Originally introduced by
Sir Isaac Newton in
Philosophiæ Naturalis Principia Mathematica, the concepts of
absolute time and
space provided a theoretical foundation that facilitated
Newtonian mechanics. According to Newton, absolute time and space respectively are independent aspects of objective reality:
Absolute, true and mathematical time, of itself, and from its own nature flows equably without regard to anything external, and by another name is called duration: relative, apparent and common time, is some sensible and external (whether accurate or unequable) measure of duration by the means of motion, which is commonly used instead of true time ...