My Uncle Abe Bader was Feynman's high school physics teacher. I remember hearing him tell my father about a brilliant student he had taught, who could understand more physics in a weekend than he could understand in an entire summer. He mentioned that he had lent this brilliant student advanced books to study. I was a kid when I heard this story, and I didn't catch the name of who he was talking about. But the story stuck with me because of the idea that there could be someone that brilliant It was only when Feynman died, and my uncle had also died, that I found out, all those years ago, my uncle had been talking about Feynman.
+Ayesha Ahmed You're welcome. I became interested in Feynman from programs like NOVA which was on PBS, and other interviews I saw through the years. I grew up not that far from Brooklyn,NYC, and his thick Brooklyn accent is very familiar to me, more a product of his generation than the way people talk now. . It makes him sound very "down to Earth" which, apparently, he was.
"He had just written out the hardest math of the century, in a picture." ...then a smiling Feynman comes in on the bongos. That cracked me up. (; Feynman Lives!
I met Richard Feynman back at Caltech around 1980 or so -- he was a dinner guest at my student house and he shared all sorts of anecdotes about Los Alamos and helping to defend a strip club that the city of Pasadena was trying to shut down, and so on. He even taught an informal class on safe-cracking while I was there (I didn't take advantage of it). He loved the students so much that he participated in the various theater events usually playing the bongos. And even back then, he taught Freshman and Sophomore Physics -- unfortunately I missed him by one year (I was a Freshman in a year when he was teaching Sophomore physics, and vice versa). I was not a great physics student, but I still wish I could have taken his classes. He had a really great sense of humor and everyone really loved him there. I feel very lucky for the brief time our house got to spend with him.
Haldurson, the annotated transcripts of his lectures on physics are available as a series of books, also his lectures have been televised and they have been made available for free, so you can watch his lectures for free. Amazing stuff.
I have no idea. If he described the location (which is possible), I don't remember. This was around 1980 or so. I remember the evening when he was our dinner guest, because it was a highlight of my time there. But I can't recall too many more details other than what I mentioned. Also, I haven't been back to Pasadena since 1983, which is when I graduated. And I never visited any strip clubs back then.
Richard Feynman has long been my favorite scientist. His enthusiasm and curiosity and love of life instantly endeared him to me. I too wish I could have met him.
Javaman92 I am an Indian. One of my profs at a university while doing postdoc at US struggled to meet him (by then he had won Nobel Prize). In the age when there was no internet they managed to find his house. They travelled to his house by car riding it for a day, reached and found gates closed with a sign indicating to beware of dogs. These people couldn't find anyone at the gates and decided to climb the gate to enter his house because they couldn't afford to go back after travelling for a day to meet him. Just as they entered his dogs welcomed them, hearing this Feynman came and opened the door to his house to let my prof and his friend to come in. He was not at all scared to see these guys trespass his property, he was infact very happy to meet them as his fame had made him confined to a small place. He made them sit had a nice chat over coffee, and credited all his achievements to Paul Dirac.
I recently read a letter he wrote to his first wife and childhood sweetheart a year after she died of TB. It's one of the most moving and heartbreaking things I have ever read. He was a pretty special man with the mind of a scientist and the soul of an artist. A rare combination.
You and your brother have given the rest of us an amazing gift. Through your own insights, through the experts you find or that flock to you, through simple speech and diagrams, you have become two more great explainers. The list of things you teach us grows by the day. I am so lucky to know about Crash Course and Sci Show. And grateful.
Bradley Burns yes, and while sharing this great information, they are very funny and include enough humor and character to make it not seem like a textbook is being shoved down your throat. The graphics help explain and elaborate points, as well as helping exclaim important parts.
So I watched this video when it was originally posted and found Feynman interesting. Since then I've probably watched every video on Feynman on youtube and can't get enough listening to him. Just wanted to thank you for introducing Feynman to me, as it's brought a lot of joy to this fan of science!
Having studied physics, studied particle physics and doing the math involved in Feynman diagrams all the praise of his intelligence is well deserved. Look up re-normalization, that's how he solved the problem about infinite possibilities in the checkers board analogy. Also turned out to be super useful in theoretical pure math so he was a double boss there. You know, just strolling down the street solving the biggest physics problem of the day with pictures and at the same time creating a new tool for mathematicians that they didn't even know they wanted or needed. Like a bawse.
I'm currently studying Quantum Field Theory (currently browsing UA-cam for "inspiration" for studying for the test) and man, how he managed to come up with the horrible yet genious mess that is renormalization is completely beyond me. Like, "We've got a bunch of annoying infinities here, let's rewrite them in terms of other infinities so that everything infinite cancels, our previous unknown parameters turn into ones we can actually meassure, and obtain small corrections that makes this theory describe reality to an almost absurd degree of certainty".
+simonO712 the way you just laid it out made sense, different infinities are different sizes so reorganizing them into groups that cancel out make sense!
+Nikhil Waiker It's even better and more funny than you think - he cold cracked his colleague's safes which contained all the details to the nuclear bomb (the most powerful national secret of all time) and left him cryptic notes in each one. He found the last note first, which read, "This one was easier to open than the others..." at which point all the blood drained out of the man's face. Feynman was there of course, under a false premise to get him to open the safes so that he could see his reaction! Hahahaha that has to be the greatest prank ever played by any one ever hahaha.
Nikhil Waiker The Soviet Union spied Project Manhattan, which allowed them to build a bomb just 4 years later. The couple Julius and Ethel Rosemberg got electric chair for passing secrets, but they were just couriers. The real spy was german-born physicist Klaus Fuchs, who worked on the project. A British citizen, Fuchs got 17 years in jail, but was not tried for treason, because he spied for an allied country (USSR at WWII time). Hats off to British justice of that time, but that would hardly happen nowadays ...
You gotta hear the whole story. And many other stories. Feynman was super brilliant and super hilarious. Several books, or search the net. You won't be disappointed.
