The Character of Physical Law (Modern Library) [Hardcover]

Richard Feynman (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0679601279 | ISBN-13: 978-0679601272 | Publication Date: November 8, 1994

This book presents a series of classic lectures, delivered in 1960 and recorded for the BBC. This is Feynman's unique take on the problems and puzzles that lie at the heart of physical theory - with Newton's Law of Gravitation; on whether time can ever go backwards; on maths as the supreme language of nature. Demonstrates Feynman's knack of finding the right everyday illustration to bring out the essence of a complicated principle - eg brilliant analogy between the law of conservation energy and the problem of drying yourself with wet towels. 'Feynman's style inspired a generation of scientists. This volume remains the best record I know of his exhilarating vision' - Paul Davies.

--This text refers to the Paperback edition.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"...Fascinating...an insight into the thought processes of a great physicist." Times Literary Supplement

--This text refers to the Paperback edition.

About the Author

Richard P. Feynman (1918-1988) was one of this century's most brilliant theoretical physicists and original thinkers. Books by Feynman in Penguin include QED (1990 - 58,000 copies), Six Easy Pieces (1998 - 27,000 copies), and Six Not-so-Easy Pieces (1999 - 10,000 copies). --This text refers to the Paperback edition.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 192 pages
• Publisher: Modern Library (November 8, 1994)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0679601279
• ISBN-13: 978-0679601272
• Product Dimensions: 4.9 x 0.8 x 7.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 7.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (34 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #277,602 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

53 of 58 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Feynman Delivers, September 11, 2003

By 

Paul A. Jackson "Paul Jackson" (Fairfax Station, VA USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Character of Physical Law (Messenger Lectures, 1964) (Paperback)

This is yet another book that attempts to convey the essence of physics to common people. After explaining exactly why it can't be done, arguing that you'll never get it, Feynman goes right ahead and does it anyway.

For each topic, you get a feel for his goal in covering a topic. He explains gravity, yes, to explain gravity, but also because by explaining it he can also convey what essential properties gravity has that other laws have.

He also explains the difference between fundamental laws and the consequences of those laws. That the individual laws are reversible, but that probability is responsible for the arrow of time. He spends a lot of time showing the difficult relationship between the basic laws (which are reversible) and the irreversibility of events. Both are characteristics of the physical universe but the latter is not a fundamental law. The latter is a logical outcome of them.

So there's a hierarchy, which goes; fundamental laws like gravity at the ground level, consequences of them like irreversibility and surface tension at one level up, organic chemistry further up, then eventually concepts like tree, frog, man, pain, beauty, good and evil - each at a higher level, but based upon the levels below them, and difficult to fully predict using only the laws of the lower levels. The levels can be extended up and down. Below gravity is the unification theory of everything. Above good and evil are love, politics, etc.

And then he asks, of the extremes on this hierarchy, the fundamental laws and the most abstract concepts, which is closest to God? After asking for patience with his religious reference, he spends little time before revealing his belief that the question is flawed. To understand God is to understand how the levels interrelate; how the fundamental laws were "chosen" so that they would lead to the unfolding of all the beautiful complexity that we see around us.

Is this what you want to learn? Why else do we read these books than to attempt to gain a bit more insight into the eternal questions. Most authors that tackle the nature of the universe have a theological axe to grind (the need for God or not) and can't hide it. This book did more on this topic, with fewer pages, while offending me the least because of any theological bias (either way), than anything I've read before.

29 of 30 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars I read this book maybe once a month, January 15, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: The Character of Physical Law (Modern Library) (Hardcover)

Every time I return to this book I pick up on more of Feynman's explanations. From almost beginning to understand angular momentum, to getting a feel for gravity, and how many laws have been integrated. For a novice at physics but with a keen interest this book gives an excellent background and, for me, is a joy to read each time, I can almost hear Feynman making his lectures and sharing jokes with his students. Each time I come away from reading this book I find myself pondering more about various aspects of physics and get a clearer idea of other books to buy to continue my current hobby of understanding the way the universe works just a little better (hopefully anyway :)

20 of 22 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars The beauty of physical laws, September 8, 2002

By 

Esther Nebenzahl - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Character of Physical Law (Modern Library) (Hardcover)

One the greatest theoretical physicists and popular lecturer, Feynman expresses his view on the puzzles, controversies, and problems at the core of physical theory. He uses as an example the law of gravitation to show that despite the simplicity of physical laws, they are not exact, there is always a mystery, always a place where there is further work to be done, so "scientists must stick their heads out." And what is most remarkable is not what scientists have been able to discover, but what nature has taught us. Feynman stresses the importance of mathematics as the key to any system of scientific laws (mathematics is more than just a language, it is language plus logic). This is a series of lecturers to be read preferably by those individuals who have a solid background in physics, otherwise you may find your neurons will not know in which direction they should fire! As Paul Davis rightly says: "theoretical physics is one the hardest of human endeavors, combining as it does subtle and abstract concepts that normally defy visualizations with a technical complexity that is impossible to master in its entirety." Feynman did have the genius to deal with it!