What is Newton actually proving in 1.1? The commentary says that "what this proposition tells us is that if there are such forces operating, the result will be equable description of areas" (p 46). Firstly, what exactly does that mean? If we aren't proving that centripetal force exists, what are we actually proving about centripetal forces?
One other thought...I think that Newton's lack of attention to causes is striking. The commentary says "But Newton has not given us a force at the center, only a center towards which the forces are directed" (41). Everything else we've been reading this semester has had some sort of stress on causes, but Newton deliberately avoids cause at all costs.
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