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Summary: All about Feynman
Review: Great book. I finished it in 2 days. Gives you a perception of what Feynman is like and a chance to have a glimpse of his life. Overall its a good book. 5 stars!
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Summary: We should ALL care what RPF thinks!
Review: Here is another book of wonderful biographical anecdotes of one of the most intriguing scientists who has ever lived. However, those who are looking for merely a continuing edition of the tremendously popular (not to mention hilarious!) SURELY YOU'RE JOKING MR. FEYNMAN should take note: this present work does not qualify as that.To be sure, there are a handful of chapters which would fit right into SYJMF. However, 2 major sections cover some exceptionally serious topics which are hardly material for Feynman's typical humor. One section details his love for his first wife as well as her untimely terminal illness. The other covers his work on the commission to disinter the technical problems that led to the explosion of the Space Shuttle CHALLENGER in 1986. These major sections encompass roughly 3/4 of the book. The chapter on his wife's suffering is especially poignant and touched me very deeply. Feynman was a man whose love and compassion matched his intellect. I could not but feel empathy and admiration for the way he took care of his bride, knowing all along that she would not live long. His decision to be straight with her about her condition, instead of feeding her some fairy-tale story about how she had a good chance of recovery, was both painful and edifying to read. The section on the CHALLENGER goes into great detail on everything that went wrong that fateful day in '86 as the nation watched the disaster on TV. To this day, I have not seen a television documentary cover this story as I think it should be covered. I recently saw a special on the CHALLENGER on the DISCOVERY channel. It did an excellent job of focusing on how the engineers at THIOKOL were screaming at NASA not to launch, well into the wee hours of the morning of the catastrophe. However, what the special omitted was the cover-up and closing-of-ranks that NASA did AFTER the accident. To me, NASA's behavior after the fact was even more reprehensible than its carelessness before the launch. It was for the reason of politics that then-president Ronald Reagan personally requested that Feynman be on-board the investigation committee [a committee that also included the astronauts Neil Armstrong and Sally Ride, among others]. Reagan knew that Feynman would get to the bottom of the matter (which he did) and that Feynman did not care for the politics of making NASA "look good" (which he didn't). With this in mind, even people who are not interested in Richard Feynman, but are curious about what happened to the CHALLENGER would gain much by reading this book. Feynman explains his thorough, logical methodology and how it rubbed many people the wrong way. His straight-forward and honest disclosures of NASA's gerrymandering created much animosity between himself and NASA exec William Rogers (who, it seems, was more interested in NASA's image than getting to the heart of the matter). For those who are interested in further reading on the CHALLENGER topic, I would recommend NO ORDINARY GENIUS: THE ILLUSTRATED FEYNMAN ... For Feynman enthusiasts, this book is vintage Feynman - a can't miss. As a bonus, the center of the book has photographs from his life, as well as some of his sketches. The book is equally recommended for people who wonder about what "really" happened to the CHALLENGER, and why it happened. NASA aficionados may be disappointed in the work as it exposes (truthfully) all of the fudge-factors, apathy for safety issues and faulty reasoning NASA used with the efficacy of launching CHALLENGER on time and preserving its positive image after the fact.
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Summary: What a Great Character!!!
Review: I don't usually read biographies, but this book was wonderful! Full of fun and interesting antecdotes about one of the most intelligent and fun people of the 20th century! No matter where your primary interests lie, you will definitely enjoy this book. I've lent it to several of my co-workers and now they're Feyman Fans as well!
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Summary: Love, Science, Travel, and Life: A Brilliant Perspective
Review: I had heard of Richard Feynman a few years back and never had the time to read any of his writings. I picked this book up on a whim to read on a flight to New York and since reading "What Do You Care What Other People Think?" I have picked up many of his books. His writing style is direct and should be easy to understand for almost all readers. I would suggest to readers that they start with "Surely You're Joking, Mr. Feynman!" but that is not necessary. If you are a lover of science, travel, or reading about one mans views on life this is the perfect book to read.
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Summary: No diminishing marginal returns here !
Review: I just can't get enough of this guy !
Still in the spirit of the first book 'Surely you're joking', but a slightly more serious follow up with some repetitions. Here the reader sees Feynmann dealing with the love of his life- his first wife Arline, the Nobel prize and much later the investigation into the Challenger tragedy. This time the hero is better developed and we get to see a more human side of Mr Feynmann in addition to the curious character. Given that he is no longer with us, this book will be treasured as much as the first. Readers unfamilar with the first book will still be able to enjoy the adventures of this remarkable scientist.
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Summary: an insightful book
Review: I like this book a little better than "SYJ"--I certainly do also like "SYJ". However, the best thing I like about Feynman is that he talked so honestly about himself. Hardly any other celebrity would want do that. In "SYJ", he is real, not afraid to talk about his adventures or even sex. But you still can tell that in that book he was like a naughty boy, sometimes deliberately created "troubles" and generated adventures. In this book, he became more genuine, he used a very sincere voice to focus on how he see and value things -- love (2nd chap.), life, science (last chap.)... It almost make me have a crush on him - although he is dead. What do I care what you think about my last remark? :)
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Summary: Mr. Feynman
Review: I read this book for a high school physics class. I really ended up reading it because it was ine of the few books that my dad had in his personal library. (I didn't feel like going OUT and getting a book) It actually turned out to be an interesting book. It had lots of funny parts, along with some informative sections about science "things". I found it to be a good book, not as good as something that I would read for leasuire, but it's a book that I'm glad I read.
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Summary: It will change your attitude.
Review: If you have read other written works by Feynman, you will enjoy this set of musings and stories. His premise is a great one, and well taken to heart. In this book, he also details his loving and somewhat unorthadox relationship with his wife during his years at Los Alamos. A quick, fun, worthwhile read.
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Summary: Great companion to Surely You Must Be Joking
Review: If you've read Surely You Must Be Joking, Mr. Feynman and found it enjoyable, I'd recommend picking up What do YOU care what other people think? If you haven't read SYMBJ, I would recommend reading it first.
This book has an easy flow and is made enjoyable by an approachable protagonist whose science mind and everyday eagerness is rewarding and inspiring.
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Summary: This book continues the love story begun in "Surely You're..
Review: Joking, Mr. Feynman." The love story of his first marriage; the love story which relates to the rest of his life. The stories he wrote in "Surely" were well polished, short and to the point, very much as he conveyed his pursuit of simpler presentations of the rudiments of physics. This book, undoubtably disrupted by the accelerating decline of his health, is less polished, but is excellent when he describes his part in the determination of the Challenger disaster. [At one point he exclaims that the Challenger hearings are 'killing me'... speeding his death.] His further descriptions of his life with his first wife are also a wonderful and very human essay. Feynman, with one exception, is the prime model of how a human being should approach life in its amazing totality. The ideas in this book are as much a part of that model as "Surely" and his "Introduction to Physics." The title, by the way, was taken from words his first wife spoke about sixty years ago. Feynman had been placed in a situation where his presentation of himself - not his ideas - was of critical importance. His first wife, using those words, made it possible for him to ignore the presentation and pursue the ideas. This book is about love of life, as are all his books.
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