"What Do You Care What Other People Think?": Further Adventures of a Curious Character
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- Create Date：2021-05-24 11:54:47
- Update Date：2025-09-06
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- Author：Richard P. Feynman
- ISBN：0393355640
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Summary
One of the greatest physicists of the twentieth century， Richard Feynman possessed an unquenchable thirst for adventure and an unparalleled ability to tell the stories of his life。 "What Do You Care What Other People Think？" is Feynman’s last literary legacy， prepared with his friend and fellow drummer， Ralph Leighton。 Among its many tales—some funny， others intensely moving—we meet Feynman’s first wife， Arlene， who taught him of love’s irreducible mystery as she lay dying in a hospital bed while he worked nearby on the atomic bomb at Los Alamos。 We are also given a fascinating narrative of the investigation of the space shuttle Challenger’s explosion in 1986， and we relive the moment when Feynman revealed the disaster’s cause by an elegant experiment: dropping a ring of rubber into a glass of cold water and pulling it out， misshapen。
Reviews
Zhiren
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The first two stories were beautiful and truly inspiring。 The book got a bit dry afterwards。 I had to force myself to compulsively read through the Challenger report 。。。
Alexej Gerstmaier
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Slightly worse than the first
Paweł Kleist
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Great book。
beingCristina
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It's Feyman， it's fun and of course， smartly stimulating。 It's Feyman， it's fun and of course， smartly stimulating。 。。。more
Laura
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Fun， energetic character: the life-loving， larger-than-life， all American scientist。 An apology of the scientific worldview and the honesty that comes with it。 A read to lift your spirits。
Orlando Martell
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This book is a pilar in my mind and life。 A must read for every aspiring scientist。 It’s funny as ****。 You’ll definitely enjoy it。 Very interesting and enjoyable read。
Hamish Seamus
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A striking fact about Feynman's writing is how childish it sounds。 His vocabulary seems mostly constrained to Simple English Wikipedia words， except when he's referring to scientific concepts。 He seems hopelessly naive when it comes to things like status， politics， manners。 There's also something very childish about the way he describes his mental states and motivations， although I can't pin down what that is right now。 Here's an example: "I don't know anything about the Nobel prize。 I don't und A striking fact about Feynman's writing is how childish it sounds。 His vocabulary seems mostly constrained to Simple English Wikipedia words， except when he's referring to scientific concepts。 He seems hopelessly naive when it comes to things like status， politics， manners。 There's also something very childish about the way he describes his mental states and motivations， although I can't pin down what that is right now。 Here's an example: "I don't know anything about the Nobel prize。 I don't understand what it's about or what's worth what。 And if the people in the Swedish Academy decide that X， Y， Z is worthy of the Nobel Prize then so be it。"Does this make him a better scientist？ He tries to directly understand primitive sensory inputs and primitive concepts？ I've found that my inability to remember arbitrary data has pushed me to deeper understandings of， for example， trigonometry formulas。 Or is the whole "aw shucks" Tom Sawyer thing a bit of an act？ To be more accessable？ Or if not an act， a cultivated persona？ 。。。more
Peter Garza
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Great insight from a person that strove to understand
p。mac
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This is the closing volume of the adventures of Richard Feynman， told in the same anecdotal style; more sobering， but as thoughtful and amusing as the SYJ。 There’re many things I’d highlight as of special value， but it’s easier just to say: read the book！ It’s well worth it。This book， along with the SYJ， are in my very select list “I wish I had read it many years ago”。
Matt Walker
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No where near as good as SYJ but it’s still enjoyable I guess。
Gunther Glenk
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Uncle Feynman chats about his approach to life。 Amusing but not particularly insightful。
Petr Boška
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Love Feynmann。
Mike
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Feynman comes across as a bit arrogant and self-assured but his credentials back him up。 Of particular interest were his insights into the activities of the Rogers Commission investigating the Challenger accident。
Hassan Khan
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I wish I could read this book during my teenage。 He showed the life of a scientist， husband， and noble person。
Meri Lancis
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It definitely was really interesting to dip into parts of his life even though some scientific things were a bit complicated 🚀
Antti
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Feynman piti tasonsa loppuun asti。Kuvaus Challengerin tutkijalautakuntatyöstä， ja mitä sen taustalta löytyi oli hyvin valaiseva ja monelle vieläkin opiksi otettavaa asiaa。Ja minua viehätti tiedon määritelmä: "Tieteellinen tieto on erilaisissa epävarmuuden tiloissa olevien väitteiden joukko。" Feynman piti tasonsa loppuun asti。Kuvaus Challengerin tutkijalautakuntatyöstä， ja mitä sen taustalta löytyi oli hyvin valaiseva ja monelle vieläkin opiksi otettavaa asiaa。Ja minua viehätti tiedon määritelmä: "Tieteellinen tieto on erilaisissa epävarmuuden tiloissa olevien väitteiden joukko。" 。。。more
Kharlanov Sergey
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Понравилась。 Книжка написнаа в форме сборника различных эпизодов。 Несколько повторялось из прошлых книжек， но все равно очень интересно。 Удивительнейший человек был。
Iryna Paprotska
