Isaac Newton was born in Lincolnshire, on December 25, 1642. (Clayman, 1989) He was educated at Trinity College in Cambridge, and resided there from 1661 to 1696 during which time he produced the majority of his work in mathematics. During this time Newton developed several theories, such as his fundamental principles of gravitation, his theory on optics, as well as many others. Newton contributed to all aspects of mathematics including geometry, algebra, and physics. Isaac Newton was born into a poor farming family in 1642 with no father. Newton's father had passed away just a few months before he was born. His mother intended Newton to become a farmer but his lack of interest and the encouragement of John Stokes, Master of the Grantham grammar school and that of his uncle, William Ayscough, led to his eventual admission to his uncle's college. Newton began attending Trinity College at Cambridge, as a student on June 5, 1661. (Arnheim, 1993) As a boy in Grantham, Newton had been intolerable to his servants and found it difficult to get along with his fellow grammar school peers. As a student, he bought his own food and paid a reduced fee in return for domestic service, a situation that appears unnecessary in view of his mother's wealth. In the summer of 1662, Newton experienced, some sort of religious crisis, which led him to write his many sins, such as his threat to burn his mother and step-father. As a student at Cambridge, Newton found himself among surroundings which were likely to develop and enhance his powers. In his first semester Newton happened to discover a book on astrology, but couldn't understand it very well on account of the geometry and trigonometry. He therefore bought a book by Euclid, and learned very quickly how obvious the propositions seemed. Later he read and mastered Oughtred's Clavis, and Descartes' Geometry, which led him to take up mathematics rather than chemistry as a serious study. As a result of the P...