From Newton’s Logic to the Age of AI
Dr Arun Prakash
This summer, I found myself doing what I rarely get the time to do during the school year—read deeply. Not just breezing through news or flipping pages, but truly reading—from timeless classics to sharp case studies, from educational frameworks to the futuristic world of Artificial Intelligence. I was also in the final stages of editing my upcoming book, From the Principal’s Desk, and in the middle of all this reflection, one name kept coming back to me:
Isaac Newton.
Now, Newton needs no introduction in a school setting—every child has heard of his laws, and every teacher has explained them. But this time, I wasn’t thinking of Newton the physics chapter. I was thinking of Newton the thinker—Newton the man who taught the world how to think.
Why Newton? Why Now?
The more I thought, the more intrigued I became. I decided to go back and read Principia Mathematica—yes, Newton’s own book, often called the most important scientific work ever written.
And let me tell you, it is not light reading. It’s not sprinkled with humour or filled with dramatic claims. In fact, Newton does something that struck me deeply—he doesn’t say “I believe.” He doesn’t say “It appears that…” He doesn’t rely on feelings or philosophies or predictions.
What he does instead is this:
He assumes. He builds a logical argument. He tests it using mathematics and geometry. And then, he proves it.
Every statement, every law, every conclusion is backed by careful reasoning and measurable evidence.
“Truth is not what feels right, or what authorities say—it is what can be demonstrated logically and verified through evidence.”
One Law for Earth and Sky
Now here comes the beauty of it.
In Principia, Newton didn’t just explain why apples fall. He showed that the same law of gravity governs the fall of an apple, the motion of the Moon, the tides of the ocean, and even the orbit of Jupiter.
Until then, people believed that the heavens and the Earth were two separate realms, guided by different forces. Newton shattered that wall. He proved—proved—that one law ruled everything.
For the first time in history, the entire cosmos was brought under a single, logical, explainable system.
That’s not just science. That’s a new way of looking at the universe.
From Calculus to Clarity
Let me remind you—Newton did all this during the Great Plague of 1665, while isolated at home.
People were shut in, streets were silent, and fear had crept into every household. Sounds a lot like what we experienced during the COVID-19 pandemic, doesn’t it? Schools closed, cities paused, and each of us was left to cope with uncertainty in our own ways.
Newton, without modern tools or a research team, used his solitude to think. No internet, no lab, no distractions. Just paper, ink, and a mind trained in clarity.
He even invented his own version of calculus to solve the problems no one else could.
Today, we throw around terms like “research-based” or “evidence-backed” in every field—from medicine to education. But Newton lived it. Every theorem in Principia follows a clean structure:
- Define the problem.
- Make an assumption.
- Use mathematics to test it.
- Prove it.
- Then apply it—to planets, moons, tides, and falling apples.
You could say he was the first person to ever do a scientific startup of the universe.
The AI Connection
Now, jump forward 350 years. Today, we’re talking about Artificial Intelligence—machines that learn, predict, generate, and even chat.
And when you really look at how AI works, you’ll see something fascinating. The basic structure hasn’t changed.
AI too:
- Begins with assumptions (data),
- Applies logical rules (algorithms),
- Tests outcomes (predictions),
- Improves with feedback (learning).
In other words, AI is doing exactly what Newton taught us—only much faster, and without needing tea breaks.
“In today’s world, Newton might not be polishing mirrors for his telescope—he might be fine-tuning machine learning models. But one thing would stay the same: his insistence on clarity, logic, and proof.”
What We Must Learn from Newton
In a time where opinions spread faster than facts, and social media replaces slow reading with quick scrolling, Newton teaches us something timeless:
Don’t just believe what sounds right. Believe what can be tested and proven.
He reminds us that knowledge isn’t loud—it’s structured. That true learning doesn’t begin with knowing facts—it begins with asking the right questions, and following them with discipline and logic.
As educators, learners, and thinkers, this is the mindset we must carry forward—not just Newton’s laws, but Newton’s method.
So here’s what I came away with: Newton didn’t just change physics. He changed the way the world thinks.
He showed that the universe could be understood—not through guesses, but through reason. That everything—from a falling apple to the orbit of Jupiter—follows laws we can explain, test, and teach.
And that mindset, I believe, is more relevant today than ever before. Whether we are teaching a child, building an AI, or solving a real-world problem—the method matters. The thinking matters. The proof matters.
Let’s teach that to our students. Let’s model that as teachers. Let’s honour Newton not just by quoting his laws—but by adopting his logic.
After all, when the apple fell, the world didn’t fall with it.
It rose.
Because someone asked, “Why?”