The Pleasure of Finding Things Out: The Best Short Works of Richard P. Feynman

Richard P. Feynman

Da Capo Press, 1999 - Science - 270 pages

The Pleasure of Finding Things Outis a magnificent treasury of the best short works of Richard Feynman--from interviews and speeches to lectures and printed articles. A sweeping, wide-ranging collection, it presents an intimate and fascinating view of a life in science-a life like no other. From his ruminations on science in our culture to his Nobel Prize acceptance speech, this book will fascinate anyone interested in the world of ideas.

What people are saying

Review: The Pleasure of Finding Things Out: The Best Short Works of Richard P. Feynman

User Review  - JJ - Goodreads

I love this man. He is brilliant, seems humble, and funny as hell. This is an excellent collection of some of his ideas and stories, mostly about his life experiences and how he became who he was ...

Review: The Pleasure of Finding Things Out: The Best Short Works of Richard P. Feynman

User Review  - Art - Goodreads

A pleasant read of many of Feynman's short talks, presentations and readings. In his own style and thus a glimpse into his mind. - stumbled upon on the library's shelf

Contents

• The Pleasure of Finding Things Out: 1
• Computing Machines in the Future: 27
• Los Alamos from Below: 53
• What Is and What Should Be the Role of Scientific Culture in Modern Society: 97
• Theres Plenty of Room at the Bottom: 117
• The Value of Science: 141
• Richard P Feynmans Minority Report to the Space Shuttle Challenger Inquiry: 151
• What Is Science?: 171
• The Smartest Man in the World: 189
• Cargo Cult Science Some Remarks on Science Pseudoscience and Learning How to Not Fool Yourself: 205
• Its as Simple as One Two Three: 217
• Richard Feynman Builds a Universe: 225
• The Relation of Science and Religion: 245
• Acknowledgments: 259
• Index: 261

About the author

Richard Feynman, an American theoretical physicist, received his Ph.D. from Princeton University in 1942 and worked at Los Alamos, New Mexico, on the atomic bomb during World War II. From 1945 to 1950, he taught at Cornell University and became professor of theoretical physics at the California Institute of Technology in 1950. Feynman made important contributions to quantum electrodynamics (QED) and electromagnetic interactions, such as interactions among electrons. In Feynman's approach, interactions are considered exchanges of virtual particles. For example, Feynman explained the interaction of two electrons as an exchange of virtual photons. Feynman's theory has proved to be accurate in its predictions. In 1965 the Nobel Prize for physics was awarded to three pioneers in quantum electrodynamics: Feynman, Julian Schwinger, and Sin-Itiro Tomonaga. Feynman was an outspoken critic of NASA for its failure to notice flaws in the design of the Challenger space shuttle, which resulted in its tragic explosion.

Bibliographic information

• Title: The Pleasure of Finding Things Out: The Best Short Works of Richard P. Feynman; Art of Mentoring Series; Helix Books
• Author: Richard P. Feynman
• Editor: Jeffrey Robbins
• Edition: reprint
• Publisher: Da Capo Press, 1999
• ISBN: 0738203491, 9780738203492
• Length: 270 pages
• Subjects: Science / Physics / General