Benjamin Franklin and others interested in science were profoundly influenced by Newton, and frequently referred to him.

The Principia established the three laws of motion and the law of universal gravity. In preparing the Principia, Newton also developed a new field of mathematics, calculus. Yet the greatest contribution of the Principia may have been in the philosophy of science in Europe.  Newton’s phrase, “I feign no hypotheses” became the new cornerstone of scientific inquiry, that conclusions must rely on provable facts, not possible explanations.