The Best Books on: Richard Feynman
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Hi there!
As a writer I get a lot of milage from certain topics. Among these are Einstein, Turing, quantum theory, game theory and, Richard P. Feynman. Feynman is essentially beloved by everyone. He embodies that rare researcher who is also an excellent communicator. There are, of course, plenty of excellent first-rate researchers and communicators, but he was both. He won the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1965, yet is today best remembered as an excellent teacher of elementary physics. What does that say?
Privatdozent essays on Feynman (as of 2021) include:
When Feynman met Dirac, April 5th 2021
Oppenheimer’s Letter of Recommendation for Richard Feynman (1943), May 22nd 2021
Richard Feynman’s First Lecture, April 23rd 2021
Richard Feynman’s Advice to a Young Stephen Wolfram (1985), May 3rd 2021
The following are the books I would acquire if I wanted to absorb the essence of Richard Feynman’s life, person and career as throuroughly and enjoyably as possible.
1. The Beat of a Different Drum: The Life and Science of Richard Feynman (1994)
by Jagdish Mehra
At 680 pages, The Beat of a Different Drum is in my opinion the first (and perhaps only) book about Feynman’s life most people will ever want or need. The table of contents is available here for those interested. The book is wonderfully detailed in its narration of both Feynman’s personal life and his scientific career. My #1 resource when researching aspects about Feynman and the history of quantum electrodynamics.
Type: Narrative | Years: 1918-88 | Pages: 680 | Price: $15.95
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2. Genius. The Life and Science of Richard Feynman (1992)
by James Gleick
Gleick’s book is shorter than Mehra’s, so for the casual reader it’s certainly a more efficient read. It contains the broad strokes of Feynman’s life, written in a very pleasant tone with more emphasis on the person rather than the ideas and work. If you’re more interested in Feynman the person, get this book first.
(Psst: I found a PDF of the entire book here!). Buy it if you read it.
Type: Narrative | Years: 1918-88 | Pages: 489 |Price: $11.99
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3. “Surely, You’re Joking, Mr. Feynman” (1985)
by Richard P. Feynman
This is the book most people will tell you to buy about Feynman’s life and career. As he wrote it himself, I of course see their point. In his familiar tone, Feynman writes about his life from a first-person perspective, giving unique memories and takes which of course are incredible valueable to the canon. For myself, however, I still prefer Mehra’s narrative and voice. It’s a matter of personal preference.
Type: Autobiography | Years: 1918-85 | Pages: 400 | Price: $13.79
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4. Richard Feynman: A Life in Science (1997)
by John and Mary Gribbin
This is a much shorter book which narrates Feynman’s life in a similar vain as Gleick, albeit with much less detail. It’s very accessible, and if you’re not yet comfortable with scientific jargon and references, this might just be your best entry into reading about Richard P. Feynman. I never actually read the whole thing (despite its limited length).
Type: Narrative | Years: 1918-88 | Pages: 320 |Price: $9.00
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5. QED and the Men Who Made It (1994)
by Silvan S. Schweber
Although only partly about Feynman per se, this book puts Feynman’s work in context with his peers both contemporary and not. The ‘The men who made it’ subtitle refers to Freeman Dyson, Julian Schwinger and Shin'ichirō Tomonaga in particular. The latter two shared Feynman’s 1965 Nobel for their work on quantum electrodynamics. Dyson was never awarded the Nobel but did the important earlier work of demonstrating the equivalence of Feynman and Schwinger and Tomonaga’s formulations of quantum electrodynamics. Certainly a must have book for those who want to learn everything about QED.
Type: Narrative | Years: 1927-50 | Pages: 784 |Price: $70.68
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Other books
In terms of number of books on his life, person and work, among physicists Feynman is only rivaled by Einstein. Oppenheimer is a fairly distant third. Of the following books, I deeply recommend the first, which is Feynman’s collected letters, edited by his daughter Michelle. The Quantum Labarinth is a fairly recent book about quantum theory, which includes some of Feynman’s work. The other three are by Feynman.
Perfectly Reasonable Deviations from the Beaten Track (2006) edited by Michelle Feynman
The Quantum Labyrinth (2017) by Paul Halbern
QED: The Strange Theory of Life and Matter (1988) by Richard P. Feynman
The Character of Physical Law (1965) by Richard P. Feynman
Elementary Particles and the Laws of Physics (1987) by Richard P. Feynman
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Thank you for reading Privatdozent. I hope you found this useful.
Sincerely,
Jørgen
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