Thank you for making this. I was fortunate enough to have taken two undergraduate-level physics courses (acoustics and thermodynamics; relativity and quantum mechanics) personally taught by Feynman, when my employer brought him in to teach continuing education classes. He was an amazing character, and I had the privilege of having a number of conversations, getting my butt kicked in a philosophical argument about the nature of quarks (he called them "partons"), and striking up a minor friendship with him. He was the best teacher I ever had and his influence in shaping my thought processes persists to this day. One of the most surreal and bizarre moments of my life was sitting in a class where he was teaching the rules for constructing what he called "silly pictures". We call them "Feynman diagrams". On another occasion I heard him utter "Anyone who claims to understand any of this hasn't given it enough thought." which was his paraphrase of Bohr's famous comment. I miss him.
When I was 7-years-old I was told, for the first time, that the whole world was made out of these little tiny solar systems called atoms (yes, I know atoms don't look like solar systems, in the second grade I was taught they do). It blew my mind and I spent the rest of the day squinting really closely at various objects, trying to see the atoms. That's how I feel whenever I watch Feynman's lectures. I often times watch videos of him when I'm feeling unmotivated in my studies, he reminds me why I'm getting a degree in mathematics (which, even to a math nerd, can feel boring at times).
I watched a biography on Feynman years ago and it really struck a chord with me. The way he was devastated after his research ended up being used on a civilian population (twice) & his subsequent cathartic journey through his soul which led him to the throat singing monks of Touvre, and bongo playing; simple things. Peaceful things. I would have also liked to have gotten to know him. R.I.P.
@ninjarawr21 you didn't make a counter argument. You dismissed my argument & just made an off comment about something that has no relation to the conversation.... It's literally an equal operator. It would return as true if the statement is equal. This, however, is saying that one this is better than another. So how does it make any sense to use (==).? Also, he didn't mean (>>) in a programming sense. That just a shift operator. It would make no sense in this situation.
@ninjarawr21 you are still dismissing me. I'm saying that (==) doesn't make sense. I know exactly what it means & so do you. Even if we didn't, anyone can Google it and realize that it makes no sense. Yet you refuse to admit you ruined the joke & are using the defense of "you just don't get it". I remember someone using that same defense to justify tweeting "covfefe"..
Everyone, I repeat, everyone should read "Surely you're joking, Mr. Feynman!". It's a sort of anecdotal autobiography of Feynman, which is more about his funny experiences and view on life than any hardcore physics.
My friend was lucky enough to study at Caltech in 1965 when Feynman taught the intro physics course which later became the Feynman Lectures. He said it was the best experience of his life.
Richard Feynman's enthusiasm was something else. Watching videos of him talking to students, I just wish I had been there to see him in person. He was a bit like Les Paul, the guitar player and designer, he didn't have an off switch. He just carried on, bringing people along with the sheer force of his personality.
You have the knack of explaining this stuff as if you’re just like me, you understand the jist of the subject at hand you merely fell asleep half an hour ago & need a nudge in the right direction.
I wholeheartedly agree with this assessment of Mr. Feynman and recommend reading his autobiographical book "Surely you're joking mr. feyman" it's an amazing and fun adventure of a book and a glimpse into a playful and brilliant mind.
Captured in several ways what I consider the spirit of the man. Thank you. I too in a way miss never having had the opportunity to actually have know him. One of my favorites (there are many) was what I believe was his take on anti-gravity devices, "You're sitting in one." Or maybe that was someone else, still it embodies his joy at seeing things a little differently than most of us might. The simple joy in just questioning why any particular thing might happen and/or be seen as it is and/or does.
+John Scheuer That was indeed Richard Feynman who said that. It was at one of his Esalen lectures while talking about what is possible to do in physics being constrained by what is possible in reality. One of the audience asked him about building an antigravity device, to which he responded something to the effect of "you are sitting on one, it keeps your ass from falling to the ground."
It's like 1 o'clock in the morning where I am, and I've been watching scishow for 2 hours, and I'm low on sleep, and this video literslly gave me goosebumps and made me cry. Thank you Hank. Thank you, Richard Feynman. For educating the world and being a beautiful, fantastic awesome person.
The reason I am so inspired by scientists is because it is one of the few professions where the vast majority of people are committed to finding the truth rather than being right or wrong. This rational approach vs an emotional approach to life I have found to be hugely beneficial.
My mother took a few lectures from Feynman when she was in graduate school, and said that in retrospect, it was one of the greatest experiences of her life.
I know this is so old, but since I just saw it, I have to say that I didn't know there was someone else on earth who felt as I do about Richard Feynman. I've read all his lectures and seen all his video lectures. Truly and amazing man. I too would have liked to have met him. I'm especially sorry since I was around for much of his life, I got married for the second time in 1988 when he died. Without the internet I did not know about him when he was alive. You did a great video and a very nice tribute to a great man.
i am not ashamed to say that i truly love that man, if you read his books and watch his lectures and cant agree i feel for you . He taught himself to remain lucid while directing his own dreams for gods sake.
My Dad was Caltech '38. In the 60's and 70's I would attend Caltech Seminar Days with him. Feynman was often a lecturer at these events which were always standing room only. His office door was also something not to be missed, with thesis proposals by future Nobel candidates and bets made, accepted or conceded.
I'm sure you could say something nasty about Lavoisier too. After all, he was sentenced to the guillotine. I suppose some things finally caught up to him in that moment... all we can do is be better, and outwardly strive for it too among everyone else, right?
I once read heard someone explain that his lectures were like Chinese food meal, he would explain the entire Universe and everything in it as either matter or energy, and you understood it like he did, like it was child's play, and you were so satisfied. But an hour later, like the meal, you feel empty again and you wonder what you learned.
My Feynman moment was, about 1995 when I was following a good friend, I had not seen in a long while, to his house where I was joining he and his family for dinner and to catch up on things. As I followed Eric from big boulevards in Alta Dena into smaller side streets as we approached his house I got the very palpable feeling of peace and calm. By the time we stopped and I parked in front of his house I was practically overwhelmed by that feeling. I got out of my car and said loudly " What a great neighborhood, I love it here." I can't remember all of his reply but that last thing he said was "...oh yeah, and that house next door used to belong to some famous Physicist, I can't remem..." "You mean Richard Feynman!"( I already knew it in m bones) He couldn't believe I knew that. All I could think to do was walk over and touched the gate handle to at least have something like contact with my mentor and basically favorite human.
i have the same feeling... thank you so much for sharing with us. i wish i could have the honor to meet him, to attend his classes... be one of his bff... :) i love to watch him on videos over and over again ...the world would be a much better place if he could stay here with us... he is a legend... genius... unforgetable..
