Richard Feynman

May 11, 1918 – February 15, 1988

“Nobody ever figures out what life is all about, and it doesn't matter. Explore the world. Nearly everything is really interesting if you go into it deeply enough.”

feynman

Richart Phillips Feynman was American theoretical physicist who was widely regarded as the most brilliant, influential, and iconoclastic figure in his field in the post-World War II era.

Timeline

  • 1918 May 11th - Born in New York City.
  • 1939 Received - B.S. from MIT and was named a Putnam Fellow.
  • 1942 to 1945 - Worked on the Manhattan Project at Los Alamos and Oak Ridge.
  • 1945 to 1950 - Followed Hans Bethe to Cornell University where he joined the physics department and taught theoretical physics.
  • 1950 - Joined the faculty in the physics department at Caltech. Feynman conducted his best work here in areas such as quantum electrodynamics and the physics of superfluidity.
  • 1965 - Received the Nobel Prize in Physics for work in quantum electrodynamics, along with colleagues Julian Schwinger and Shinichiro Tomonaga.
  • 1979 - Received the National Medal of Science award.
  • 1986 - Consulted for the Rogers Commission during the investigation of the Challenger space disaster.
  • 1988 Feb 15th - Died in Los Angeles, California.

Books

  1. "Surely You’re Joking, Mr Feynman!” Adventures Of A Curious Character
  2. The Pleasure Of Finding Things Out
  3. The Character Of Physical Law
  4. “What Do You Care What Other People Think?” Further Adventures Of A Curious Character
  5. QED: The Strange Theory Of Light and Matter
  6. Feynman Lectures on Physics Volule 1
  7. Feynman Lectures on Physics Volume 2
  8. Feynman Lectures on Physics Volume 3

Quotes

“I... a universe of atoms, an atom in the universe.”

“Study hard what interests you the most in the most undisciplined, irreverent and original manner possible.”

“You have no responsibility to live up to what other people think you ought to accomplish. I have no responsibility to be like they expect me to be. It's their mistake, not my failing.”

“I learned very early the difference between knowing the name of something and knowing something.”

“Fall in love with some activity, and do it! Nobody ever figures out what life is all about, and it doesn't matter. Explore the world. Nearly everything is really interesting if you go into it deeply enough. Work as hard and as much as you want to on the things you like to do the best. Don't think about what you want to be, but what you want to do. Keep up some kind of a minimum with other things so that society doesn't stop you from doing anything at all.”

If you want to know more about Richard Feynman here's link to his Wikipedia page.

If you like physics and natural science I recommend you to read Feynman lectures web edition. It's free.