Sidney Beck Poet Quatrain

Equal Time For Newton and My Friend Lee

EQUAL   TIME   FOR  NEWTON   AND   MY   FRIEND   LEE 

My  friend  Lee is a cool guy, sees UFOs in the sky;
And he’s allowed  time at his job in the burger-bar  
To think where the great secrets of science lie.
When flipping patties or mixing secret sauce he sees far.

Lee and  Newton liked to study  falling fruit
But Newt  did it two hundred years before Lee.
Why does he get  credit?  Let’s examine the root:
He’s older than Lee  -  it’s easy to see

That this is reverse ageism.  Lee’s  ignored cos  he’s  young.
We scientists must stick together,  young  and old
Giving equal  credit to heroes as well as heroes-unsung.
And sharing  names and ideas,  complicated and bold.

After all he was no great genius, the old apple-gent.
Took him years to grasp gravity;   took Lee two days.
Ok, Newt  didn’t have a computer or other  equipment
But as Lee said, he’d loads of apples to find gravity’s ways.

Equality demands  that sci-books refer to  Lee’s Laws of Motion;
Telescopes will  be Lee Refractors;  forces  measured in  lees.
And  there’ll  be movie, music  and showbiz  commotion
About Tommy Newton Jones, Newton Marvin, and Jerry Newton Lewis

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Carolyn Devonshire January 24, 2011 at 9:02 AM LOL A very witty write on the discovery of gravity. After all, gravity has always been present on earth. Surely people knew they would fall to earth if they fell from a tree long before Newton proclaimed his discovery. You made a great point and the poem is so very entertaining, Syd. Bravo! Love, Carolyn (please say a prayer for me this week - head to Tallahassee tomorrow)

Steven Henderson January 23, 2011 at 12:35 PM Nice! Thanks for sharing Steve.