Richard Feynman
Theoretical physicist · 1918–1988
American physicist known for major contributions to quantum electrodynamics and influential approaches to teaching physics.
Richard Feynman was an American theoretical physicist whose work helped shape modern quantum physics. During the Second World War, he worked on the Manhattan Project at Los Alamos, contributing to the development of the first atomic weapons. After the war, he held academic posts at Cornell University and the California Institute of Technology.
Feynman made important contributions to quantum electrodynamics, including the use of graphical methods now known as Feynman diagrams to describe interactions between particles. He shared the 1965 Nobel Prize in Physics with Julian Schwinger and Shin’ichirō Tomonaga for work on the theory of quantum electrodynamics. He was also widely known as a teacher and science communicator, particularly through The Feynman Lectures on Physics and autobiographical books. In 1986, he served on the commission investigating the Space Shuttle Challenger disaster, where his public demonstration helped explain the failure of the shuttle’s O-ring seals.
Quotations
Selected works
A wide-ranging introduction to physics, explaining fundamental principles through lectures on mechanics, electromagnetism, quantum mechanics, and related topics.
An interview exploring Feynman’s scientific curiosity, approach to knowledge, childhood influences, teaching, and reflections on the atomic bomb.
A collection of autobiographical stories about Feynman’s scientific career, travels, experiments, practical jokes, and persistent curiosity about how things work.
An examination of Space Shuttle reliability, safety estimates, engineering practices and organisational decisions following the Challenger disaster.
A collection of autobiographical accounts covering Feynman’s personal life, scientific outlook, and investigation of the Space Shuttle Challenger disaster.
Three lectures examining scientific uncertainty, values, religion, politics, and the wider consequences of applying scientific habits of thought.
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