Feynman was just awesomesauce. His books and his about him are my favorite scientific biography and history of science books. His "Lost Lecture" is a great example of his teaching complex subjects clearly.
Please please please do an episode on super genius and awesome humble guy John Bardeen, he was the only winner of two prizes in Physics, the transistor in the 50's and then super conducting in the 70's. He wasn't high profile like an Einstein or a Feynman, but he was so low key he would barbeque with his neighbors who knew he did something at the university but had no idea he was the father of the modern age of electronics. Oh please please please!! John Bardeen, John Bardeen John Bardeen! He's my DAD!!
The Zebra Channel Seriously? Bardeen did some shit-hot work! Shockley and Bardeen (and some other dude?) ... the point-contact transistor! And then BCS Theory.... because of which were can have stuff like MRI machines!
I wish I could like this video ten more times! Feynman was the best. He and Sagan have made such a wonderful contribution to science by bringing complex ideas to the laymen in interesting and exciting ways.
Nice lecture on Feynman, though. People might also be curious to know he won the Putnam Award in math in college, the contest prize John Nash longed to win but could not; and Nash was a math major, while Feynman was a physics major. Also, Feynman's unprecedented double perfect scores in the math & physics GRE before going to Princeton...
the guy sounds fantastic. doing math in a strip club. Now that's cool in my book. And pranking, just goes to show that even great thinkers can a have a sense of humor and still be human.
Cannon G: Not quite. While both strip clubs and Denny's score unusually high on the desperation and hopelessness index, the latter beats out the former by the slimmest of margins.
Years ago when I was a kid I read a book on the development of the Manhattan Project (yes I was and still am a geek). In it they had a section on the unique security challenges of dealing with civilian scientists. They said that one in particular would open safes if they had a key he needed. His wife would send letters on a sheet of aluminum foil with holes in it, or a letter written on the back of a jigsaw puzzle, disassembled. Decades later I would find out it was Feynman.
I was introduced to Richard Feynman through a book one of my uncles sent me. The book was, "Surely You're Joking, Mr. Feynman," sent to me about the time Feynman died. I suppose that my love of science was well-known to my extended family, so it wasn't too odd that my uncle mailed me the book, with a note saying that he thought I would enjoy it.
The almost final words of writer Roald Dahl, were "You know, I'm not frightened. It's just that I will miss you all so much" to his family. After appearing to fall unconscious the nurse then injected him with morphine to ease his passing and he said his actual last words: “Ow, fuck!”
No one need to be scared of dying. We are really part of an infinite universe. It never ends. So your atoms will eventually form another conscienceless. And as the time between these consciencnesses isnt realised. As soon as you die, you will live again.... in another curious, but totally different mind. Sounds crazy, but in an infinite world, can only be true.
Timothy Figgis Prevalent science tells us that we cannot possibly know if the universe is quite infinite or not. Not yet, anyway. As nice as your idea is, it's not exactly fact. Also, have you considered that the universe may have an end? Therefore, you have to take all of the atoms in your body and multiply them by the chance of them coming together to compose another conscious being. This is extremely unlikely and, moreover, it probably wouldn't be you, anyway. If someone were to break down all of your atoms and resemble them, is it really still you? Your idea is a nice one but don't act like it is fact and certainly don't precede it with "No one need be scared of dying". That's kind of ridiculous.
Hey Tim ever heard of expanding universe?We know that the universe has an end because it's growing but into what...we don't know we might be a growing piece of minutely small energy reaching out in a larger universe unlikely but fun to play with the thought. I like to call this hypothesis the 'who theory' named after dr Seuss' make believe but infinitely small Whoville wich to the inhabitants is a huge universe.
Totally AGREE! I am crazy about Feynman too! Learned about him via my obsession with Oppenheimer and the Manhattan Project...and am now nuts about both. Glad he lived long enough to make a big difference on the Rogers Commission and resolving/explaining the Challenger disaster. If I had a time machine, I'd definitely want to hang out with Richard Feynman a lot!
Great episode. But it is worth noting that Feynman was lead by a General friend of his (iirc) to discover that the o-ring was the problem that caused the crash, because the engineer who made the discovery couldn't disclose it because politics.
Back in the 80's, my dad roomed in apartment with Carl Feynman in Cambridge while Carl went to MIT. I'm pretty sure my dad got to meet Richard Feynman once or twice too. Learning more about this guy is really interesting.
Professor Feynman is also a genius to reckon with in his own right, his uniqueness is his ability and emphasis on breaking things down to simple form and he emphasis on that! I'm still amazed why most world innovators and great minds are mathemticians and I hope I can get there too as a Mathematician! Thanks for this bro!
it was not in a direct published work, but this was supposedly what he told his students when they asked him about subjects which scientists did not fully understand.
It's a paraphrasing, but he did essentially say that. Look up his double slit experiment lecture. I wouldn't be surprised if he said it exactly off-record.
I was one year too early (having skipped a grade) for the Feynman lectures on physics. I did attend one and his Physics X seminars. I watched him hold forth at the student hall with a great crowd of students and others. He was amazing in person and loved explaining things. I don't know whether Feynman's reputation had anything to do with it, but every Caltech freshman learned how to pick locks. That knowledge helped me once when I was a postdoctoral fellow. It's also the basis for an anecdote when I was a graduate student at Columbia. He was amazing in being smart and humble, weird and approachable. Losing him was a blow to humanity.
I love those random bongo sequences! Too funny... Feynman, in all do respect to the other great minds of the world, gives me the utmost aspiration for wanting to know more about this universe and everything in it! I really wish I could have met him...
Daaloul Chiheb you can also start of by watching it(the feynman lectures on physics volume 1) and that was Feynman who said , if you can't explain it, you don't understand it...
