What determines the pull of gravitation?
This cosmic problem was figured out almost 300 years ago by a vacationing college student. Please do not, however, let this news make you feel backward or downhearted. That student happened to be Isaac Newton. No brain in history has surpassed his and few if any have equaled it. Every object in the universe, from a speck of dust to a giant star, has its own built in quota of gravitation. It exerts its gravitational attraction on every other object. This mutual pulling power is thought to be a cosmic binding force, a vast network that holds the heavenly bodies in place and keeps them moving in orderly paths. The laws of gravitation are cosmic laws that obey the same regulations in every corner of the universe. One basic law governs the quota of gravitation built into an object. The quota is proportioned by the mass of the object. And its mass is the matter packed into its size or volume. The quota in a speck of dust is infinitesimal. The more massive earth exerts enough pull to hug us a
