Turing's machines”), information theory, Shannon's Theorem, reversible computation, the thermodynamics of computation, the quantum limits to computation, and the physics of VLSI devices. These include computability, Turing machines (or as Feynman said, “Mr.
I came away more impressed than ever with his showmanship, his comedic timing, his clever arguments, but above all with his ability to enlist the listener as a co-conspirator in his attempt to crack the safe where nature's secrets are stored.Название: Feynman Lectures on Computationįrom 1983 to 1986, the legendary physicist and teacher Richard Feynman gave a course at Caltech called “Potentialities and Limitations of Computing Machines.”Although the lectures are over 30 years old, most of the material is timeless and presents a “Feynmanesque” overview of many standard and some not-so-standard topics in computer science. I wanted the chance to watch Feynman, the teacher, closely, and to see how he achieved his remarkable success. What was this experience like for you? In preparing your commentary, did you glean anything new from the lectures that you hadn’t before?Ī. This is one reason why I became interested in Bill Gates' efforts to make the films accessible to a broad audience using modern web tools. MIT is very fortunate to have a copy of the films, which I believe are not widely available. I know that MIT has always had a lively contingent of Feynman admirers, and the Feynman films shown every IAP usually attract dozens of devotees. I haven’t been to the IAP showing for many years - although I watched each one several times as I prepared the commentary. MIT’s physics department shows these lectures every year during Independent Activities Period (IAP). From time to time, I've added some modern perspective, occasionally correcting one of Feynman's remarks that proved incorrect in later years.” Now, as in Feynman's day, they form the basis of all the other sciences, and Feynman's explanations are as fresh as any lectures in a classroom today. For better or worse, the laws of physics don't change (no matter how much we may sometimes wish they would).
In contrast a 50-year-old lecture series in biology, chemistry, computer science or the social sciences would be of historical interest only. “The laws of physics that Feynman has been describing are just as fresh and powerful as they were in 1964, or indeed decades earlier, when they were first discovered. Here is a quote from my commentary on the last lecture: As for why they are still relevant, I addressed that in one of my commentaries. These lectures come from the height of his “pedagogical period,” shortly after he finished his “Feynman Lectures” books. Feynman brought a level of insight, enthusiasm and trenchant wit to the exposition of the fundamental laws of physics that is unsurpassed. Nearly 50 years after Richard Feynman gave these lectures, why are they still relevant today?Ī. In an interview with MIT News, Jaffe talked about the Feynman lectures and why they are still important, so many years later. His contribution went live recently and is available at (download may be required). The company asked MIT physics professor Robert Jaffe to prepare an online commentary on the lectures. Microsoft, which owns the rights to the films, has now mounted the videos on a website that is open to the world. In 1964, physicist Richard Feynman delivered a series of lectures titled “On the Nature of Physical Law.” Feynman delivered these seven one-hour lectures at Cornell in 1964, and the BBC taped them.