I'm sure you will enjoy the lectures, they are very informative as well as entertaining. You should get a copy of (The Pleasure of finding things out, The best short works of Richard P.Feynman)
I've read all his books plus I have the Feynman Lectures On Physics, which I highly recommend, 135 dollars hard cover, worth every penny, but if you don't understand math very well it could be hard to comprehend, a lot of equations for starters, plus I attend a lot of lectures at Fermilab which really helps in the understanding of quantum physics, and you get to talk to a lot of interesting people.
What an awesome human being! It must have been something to know him on a personal or professional level! Thank you for your contributions to man kinds understanding of the universe!
I looover your passion for my main man of Physics: Richard Fyneman! What a brilliant piece. In an ideal world, I'd be his wife! We'd do lot's of mathematics together and physics of course! I'm glad he did many video lectures, intervies and wrote the most amazing books. Keep up your great work. :D
I've used the opening 2 minutes of this video many dozens of times to introduce the topic of 'particles'/'kinetic theory' to my physics high school classes. I'm about to do it again today. Thank you for such a great video - it piques the minds of students about kinetic theory, and gives them a desire to know more about Feynman and other physicists.
I read his books many years ago and was amazed that he was so human. He liked the Carnaval in Brazil, also enjoyed lock picking and safe cracking. I guess QED was just another hobby for this great mind.
I studied Richard Feynman's speech "There's more room at the bottom" for my MEMS class. And watch a few lectures of his, he is a,great lecturer he puts his talks in detail with great analogies.
I'm honestly bummed that I never really learned about Richard Feynman when I was growing up, so now, should I ever have any, I'm going to be sure to introduce my children to the wonderful tale that is this man.
I think Feynman and Dennis McKenna have something in common. They have a vocal quality that just makes whatever they are saying, extremely interesting along with focusing your attention. Both could read phone books and I would have a smile on my face while I'm listening.
My Uncle Abe Bader was Feynman's high school physics teacher. I remember hearing him tell my father about a brilliant student he had taught, who could understand more physics in a weekend than he could understand in an entire summer. He mentioned that he had lent this brilliant student advanced books to study. I was a kid when I heard this story, and I didn't catch the name of who he was talking about. But the story stuck with me because of the idea that there could be someone that brilliant It was only when Feynman died, and my uncle had also died, that I found out, all those years ago, my uncle had been talking about Feynman.
+Ayesha Ahmed You're welcome. I became interested in Feynman from programs like NOVA which was on PBS, and other interviews I saw through the years. I grew up not that far from Brooklyn,NYC, and his thick Brooklyn accent is very familiar to me, more a product of his generation than the way people talk now. . It makes him sound very "down to Earth" which, apparently, he was.
Very cool.
nidurnevets jhfgcjhjf
My father was his garbage man. Lmfao
👍👍👍👍👍👍👍
"He had just written out the hardest math of the century, in a picture."
...then a smiling Feynman comes in on the bongos.
That cracked me up. (;
Feynman Lives!
me toooo..... ;)
RIMSHOT! Well done.
I met Richard Feynman back at Caltech around 1980 or so -- he was a dinner guest at my student house and he shared all sorts of anecdotes about Los Alamos and helping to defend a strip club that the city of Pasadena was trying to shut down, and so on. He even taught an informal class on safe-cracking while I was there (I didn't take advantage of it).
He loved the students so much that he participated in the various theater events usually playing the bongos. And even back then, he taught Freshman and Sophomore Physics -- unfortunately I missed him by one year (I was a Freshman in a year when he was teaching Sophomore physics, and vice versa). I was not a great physics student, but I still wish I could have taken his classes. He had a really great sense of humor and everyone really loved him there. I feel very lucky for the brief time our house got to spend with him.
nice
Haldurson That's amazing! he seemed like such a fantastic person! I wish I had the opportunity to met him
He was such a great man! You are so lucky to have met him, interacted with him! I would give my right arm to meet him! :)
Haldurson, the annotated transcripts of his lectures on physics are available as a series of books, also his lectures have been televised and they have been made available for free, so you can watch his lectures for free. Amazing stuff.
I have no idea. If he described the location (which is possible), I don't remember. This was around 1980 or so. I remember the evening when he was our dinner guest, because it was a highlight of my time there. But I can't recall too many more details other than what I mentioned. Also, I haven't been back to Pasadena since 1983, which is when I graduated. And I never visited any strip clubs back then.
I was lucky enough to have taken twp physics classes from him.
MOST AMAZING TEACHER EVER!
sussy baka comment
That is awesome
Richard Feynman has long been my favorite scientist. His enthusiasm and curiosity and love of life instantly endeared him to me. I too wish I could have met him.
Javaman92 I am an Indian. One of my profs at a university while doing postdoc at US struggled to meet him (by then he had won Nobel Prize). In the age when there was no internet they managed to find his house. They travelled to his house by car riding it for a day, reached and found gates closed with a sign indicating to beware of dogs. These people couldn't find anyone at the gates and decided to climb the gate to enter his house because they couldn't afford to go back after travelling for a day to meet him. Just as they entered his dogs welcomed them, hearing this Feynman came and opened the door to his house to let my prof and his friend to come in. He was not at all scared to see these guys trespass his property, he was infact very happy to meet them as his fame had made him confined to a small place. He made them sit had a nice chat over coffee, and credited all his achievements to Paul Dirac.
I recently read a letter he wrote to his first wife and childhood sweetheart a year after she died of TB. It's one of the most moving and heartbreaking things I have ever read. He was a pretty special man with the mind of a scientist and the soul of an artist. A rare combination.
what is the soul of an artist?
Please share the letter
@@katehamilton7240one that can imagine new combination of old ideas.
You and your brother have given the rest of us an amazing gift. Through your own insights, through the experts you find or that flock to you, through simple speech and diagrams, you have become two more great explainers. The list of things you teach us grows by the day. I am so lucky to know about Crash Course and Sci Show. And grateful.
Yes!!! ^^ Beautifully put Bradley Burns...
You took the words outta my mouth.
