As we go through the coronavirus pandemic and the quarantine, it can be useful to reflect on similar events from the past and how people dealt with them. History often repeats itself, and no matter how many people proclaim how this situation is unprecedented, pandemics and quarantines have occurred many times before.
Looking at stories of how people went through past pandemics can give us guidance and encouragement. One such story I find very inspiring is about a young scientist who ended up transforming the world with his work while he was under quarantine.
355 years ago the Great Plague of London ravaged the city and ended up killing a quarter of the city’s population. It was a devastating event. Life was disrupted, business as usual was suspended, and people had to go under quarantine to counteract the spread of the plague.
One of those quarantined was Isaac Newton. He would later become one of the greatest scientists of all time, but in 1665 when the bubonic plague hit London, he was just fresh out of university, having earned his bachelor’s degree in August of 1665. He was 22 years old at the time, which coincidentally is my age now.
Many people would have had pity on Newton’s bad luck. He had just earned his degree and would be unable to take advantage of the opportunities it would open because the plague put life on hold.
However, instead of falling for this type of thinking, Isaac Newton made the most of his time in quarantine. In fact, it ended up being the most productive time of his life, and would later be known as his “year of wonders”. During this period, he invented calculus and greatly advanced our knowledge of science. It was while under quarantine that Newton discovered gravity, developed the laws of motion, analyzed how optics worked, revealed the nature of light and the color spectrum, and much more. Even the famous story of an apple falling on Newton’s head happened during this time.
His studies and discoveries would form the basis for the mathematics and physics essential to the great engineering feats, inventions, and scientific advances that created the modern world. What is remarkable is that Newton accomplished this all under the adversity of living through an extremely deadly pandemic.
As we ourselves experience quarantine due to the coronavirus, it’s useful to reflect on how we’re using this time.
Are you using it to achieve your goals, better yourself, or focus on your passions? Or are you squandering it binge watching Netflix, oversleeping, or doing other unproductive stuff?
Instead of seeing the quarantine as a suspension of our lives, let us look at it as an opportunity to use this time to work on the things we want to accomplish.
Life is short, and life is competitive. While many others slack off during this time and put their lives on hold, you can use this opportunity to work on yourself and your goals, and spend more time on whatever you’re passionate about.
Whether that is writing, learning a new language, building a business online, creating music, doing research on something you find exciting, working on a new business opportunity, preparing to launch a start-up, etc., there’s so much you can do now that you have all this time at home.
Just as Isaac Newton used his time in quarantine to change the world, let us also use this time productively and inspire others to do the same.
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