For Isaac Newton, August 1665 was a hugely frustrating time. The year before, he had been awarded a scholarship which guaranteed him four years at Cambridge to pursue his studies. But that month, the university was shut down because of the Great Plague. Newton had to return home to Lincolnshire to continue his research alone - and came up with his theories of calculus and the law of gravity.

People who believe in the power of positive thought see this is a prime example of how good things can come out of a crisis. If you approach any situation in the right frame of mind, they argue, you can overcome your problems. So, instead of complaining about all the restrictions of being isolated due to the coronavirus, we should see it as an opportunity to enrich our lives.

One thing we generally lack in the modern world is time. In the months ahead, we will have plenty of it. You could use it to acquire a new skill, such as making furniture, or learning to draw properly, sew, or play a musical instrument - Charles DarwinHis book, On the Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection, is the founding work of evolutionary biology. said that if he had his life to live over again, he would have found more time for music and poetry.

While team sports are suspended, you might discover other physical activities you can still do in the open air: gardening, for instance - described by the philosopher, as "the purest of human pleasures", or going for walks. William WordsworthAn English writer (1770-1850) best known for his poems about nature, such as Daffodils. found walking so helpful to his thought processes that he composed some of his greatest poetry on foot, and is estimated to have covered 175,000 miles in his lifetime. Indoors, you could learn to do yoga or PilatesA form of exercise developed by a German physical fitness expert, Joseph Pilates (1883-1967)..

Even if you are cut off from your friends, you could have conversations with them on the phone or via Skype, and discuss things in greater depth than you would by just texting. You might also find enjoyable new ways of socialising with your own family, such as cooking together. As Oscar WildeAn Irish writer famous for his witty remarks and plays, such as The Importance of Being Earnest. observed, "After a good dinner one can forgive anybody - even one's own relations."

And, of course, you can always sharpen your mind by reading a challenging book or playing chess - or trying to come up with a new law of physics.

Some say that positive thinking is just a form of childish escapism: the world is full of people who believed that they were going to achieve great things, but never did. Simply expecting a situation to get better will make no difference to anything. It may even be dangerous, encouraging people to focus on changing their mindset instead of taking action to sort things out.

Others argue that positive thinking expands the mind and helps it find solutions to apparently impossible situations. The bestselling novelist Paolo CoelhoA Brazilian writer whose most celebrated book is The Alchemist. remarked, "If you really think small, your world will be small. If you think big, your world will be big." Mahatma Gandhi believed, "A man is but the product of his thoughts; what he thinks, he becomes."