Bradley Burns yes, and while sharing this great information, they are very funny and include enough humor and character to make it not seem like a textbook is being shoved down your throat. The graphics help explain and elaborate points, as well as helping exclaim important parts.
Absolutely! You guys are brilliant in your own right, I'd love to meet you all someday!
Who is Hank's brother?
So I watched this video when it was originally posted and found Feynman interesting. Since then I've probably watched every video on Feynman on youtube and can't get enough listening to him. Just wanted to thank you for introducing Feynman to me, as it's brought a lot of joy to this fan of science!
If you haven’t already try listening to his lecture recordings on the Feynman website
You should read "Surely You're Joking Mr Feynman"
You should know about another scientist of this genre, Gamao
Having studied physics, studied particle physics and doing the math involved in Feynman diagrams all the praise of his intelligence is well deserved. Look up re-normalization, that's how he solved the problem about infinite possibilities in the checkers board analogy. Also turned out to be super useful in theoretical pure math so he was a double boss there. You know, just strolling down the street solving the biggest physics problem of the day with pictures and at the same time creating a new tool for mathematicians that they didn't even know they wanted or needed. Like a bawse.
I'm currently studying Quantum Field Theory (currently browsing UA-cam for "inspiration" for studying for the test) and man, how he managed to come up with the horrible yet genious mess that is renormalization is completely beyond me. Like, "We've got a bunch of annoying infinities here, let's rewrite them in terms of other infinities so that everything infinite cancels, our previous unknown parameters turn into ones we can actually meassure, and obtain small corrections that makes this theory describe reality to an almost absurd degree of certainty".
+simonO712 the way you just laid it out made sense, different infinities are different sizes so reorganizing them into groups that cancel out make sense!
wasn't renormalisation groups a contribtion of gell-mann?
+MrDpsc Possibly the same discovery by different people unknown to each other.
Ryan Lacroix
except they worked together
I have a cute shirt that has a bongo drum with a Feynman diagram shooting out of it, no one has gotten it yet but i still think it's adorable
Genessa B leave a link! I’ll buy one :)))
This?
teespring.com/shop/feynmanhoodi#pid=212&cid=5822&sid=front
I'm jealous.
Please leave a link! I’d love to buy one :)
@@HopeDiary. unfortunately it was just like a red bubble design or something, sorry!
Leaving notes making physicists think their research has been stolen by spies.. Lololololololololol.. The best!
+Nikhil Waiker It's even better and more funny than you think - he cold cracked his colleague's safes which contained all the details to the nuclear bomb (the most powerful national secret of all time) and left him cryptic notes in each one. He found the last note first, which read, "This one was easier to open than the others..." at which point all the blood drained out of the man's face. Feynman was there of course, under a false premise to get him to open the safes so that he could see his reaction! Hahahaha that has to be the greatest prank ever played by any one ever hahaha.
The irony is that it was actually stolen by spies.
bearcb really? when?
Nikhil Waiker
The Soviet Union spied Project Manhattan, which allowed them to build a bomb just 4 years later. The couple Julius and Ethel Rosemberg got electric chair for passing secrets, but they were just couriers. The real spy was german-born physicist Klaus Fuchs, who worked on the project. A British citizen, Fuchs got 17 years in jail, but was not tried for treason, because he spied for an allied country (USSR at WWII time). Hats off to British justice of that time, but that would hardly happen nowadays ...
You gotta hear the whole story. And many other stories. Feynman was super brilliant and super hilarious.
Several books, or search the net. You won't be disappointed.
"I'd hate to die twice. It's so boring."
haha
hold my mead
Legendary.
Thank you for making this.
I was fortunate enough to have taken two undergraduate-level physics courses (acoustics and thermodynamics; relativity and quantum mechanics) personally taught by Feynman, when my employer brought him in to teach continuing education classes. He was an amazing character, and I had the privilege of having a number of conversations, getting my butt kicked in a philosophical argument about the nature of quarks (he called them "partons"), and striking up a minor friendship with him.
He was the best teacher I ever had and his influence in shaping my thought processes persists to this day.
One of the most surreal and bizarre moments of my life was sitting in a class where he was teaching the rules for constructing what he called "silly pictures".
We call them "Feynman diagrams".
On another occasion I heard him utter "Anyone who claims to understand any of this hasn't given it enough thought." which was his paraphrase of Bohr's famous comment.
I miss him.
When I was 7-years-old I was told, for the first time, that the whole world was made out of these little tiny solar systems called atoms (yes, I know atoms don't look like solar systems, in the second grade I was taught they do). It blew my mind and I spent the rest of the day squinting really closely at various objects, trying to see the atoms. That's how I feel whenever I watch Feynman's lectures. I often times watch videos of him when I'm feeling unmotivated in my studies, he reminds me why I'm getting a degree in mathematics (which, even to a math nerd, can feel boring at times).
How old are you now?
I watched a biography on Feynman years ago and it really struck a chord with me. The way he was devastated after his research ended up being used on a civilian population (twice) & his subsequent cathartic journey through his soul which led him to the throat singing monks of Touvre, and bongo playing; simple things. Peaceful things. I would have also liked to have gotten to know him. R.I.P.
Math In strip clubs >> math in the library
@ninjarawr21 it's a joke, buddy. Or are you not intelligent enough to understand that.?
@ninjarawr21 no, i understand. However (==) would imply that they are equal. Which they aren't.
@ninjarawr21 right, a comparison to check whether they are equal....
Again, I get what you are saying. I'm just saying you ruined the joke.
@ninjarawr21 you didn't make a counter argument. You dismissed my argument & just made an off comment about something that has no relation to the conversation....
It's literally an equal operator. It would return as true if the statement is equal.
This, however, is saying that one this is better than another. So how does it make any sense to use (==).?
Also, he didn't mean (>>) in a programming sense. That just a shift operator. It would make no sense in this situation.
@ninjarawr21 you are still dismissing me. I'm saying that (==) doesn't make sense. I know exactly what it means & so do you. Even if we didn't, anyone can Google it and realize that it makes no sense.
Yet you refuse to admit you ruined the joke & are using the defense of "you just don't get it". I remember someone using that same defense to justify tweeting "covfefe"..
