Newton's "Principia" stolen

Silverleaf writes "O2 have a story on the theft of Isaac Newton's revolutionary "Philosophiae Naturalis Principia Mathematica" from a Russian museum. For the non-physicists among you, Newton first published his famed three laws of motion and his law of universal gravitation in "Principia" in 1687. I'm surprised this theft hasn't attracted more attention in the mainstream media, since "Principia" is generally considered the most important scientific works in history."

Comments

It's ok...

[Bob Cat - NYMPHS]

I have that in paperback. They can have mine.

Re:It's ok...

[Ctrl-Z]

...Barnes and Nobel...

Ahem. I assume that is the scientific division of Barnes and Noble? :-)

Ebay

[charlie763]

Check on ebay, I'm sure it'll be on there soon...

Re:FP -- where's the link?

[dustym]

First the Principia... NOW THE WEBPAGE.

Have these men no shame?

For crying out loud

[whereiswaldo]

Didn't someone at least make a photocopy of it?!

Holy shit!

[EggplantMan]

Where the hell am I supposed to find obscure geometrical proofs of things otherwised proved by calculus now!?

*gasp*

[Windcatcher]

*urp*

*cough*

*choke*

They stole... Principia ?!

(screams to the next room) BRING ME MY GUN!

This is dangerous.

[CySurflex]

Newtons essay is actually written on special material that in fact houses the CORE FUNDAMENTIAL ELEMENTS tha stabalize the laws of physics in our universe. If the theif has it in his mind to incenerate said document, be prepared for chaos. Apples not falling from trees, velocity and acceleration NOT functioning in automobiles (even Italian sportscars), Microsoft going open source, alphas of Doom III leaking. You get my drift. Just be careful.

This is no time for jokes!

[Snork Asaurus]

You don't seem to realize the gravity of the situation.

Re:This is no time for jokes!

[Myriad]

You don't seem to realize the gravity of the situation.

Oh do give it a rest. You know what will happen once you get a post in motion around here.

bah

[grub]

Newton died years ago. Why not put something in the museum that's a bit more contemporary?
Maybe some Harlequin Romances or Stephen King?

Re:bah

[Guppy06]

Because, unlike Harlequin books or King's works, Newton's Principa finally came out of copyright last month or so.

Comment removed

[account_deleted]

Comment removed based on user account deletion

probably gone forever

[ez76]

I fear the crime will stay unsolved unless it is acted upon by an outside force.

"theft"

[Anonymous Coward]

Once and for all, taking a physical item from its owner is not "theft". Yes this is the common usage these days, but saying something over and over doesn't make it true.

If you want to be accurate, use the word "take". As in, someone "took" the Principia Mathematica.

If you want to give it a positive connotation, use the term "shared" or "loan". As in, I just "shared" my copy of the Principia with a stranger, or I just involuntarily "loaned" my copy to a man in a ski mask with a gun.

Let the RIAA and other thugs use their propaganda words. I'll stick with morally neutral terminology.

Remember, matter just wants to be free. This doesn't mean zero cost, but it means once you pick up a physical object, you can put it in your pocket and head for the hills, and there's nothing anyone can do about it.

Besides, I believe the Supreme Court has already ruled that people have the right to "space-shift" other people's possessions.

Investigate Leibniz

[Charles Dodgeson]

Surely Leibniz should be considered an initial suspect.