Richard Feynman's Six Easy Pieces Discussion Led by Scott Hildreth
"But I don't have to know an answer. I don't feel frightened by not knowing things, by being lost in the mysterious universe without having any purpose, which is the way it really is, as far as I can tell, possibly. It doesn't frighten me" - Richard Feynman Essay Questions: Draft Due Monday 3/27; Final due Monday, 4/3
Reading Assignment: Text: Six Easy Pieces. Richard Feynman. Addison Wesley,1995
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Introduction to Richard Feynman
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Tuesday 3/14 |
Atoms:
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"The test of all knowledge if experiment. Experiment is the sole judge of scientific "truth." | |
| Wednesday 3/15 |
The Rules of the Game:
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"We have a habit in writing articles published in scientific journals to make the work as finished as possible, to cover up all the tracks, to not worry about the blind alleys or describe how you had the wrong idea first, and so on. So there isn't any place to publish, in a dignified manner, what you actually did in order to get to do the work." | |
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The Use of Physics:
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"[I]f a thing is not a science, it is not necessarily bad... So, if something is said not be a science, it does not mean that there is something wrong with it; it just means that it is not a science." | |
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Class Date |
Topic |
Chapters/Pages |
Quotes |
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Monday 3/20 |
Energy
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"For those who want some proof that physicists are human, the proof is in the idiocy of all the different units which they use for measuring energy." |
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Tuesday 3/21
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Gravity
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"Nature uses only the longest threads to weave her patterns, so each small piece of her fabric reveals the organization of the entire tapestry." |
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Wednesday
3/22
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Quantum Physics
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"I think that I can safely say that nobody understands quantum mechanics." |
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Thursday
3/23
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Quantum Physics (cont.)
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"This would mean, if it were true, that physics has given up on the problem of trying to predict exactly what will happen in a definite circumstance. Yes! Physics has given up. We do not know how to predict what would happen in a given circumstance..." |
Electronic Resources
Richard
P. Feynman (2002) Feynman Online. Scientific Consulting Services
International.
Richard P. Feynman (1996) School of Mathematics and Statistics, University of St Andrews, Scotland http://www-groups.dcs.st-and.ac.uk/~history/Mathematicians/Feynman.html
Essays by Feynman:
There's Plenty of Room at the Bottom (1959) Talk to the American Physical Society, California Institute of Technology. http://www.zyvex.com/nanotech/feynman.html
Cargo Cult Science (1974) Cal Tech Commencement Speech. http://www.physics.brocku.ca/etc/cargo_cult_science.html
The Role of Doubt in Science (1988) "What Do You Care What Other People Think?: Further Adventures of a Curious Character" by Richard P. Feynman. http://laserstars.org/bio/Feynman.html
What is Science (1966) http://www.fotuva.org/feynman/what_is_science.html
Resources about Physics:
The Standard Model (Sub-atomic Physics & Quantum Mechanics today), from the Stanford Linear Accelerator (SLAC):
- What is a Theory? How does it differ from an hypothesis or model?
- Sample interactions explained.
- How can modern particle physics have applications to daily life?
The Particle Adventure (Lawrence Berkeley Lab's Particle Data Group):
Unseen Force Fields? An analogy...
Last Modified - 3/8/06 - SH