Feynman was amazing. His pure enthusiasm was completely infectious.
Everyone, I repeat, everyone should read "Surely you're joking, Mr. Feynman!". It's a sort of anecdotal autobiography of Feynman, which is more about his funny experiences and view on life than any hardcore physics.
Totally
I read that book as a teenager and came to admire Feynman. I totally agree!
When I taught physics, a student gifted me that book, and it was a great read. One of my favorite gifts ever given to me.
To be clear, it’s more of a collection of stories based on audio recordings and basically ghost written by Ralph Leighton
What impressed me most was that he never stopped being curious.
I couldn't agree more with your assessment of this wacky and wonderful human being, a true delight!!
totally.
My friend was lucky enough to study at Caltech in 1965 when Feynman taught the intro physics course which later became the Feynman Lectures. He said it was the best experience of his life.
"i don't know why we make these videos when feynman did it all already" -- how i feel as a science journalist
Richard Feynman's enthusiasm was something else. Watching videos of him talking to students, I just wish I had been there to see him in person. He was a bit like Les Paul, the guitar player and designer, he didn't have an off switch. He just carried on, bringing people along with the sheer force of his personality.
You have the knack of explaining this stuff as if you’re just like me, you understand the jist of the subject at hand you merely fell asleep half an hour ago & need a nudge in the right direction.
The Green brothers are the best example of science & history educators... we need more .... Thank you!!!!!
I wholeheartedly agree with this assessment of Mr. Feynman and recommend reading his autobiographical book "Surely you're joking mr. feyman" it's an amazing and fun adventure of a book and a glimpse into a playful and brilliant mind.
Captured in several ways what I consider the spirit of the man. Thank you. I too in a way miss never having had the opportunity to actually have know him. One of my favorites (there are many) was what I believe was his take on anti-gravity devices, "You're sitting in one." Or maybe that was someone else, still it embodies his joy at seeing things a little differently than most of us might. The simple joy in just questioning why any particular thing might happen and/or be seen as it is and/or does.
+John Scheuer That was indeed Richard Feynman who said that. It was at one of his Esalen lectures while talking about what is possible to do in physics being constrained by what is possible in reality. One of the audience asked him about building an antigravity device, to which he responded something to the effect of "you are sitting on one, it keeps your ass from falling to the ground."
It's like 1 o'clock in the morning where I am, and I've been watching scishow for 2 hours, and I'm low on sleep, and this video literslly gave me goosebumps and made me cry. Thank you Hank. Thank you, Richard Feynman. For educating the world and being a beautiful, fantastic awesome person.
The bongos get me every time.
The reason I am so inspired by scientists is because it is one of the few professions where the vast majority of people are committed to finding the truth rather than being right or wrong. This rational approach vs an emotional approach to life I have found to be hugely beneficial.
Anyone else catch that at 7:50 the bongo sound bite they use is from an actual recording of Richard Feynman playing the bongos?
Well done SciShow.
Really? I was wondering if that was actually his playing the entire video since they use the thing constantly
The useage in that particulary moment made me roll on floor laughing. Well done, very well done.
+Sphere723 FUCKING BONGOS!!!!!!!!!!!
right bro/sis ua-cam.com/video/qWabhnt91Uc/v-deo.html
My mother took a few lectures from Feynman when she was in graduate school, and said that in retrospect, it was one of the greatest experiences of her life.
Your enthusiasm for the man is contagious.
Great subject, great video.
+Jason Wood The greatest minds will never be able to solve the mystery of a female mind
I know this is so old, but since I just saw it, I have to say that I didn't know there was someone else on earth who felt as I do about Richard Feynman. I've read all his lectures and seen all his video lectures. Truly and amazing man. I too would have liked to have met him. I'm especially sorry since I was around for much of his life, I got married for the second time in 1988 when he died. Without the internet I did not know about him when he was alive. You did a great video and a very nice tribute to a great man.
i am not ashamed to say that i truly love that man, if you read his books and watch his lectures and cant agree i feel for you . He taught himself to remain lucid while directing his own dreams for gods sake.
I could not have described my feelings about a man I've never met, better.
My Dad was Caltech '38. In the 60's and 70's I would attend Caltech Seminar Days with him. Feynman was often a lecturer at these events which were always standing room only. His office door was also something not to be missed, with thesis proposals by future Nobel candidates and bets made, accepted or conceded.
Feynman also, as a lark, broke the code to the Maya pictographs. A real all around Genius. Dan
Well, he loved solving riddles 😁
A womanizing, bongo-playing genius who could explain anything?
That's literally the perfect life for every STEM major in college.
Lavoisier Hobbes So every STEM majors don't have heterosexual women at all?
Hey man, lesbians exist.
I'm sure you could say something nasty about Lavoisier too. After all, he was sentenced to the guillotine. I suppose some things finally caught up to him in that moment... all we can do is be better, and outwardly strive for it too among everyone else, right?
@ninjarawr21 wtf dude? I don't think OP was saying it in a bad way, he must be saying that Feynman would have lots of fun in college
I once read heard someone explain that his lectures were like Chinese food meal, he would explain the entire Universe and everything in it as either matter or energy, and you understood it like he did, like it was child's play, and you were so satisfied. But an hour later, like the meal, you feel empty again and you wonder what you learned.
My Feynman moment was, about 1995 when I was following a good friend, I had not seen in a long while, to his house where I was joining he and his family for dinner and to catch up on things. As I followed Eric from big boulevards in Alta Dena into smaller side streets as we approached his house I got the very palpable feeling of peace and calm. By the time we stopped and I parked in front of his house I was practically overwhelmed by that feeling. I got out of my car and said loudly " What a great neighborhood, I love it here."
I can't remember all of his reply but that last thing he said was "...oh yeah, and that house next door used to belong to some famous Physicist, I can't remem..."
"You mean Richard Feynman!"( I already knew it in m bones)
He couldn't believe I knew that. All I could think to do was walk over and touched the gate handle to at least have something like contact with my mentor and basically favorite human.
