Gottfried Leibniz

Gottfried Wilhelm von Leibniz (also Leibnitz) (Leipzig July 1 (June 21 O.S.), 1646 – November 14, 1716 in Hannover) was a German philosopher, scientist, mathematician, diplomat, librarian, and lawyer.

The vis viva

:See main article: .

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

During 1676-1689 Leibniz noticed that what he called the vis viva, Latin for living force, a mathematical characteristic of certain mechanical systems, stayed constant even when the system changed. Though it is now recognised that Leibniz had discovered a limited case of the conservation of energy, his ideas unfortunately led him into another nationalistic dispute.

Related Topics:
1676 - 1689 - Latin - Conservation of energy

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

It appeared at the time that his principle was at variance with the conservation of momentum championed by Sir Isaac Newton in England and by René Descartes in France. This led to the neglect of his idea by academics in those countries though it was eventually practical engineers who demonstrated its usefulness in calculation.

Related Topics:
Conservation of momentum - René Descartes - Engineer

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

It was subsequently appreciated that the two approaches are complementary.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~