Émilie du Châtelet (1706–1749) was a French mathematician, physicist, and translator. Her major work as a writer was Foundations of Physics, first published in 1740.

Her major work as a translator was the translation of fellow scientist Isaac Newton’s seminal book Mathematical Principles of Natural Philosophy from its original Latin into French. Published in 1759, her translation is still the standard French translation to this day.

Émilie du Châtelet received a good education in literature, mathematics and science. After marrying the Marquis du Châtelet at the age of nineteen and bearing three children, she resumed her mathematical studies in 1733 at the age of twenty-six. Read More→