Genius: The Life and Science of Richard Feynman
by James Gleick
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Book Summary Information
Author: James GleickEdition: Paperback
Audio: English (Original Language); English (Unknown); English (Published)
Published: 1993-11-02
ISBN: 0679747044
Number of pages: 560
Publisher: Vintage
Book Reviews of Genius: The Life and Science of Richard Feynman
Book Review: Well written review of Feynman's life and physics
Summary: 5 Stars
As the subtitle of this book states "The Life and Science of Richard Feynman", this book is about both aspects of his life. This is not the book if all you are interested in are the funny stories that Feynman told about his life. Some of these are mentioned, but they are not the focus of the book. If all you want are the funny stories, then stick to "Surely You're Joking, Mr. Feynman" and its sequel "What Do You Care What Other People Think". Gleick provides much more. This book covers his whole life, from his early life in Far Rockaway New York to his death 69 years later in California. His schooling and his unique approach to scientific problems are detailed. Gleick shows how some common approaches pervade Feynman's approach to physics and how they enabled him to solve the problem of Quantum Electro-Dynamics. Along the way are capsule portraits of many of the scientists who interacted with Feynman (such as Hans Bethe, Freeman Dyson, Julian Schwinger and Murray Gell-Mann). Gleick also tells about Feynman's contribution to the development of the atomic bomb. Feynman's anecdotes make it seem that he was the court jester of the project, more interested in jokes and breaking into his collogues' safes. In reality, he impacted most of the theoretical aspects of the program. He was the youngest group leader and, among other responsibilities, was responsible for setting up the mechanisms to perform many of the required calculations as well as determining the approaches to be used for these calculations. He worked incredibly hard at not only his assigned tasks but also doing whatever was required (such as repairing mechanical adding machines) to get the job done. Gleick shows why Feynman was one of the greatest physicists of the second half of the 20th century and perhaps of all time. He also shows why he was the subject of such adulation, far more than equally important physicists such as Julian Schwinger (who won the Nobel Prize with him).
I must admit that I postponed reading this book because I was not overly fond of the two books written by Cleick that I had read previously ("Chaos" and "Isaac Newton"). I did not get a feeling for the science of chaos from the book of that name and when I finished Isaac Newton I did not feel that I knew very much the man, other than the merest facts concerning his life. I was glad that I overcame my initial reservations and read "Genius". I found that, unlike the presentation in "Chaos", I did get a feeling for Feynman's physics and of the problems that he worked on. I also found that, unlike the presentation in "Isaac Newton", I got a feeling for Feynman the man and well as Feynman the physicist.
Gleick presents Feynman "warts and all". He shows him to be a womanizer, a seducer of other men's wives as well as bar girls. He shows him to be a man who neglected the mundane aspects of academia, such as: proposal writing, participating in university administration, grading exams and submitting course grades, taking on graduate students, and writing student recommendations. He forced others to do the work that he chose to skip. Had he been anyone but Feynman he would likely have been fired; but being Feynman he was given special dispensation to avoid doing these chores, a dispensation that he took full advantage of. Cleick provides explanations for Feynman's behavior, but does not try to psychoanalyze him. (I actually would have liked a little psychoanalysis; after all, he spent years going over Feynman's papers and talking to his friends, so some psychoanalysis would have been appreciated and appropriate.) As it is Gleick does provide many clues (such as the tragic death of his first wife), but leaves the analysis to the reader.
This is a great book for anyone interested in Richard Feynman (the man and the scientist), science, the history of science, and the background of modern physics. It does not give you enough information to solve problems, or to fully understand them, but the book does give you a feel for these problems and Feynman's approach to them. As previously stated, this is not the book for you if all you want are funny Feynman anecdotes.
Summary of Genius: The Life and Science of Richard Feynman
From the author of the national bestseller Chaos comes an outstanding biography of one of the most dazzling and flamboyant scientists of the 20th century that "not only paints a highly attractive portrait of Feynman but also . . . makes for a stimulating adventure in the annals of science" (The New York Times). 16 pages of photos.If you've read any of Richard Feynman's wonderful autobiographies you may think that a biography of Feynman would be a waste of your time. Wrong! Gleick's Genius is a masterpiece of scientific biography--and an inspiration to anyone in pursuit of their own fulfillment as a person of genius. Deservedly nominated for a National Book Award, underservedly passed over by the committee in the face of tough competition, and very deservedly a book that you must read.
Feynman, Richard Books
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