and dissertations, with the purpose of identifying
the material or materials in which Isaac Newton discussed his law of gravitation. Subsequently,
with the assistance of the Content Analysis methodology proposed by Bardin, the selected texts
were examined meticulously. As a result, in summary, the Wise Knowledge of Newtonian
gravitational force is structured as follows: it is an exclusively attractive central force that varies
directly with the masses of the mutually interacting bodies and inversely proportional to the
square of the distance between their centers. Its influence extends to celestial and terrestrial
bodies, making it universal. Furthermore, it plays a fundamental role in maintaining planetary
orbits and in the physical and mathematical description of the motion of these bodies. Finally,
it is a force of action at a distance, not requiring a physical medium for its operation. Thus,
this research can be useful for educators by highlighting the main characteristics that structure
the concept of gravitational force originally proposed by Newton, also enabling a historical and
epistemological discussion of this concept.