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Isaac Newton, Opticks (1704) {pp. 380-381 in 4th edition (1730)} synthesis portion also reported in Prose Quotations from Socrates to Macaulay (1876) Austin Allibone ed., p. 691
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By this way of Analysis we may proceed from Compounds to Ingredients, and from Motions to the Forces producing them; and in general, from Effects to their Causes, and from particular Causes to more general ones, till the Argument end in the most general. This is the Method of Analysis: and the Synthesis consists in assuming the Causes discover'd, and establish'd as Principles, and by them explaining the Phænomena proceeding from them, and proving the Explanations.

— Isaac Newton on Synthesis

What It Means

This is a placeholder explanation generated by the low-overhead model. It interprets "By this way of Analysis we may proceed from Compounds to Ingredients, and from Motions to the Forces producing them; and in general, from Effects to their Causes, and from particular Causes to more general ones, till the Argument end in the most general. This is the Method of Analysis: and the Synthesis consists in assuming the Causes discover'd, and establish'd as Principles, and by them explaining the Phænomena proceeding from them, and proving the Explanations." in the context of "Isaac Newton, Opticks (1704) {pp. 380-381 in 4th edition (1730)} synthesis portion also reported in Prose Quotations from Socrates to Macaulay (1876) Austin Allibone ed., p. 691" to mean that wisdom is timeless.

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Source: Wikiquote: "Synthesis" (Quotes: Quotes are arranged alphabetically by author, M - R) The 'What it means' explanation text was generated by Google Gemini Flash (accessed January 18, 2026). https://gemini.google.com/app

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#Isaac Newton#general#causes#analysis#explanations#ingredients#particular#establishd#principles#explaining#proceeding#compounds
Isaac Newton

About Isaac Newton

Sir Isaac Newton (January 4, 1643 – March 31, 1727 or in Old Style: December 25, 1642 – March 20, 1727) was an English mathematician, physicist, astronomer, alchemist, theologian, and author (described in his time as a "natural philosopher"), widely recognised as one of the greatest mathematicians and physicists and among the most influential scientists of all time. He was a key figure in the philosophical revolution known as the Enlightenment. His book Philosophiæ Naturalis Principia Mathematica (Mathematical Principles of Natural Philosophy), first published in 1687, established classical mechanics. Newton also made seminal contributions to optics, and shares credit with German mathematician Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz for developing infinitesimal calculus.