Wow
Far Rockaway ?
i have the same feeling... thank you so much for sharing with us.
i wish i could have the honor to meet him, to attend his classes... be one of his bff... :)
i love to watch him on videos over and over again ...the world would be a much better place if he could stay here with us... he is a legend... genius... unforgetable..
“Q.E.D., a theory that had been established but not completely resolved” i really love you guys
Surely, you're joking Mr. Feynman!
I just finished reading this book and it is amazing, 10/10 would recommend
i am about to finish that book , it's awesome !
jop de jong Same Im reading what do you care what others thing right now
I am reading that book right now.
One of the best books I have read
These bongo hits make a video. xD
+
Made me like an add to favourites... the video itself is fantastic too though, don't get me wrong. ;)
Derpy Hooves Thank you. :)
Feynmantage.
Anže Peternel I see what you did there
I recently read "Surely you must be joking" and am now on a mission to discover more about this great man. Thanks for the great video.
Feynman was just awesomesauce. His books and his about him are my favorite scientific biography and history of science books. His "Lost Lecture" is a great example of his teaching complex subjects clearly.
Please please please do an episode on super genius and awesome humble guy John Bardeen, he was the only winner of two prizes in Physics, the transistor in the 50's and then super conducting in the 70's. He wasn't high profile like an Einstein or a Feynman, but he was so low key he would barbeque with his neighbors who knew he did something at the university but had no idea he was the father of the modern age of electronics. Oh please please please!! John Bardeen, John Bardeen John Bardeen! He's my DAD!!
ILL!!
He's my dad too
The Zebra Channel Seriously?
Bardeen did some shit-hot work!
Shockley and Bardeen (and some other dude?) ... the point-contact transistor!
And then BCS Theory.... because of which were can have stuff like MRI machines!
If he's your dad, then you should do the video, yes?
I was a chemistry major at U of IL in the 70’s and recall walking by his office to get a glimpse of a guy who won 2 Nobel Prizes.
I wish I could like this video ten more times! Feynman was the best. He and Sagan have made such a wonderful contribution to science by bringing complex ideas to the laymen in interesting and exciting ways.
"... because i find it delightful."
KICK THE TABLE!
PLAY THE BONGO!
I know this is old and might never be seen. You have been a great explainer. Wish you the best.
I've always thought that it would be so cool to have Richard Feynman as a friend or teacher, too!
Nice lecture on Feynman, though. People might also be curious to know he won the Putnam Award in math in college, the contest prize John Nash longed to win but could not; and Nash was a math major, while Feynman was a physics major. Also, Feynman's unprecedented double perfect scores in the math & physics GRE before going to Princeton...
the guy sounds fantastic. doing math in a strip club. Now that's cool in my book. And pranking, just goes to show that even great thinkers can a have a sense of humor and still be human.
I did advanced calculus in a Denny's once....does that count?
Cannon G: Not quite. While both strip clubs and Denny's score unusually high on the desperation and hopelessness index, the latter beats out the former by the slimmest of margins.
@Ron Maimon: Yet another reason why strip joints are better than Denny's, by any metric you care to use.
Years ago when I was a kid I read a book on the development of the Manhattan Project (yes I was and still am a geek). In it they had a section on the unique security challenges of dealing with civilian scientists. They said that one in particular would open safes if they had a key he needed. His wife would send letters on a sheet of aluminum foil with holes in it, or a letter written on the back of a jigsaw puzzle, disassembled. Decades later I would find out it was Feynman.
One of my favorite SciShow episodes about one of my favorite people. Thanks Hank.
I went to his grave site in Altadena today. Since then, I fell in love and realized how much his work has impacted the world.
I was introduced to Richard Feynman through a book one of my uncles sent me. The book was, "Surely You're Joking, Mr. Feynman," sent to me about the time Feynman died. I suppose that my love of science was well-known to my extended family, so it wasn't too odd that my uncle mailed me the book, with a note saying that he thought I would enjoy it.
The first genius troll
Best troll of the world XD
Also i think there is something behind doing math in stript clubs i should look into that ;)
Best. Last words. Ever.
The almost final words of writer Roald Dahl, were "You know, I'm not frightened. It's just that I will miss you all so much" to his family. After appearing to fall unconscious the nurse then injected him with morphine to ease his passing and he said his actual last words: “Ow, fuck!”
No one need to be scared of dying. We are really part of an infinite universe. It never ends. So your atoms will eventually form another conscienceless. And as the time between these consciencnesses isnt realised. As soon as you die, you will live again.... in another curious, but totally different mind. Sounds crazy, but in an infinite world, can only be true.
Timothy Figgis Prevalent science tells us that we cannot possibly know if the universe is quite infinite or not. Not yet, anyway. As nice as your idea is, it's not exactly fact. Also, have you considered that the universe may have an end? Therefore, you have to take all of the atoms in your body and multiply them by the chance of them coming together to compose another conscious being. This is extremely unlikely and, moreover, it probably wouldn't be you, anyway. If someone were to break down all of your atoms and resemble them, is it really still you? Your idea is a nice one but don't act like it is fact and certainly don't precede it with "No one need be scared of dying". That's kind of ridiculous.
Hey Tim ever heard of expanding universe?We know that the universe has an end because it's growing but into what...we don't know we might be a growing piece of minutely small energy reaching out in a larger universe unlikely but fun to play with the thought. I like to call this hypothesis the 'who theory' named after dr Seuss' make believe but infinitely small Whoville wich to the inhabitants is a huge universe.
I want my last words to be "That's what she said".
SciShow is worth a thousand Feynmans of understandable and interesting explanations of nature and widespread exposure of science to the public.
Totally AGREE! I am crazy about Feynman too!
Learned about him via my obsession with Oppenheimer and the Manhattan Project...and am now nuts about both. Glad he lived long enough to make a big difference on the Rogers Commission and resolving/explaining the Challenger disaster. If I had a time machine, I'd definitely want to hang out with Richard Feynman a lot!
Great episode.
But it is worth noting that Feynman was lead by a General friend of his (iirc) to discover that the o-ring was the problem that caused the crash, because the engineer who made the discovery couldn't disclose it because politics.
This guy is my hero. Richard Feynman was an incredible man.
