Book excerpt: "Dare to think!” This was the catch cry of the Enlightenment over 300 years ago when the breakaway from religion towards a more secular society began. Isaac Newton led the Scientific Revolution which transformed society for the next 300 years with progress not then dreamed of. Stephen Hawking revealed a new cosmology and linked Einstein’s relativity to small scale quantum mechanics. Yet what was the mind set of Newton’s age compared to Hawking’s age? What were the changes in the mind sets of society and philosophy during those 300 years and were they all linked to science? This book represents a slice of the history of ideas, science and philosophy mixed with their personal lives against how science, mathematics and philosophy evolved over those 300 years. Revealed are the truly astonishing stories and ideas of five of the greatest thinkers who ever lived who provided us rich insights into the cosmos. Their stories class them as true founders of scientific revolutions, battlers with feats of endurance, and triumphs to rise to great heights. Through the personal tragedies of Curie and Hawking to the intellectual battles fought by Einstein, Newton and Leibniz these five scientists inspire us and enrich our ideas.