A treasure-trove of illuminating and entertaining quotations from
beloved physicist Richard P. Feynman
"Some people say, 'How can you live without knowing?' I do not know what
they mean. I always live without knowing. That is easy. How you get to
know is what I want to know."--Richard P. Feynman
Nobel Prize-winning physicist Richard P. Feynman (1918-88) was that
rarest of creatures--a towering scientific genius who could make himself
understood by anyone and who became as famous for the wit and wisdom of
his popular lectures and writings as for his fundamental contributions
to science. The Quotable Feynman is a treasure-trove of this revered
and beloved scientist's most profound, provocative, humorous, and
memorable quotations on a wide range of subjects.
Carefully selected by Richard Feynman's daughter, Michelle Feynman, from
his spoken and written legacy, including interviews, lectures, letters,
articles, and books, the quotations are arranged under two dozen
topics--from art, childhood, discovery, family, imagination, and humor
to mathematics, politics, science, religion, and uncertainty. These
brief passages--about 500 in all--vividly demonstrate Feynman's
astonishing yet playful intelligence, and his almost constitutional
inability to be anything other than unconventional, engaging, and
inspiring. The result is a unique, illuminating, and enjoyable portrait
of Feynman's life and thought that will be cherished by his fans at the
same time that it provides an ideal introduction to Feynman for readers
new to this intriguing and important thinker.
The book features a foreword in which physicist Brian Cox pays tribute
to Feynman and describes how his words reveal his particular genius, a
piece in which cellist Yo-Yo Ma shares his memories of Feynman and
reflects on his enduring appeal, and a personal preface by Michelle
Feynman. It also includes some previously unpublished quotations, a
chronology of Richard Feynman's life, some twenty photos of Feynman, and
a section of memorable quotations about Feynman from other notable
figures.
Features:
- Approximately 500 quotations, some of them previously unpublished,
arranged by topic
- A foreword by Brian Cox, reflections by Yo-Yo Ma, and a preface by
Michelle Feynman
- A chronology of Feynman's life
- Some twenty photos of Feynman
- A section of quotations about Feynman from other notable figures
Some notable quotations of Richard P. Feynman:
- "The thing that doesn't fit is the most interesting."
- "Thinking is nothing but talking to yourself inside."
- "It is wonderful if you can find something you love to do in your
youth which is big enough to sustain your interest through all your
adult life. Because, whatever it is, if you do it well enough (and you
will, if you truly love it), people will pay you to do what you want
to do anyway."
- "I'd hate to die twice. It's so boring."
