Émilie du Châtelet

Gabrielle Émilie Le Tonnelier de Breteuil, Marquise du Châtelet ( French: [emili dy ʃɑtlɛ] ; 17 December 1706 – 10 September 1749) was a French mathematician and physicist.

Her most recognized achievement is her philosophical magnum opus, Institutions de Physique (Paris, 1740, first edition; Foundations of Physics). She then revised the text substantially for a second edition with the slightly modified title Institutions physiques (Paris, 1742). It circulated widely, generated heated debates, and was translated into German and Italian in 1743. The Institutions covers a wide range of topics, including the principles of knowledge, the existence of God, hypotheses, space, time, matter and the forces of nature. Several chapters treat Newton's theory of universal gravity and associated phenomena. Later in life, she translated into French, and wrote an extensive commentary on, Isaac Newton's Philosophiæ Naturalis Principia Mathematica. The text, published posthumously in 1756, is still considered the standard French translation to this day.