Back in the 80's, my dad roomed in apartment with Carl Feynman in Cambridge while Carl went to MIT. I'm pretty sure my dad got to meet Richard Feynman once or twice too. Learning more about this guy is really interesting.
I love this man!!! His autobiography "surely you can't be serious mr feyman?" is amazing!!! I highly recommend it!!
Professor Feynman is also a genius to reckon with in his own right, his uniqueness is his ability and emphasis on breaking things down to simple form and he emphasis on that!
I'm still amazed why most world innovators and great minds are mathemticians and I hope I can get there too as a Mathematician!
Thanks for this bro!
Richard Feynman has long been one of my personal heroes. What a great man.
"Shut up and calculate"
-Richard Feynman
He did not said that
it was not in a direct published work, but this was supposedly what he told his students when they asked him about subjects which scientists did not fully understand.
oh, wow! I'm mistaken. it's a quote often misattributed to Feynman
yeah, dont look like something he would say
It's a paraphrasing, but he did essentially say that. Look up his double slit experiment lecture. I wouldn't be surprised if he said it exactly off-record.
Feynman was truly a giant of science and a wonderful human being.
I was one year too early (having skipped a grade) for the Feynman lectures on physics. I did attend one and his Physics X seminars. I watched him hold forth at the student hall with a great crowd of students and others. He was amazing in person and loved explaining things. I don't know whether Feynman's reputation had anything to do with it, but every Caltech freshman learned how to pick locks. That knowledge helped me once when I was a postdoctoral fellow. It's also the basis for an anecdote when I was a graduate student at Columbia. He was amazing in being smart and humble, weird and approachable. Losing him was a blow to humanity.
I love those random bongo sequences! Too funny... Feynman, in all do respect to the other great minds of the world, gives me the utmost aspiration for wanting to know more about this universe and everything in it! I really wish I could have met him...
"I'd hate to die twice. It is so boring."
- Richard Feynman
Will you please do an episode on Karl Friedrich Gauss, the German mathematician? That would be awesome
looloolalaable hell yea the true master alongside euler, cauchy an d riemann
He was a genius, a great teacher and a wonderful character.
It's good to see you so passionate about him, Hank.
Thats what i like about him most he can actually give you what he is trying to teach in a clear way
This Episode is Awesome!!!! Thanks Scishow!!
The Gleck biography is really really amazing. His correspondance with his first wife is heartbreaking and really romantic.
They say, if you can't explain it, you don't understand it well enough.
Daaloul Chiheb you can also start of by watching it(the feynman lectures on physics volume 1) and that was Feynman who said , if you can't explain it, you don't understand it...
I'm sure you will enjoy the lectures, they are very informative as well as entertaining. You should get a copy of (The Pleasure of finding things out, The best short works of Richard P.Feynman)
I've read all his books plus I have the Feynman Lectures On Physics, which I highly recommend, 135 dollars hard cover, worth every penny, but if you don't understand math very well it could be hard to comprehend, a lot of equations for starters, plus I attend a lot of lectures at Fermilab which really helps in the understanding of quantum physics, and you get to talk to a lot of interesting people.
What if the audience only speaks in a dead tongue and there are no translators?
U have an idea just haven't concluded it. To understand well is to have an absolute answer
When I'm overwhelmed with my studies, I often watch this video as inspiration. Thank you, SciShow.
Hank, thanks for following in Feynman's footsteps. Both of you are definitely people to aspire to.
What an awesome human being! It must have been something to know him on a personal or professional level! Thank you for your contributions to man kinds understanding of the universe!
Richard Feynman was like the coolest person ever!!!
I always thought I was weird until I realized I have the same motivations as this guy. I hope one day I can be as smart as him :)
GREAT episode. He deserves every bit of your praise. Feynman was one rad guy.
I like the way Feynman explained physics. Even in his books, it seemed like he is speaking to us directly.
That was great. I'd like to see a SciShow on Von Neumann as well.
I looover your passion for my main man of Physics: Richard Fyneman! What a brilliant piece.
In an ideal world, I'd be his wife! We'd do lot's of mathematics together and physics of course! I'm glad he did many video lectures, intervies and wrote the most amazing books.
Keep up your great work. :D
Richard Feynman was a party, prank and math king in that order.
Stephan Vaudiau Indeed.
I've used the opening 2 minutes of this video many dozens of times to introduce the topic of 'particles'/'kinetic theory' to my physics high school classes. I'm about to do it again today. Thank you for such a great video - it piques the minds of students about kinetic theory, and gives them a desire to know more about Feynman and other physicists.
We used Feynman's text as a reference when I studied undergraduate physics. It was great!
Great video, especially the bongo gag at 7:43 lol
Feynman, my favorite physicist all the time
when he said abstruse - i thought he was combining abstract and obtuse - turns out it's a real word
I read his books many years ago and was amazed that he was so human. He liked the Carnaval in Brazil, also enjoyed lock picking and safe cracking. I guess QED was just another hobby for this great mind.
I studied Richard Feynman's speech "There's more room at the bottom" for my MEMS class. And watch a few lectures of his, he is a,great lecturer he puts his talks in detail with great analogies.
3:43
if he got Bohr-ed, he'd go aound los alamo
TheRabittGamer ISWYDT!!!!
I'd hate to die twice. It is so Bohr-ing.
I love this guy.
The love that dares not say its name is, in this case, PHYSICS. Hank, I love you.
lol so is hank the older man or the younger boy lol..... coz cute as he is-ish hes older then me lol
Ri dan I'm afraid to ask, but what are you talking about?
Ralph Dratman lol u quoted Alfred bruce Douglas a gay poet of the late 1800s.
Ri dan Intentionally. Just for fun.
'''''''''''
Ralph Dratman lol ;)
creepy lol
I'm honestly bummed that I never really learned about Richard Feynman when I was growing up, so now, should I ever have any, I'm going to be sure to introduce my children to the wonderful tale that is this man.
I think Feynman and Dennis McKenna have something in common. They have a vocal quality that just makes whatever they are saying, extremely interesting along with focusing your attention. Both could read phone books and I would have a smile on my face while I'm listening.