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I consumed this book in 2 days being inspired by "Surely You're Joking， Mr。 Feynman！": Adventures of a Curious Character。 This one still is a great set of stories， but they are a bit different in the essence。 "Surely you're Joking" is a bit lighter and the mood is much more dynamic and more fun。 "What do you care" is a bit more serious， stories are longer a feel and a bit less lively， but nonetheless very interesting and also touches on many different important problem we still have。I loved the I consumed this book in 2 days being inspired by "Surely You're Joking， Mr。 Feynman！": Adventures of a Curious Character。 This one still is a great set of stories， but they are a bit different in the essence。 "Surely you're Joking" is a bit lighter and the mood is much more dynamic and more fun。 "What do you care" is a bit more serious， stories are longer a feel and a bit less lively， but nonetheless very interesting and also touches on many different important problem we still have。I loved the ending， where Feynman discussed how historical method in decision-making is no longer valid for our fast developing technology。 And how validation and testing is important。 And how it makes sense to slow down to analyze。 The story about NASA investigation was extremely showcasing of the bureaucracy machine。 And it is so true that no efficiency have been added。 "We used to do 3 agreed version of reports， cause it was expensive to print more， now we make 23 versions of the report"。。 and there is goes。 How you can't get anything done。 Work memories straight away。。:））The first story made me feel a bit sad， but it was very interesting seeing and knowing how people can act really differently in such cases with health issues。 I admire a lot of life choices in here。 And this book reminded me that there is nothing stronger （if properly matched） than two people， who started growing， developing together and made a life choice to just follow the path together and stay that way no matter what。 And the book also leaves a feeling how much slower the world had been。 And how fast things are moving now and how that changed our expectations to other people and people relationships。 But also to science， to technology， to life。。 Very nice books these are。 I'll be coming back to these later some day。 To refresh the impressions。 。。。more
Melody
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He was an interesting man。
Binati Sheth
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The book gives us key insights into the life of Richard Feynman。 The book follows the highly successful book， “Surely You're Joking， Mr。 Feynman！”。The book isn’t that coherent。 You get a romantic， non-flirty Richard， who happens to be a delight！ The story of Dr。 Feynman and his first wife definitely show us why he disregarded unjustified social rules all his life。He expresses his detailed （& disappointing） findings about the Challenger disaster investigation。 His frustration with bureaucracy is The book gives us key insights into the life of Richard Feynman。 The book follows the highly successful book， “Surely You're Joking， Mr。 Feynman！”。The book isn’t that coherent。 You get a romantic， non-flirty Richard， who happens to be a delight！ The story of Dr。 Feynman and his first wife definitely show us why he disregarded unjustified social rules all his life。He expresses his detailed （& disappointing） findings about the Challenger disaster investigation。 His frustration with bureaucracy is humorous and starkly contrasts the grim progression of events。 Dr。 Feynman shows us the more complex and trickier role played by the Press when it comes to helping scientists do their jobs。The importance of communication between institutions is brought to the forefront wherein NASA’s communication problems were mostly to blame for the tragedy。 Scientific and engineering decisions are supposed to be made based on the science and technology， and not egos。 This side of the book provides an interesting take on decision-making。If you like smart people presenting their truth， you will thoroughly enjoy this book。The first half of the book is amazing。 The second half seems to ramble on but then that is the beauty of Dr。 Feynman。 It is a thoroughly enjoyable book。 。。。more
Dórian Bachmann
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O livro tem duas partes bem distintas。 A primeira é uma sequência de histórias curtas， independentes， curiosas， humanas e divertidas。 É emocionante， conhecer o lado humano do cientista brilhante， humilde e assustadoramente sincero。Ele conta as influências que o tornaram um cientista， as aventuras e dificuldades da adolescência e sua relação com Arlene， sua primeira mulher e maior amor。 As histórias mostram uma pessoa inteligente， sensível， persistente e， principalmente， curiosa， como devem ser t O livro tem duas partes bem distintas。 A primeira é uma sequência de histórias curtas， independentes， curiosas， humanas e divertidas。 É emocionante， conhecer o lado humano do cientista brilhante， humilde e assustadoramente sincero。Ele conta as influências que o tornaram um cientista， as aventuras e dificuldades da adolescência e sua relação com Arlene， sua primeira mulher e maior amor。 As histórias mostram uma pessoa inteligente， sensível， persistente e， principalmente， curiosa， como devem ser todos os cientistas。A segunda descreve sua participação no comitê presidencial que investigou o acidente com o ônibus espacial Challenger。 É muito interessante， tanto pelos aspectos técnicos como pelos políticos。 Mostra o impacto de seu comportamento - único membro realmente independente no comitê de investigação – na transparência e na comunicação dos resultados。 Tanto que ele conclui o relatório com a frase: “Para uma tecnologia de sucesso， a realidade deve ter precedência sobre as relações públicas， pois a natureza não pode ser enganada”。Confesso que， embora não saiba a razão， os livros do Feynman me emocionam。Algumas frases dele no livro:Aprendi muito cedo a diferença entre saber o nome de algo e saber algo。Aprendi com minha mãe que as formas mais elevadas de compreensão que podemos alcançar são o riso e a compaixão humana。Eu disse que não sabia - minha resposta para quase todas as perguntas。O conhecimento científico é um corpo de afirmações com vários graus de certeza - algumas muito incertas， outras quase certas， mas nenhuma absolutamente certa。Na ciência você aprende um tipo de integridade e honestidade padrão。Gosto de um provérbio da religião budista: A cada homem é dada a chave dos portões do céu; a mesma chave abre as portas do inferno。 。。。more
Ritvik Thakur
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More interesting Feynman stories
Tom
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While certainly less jovial and entertaining than "Surely You're Joking"， I find this follow-on book much easier to recommend。 It generally covers more serious subject matter， and as a result feels less whimsical and more grounded - I got a much stronger sense of who Feynman actually was from this book than I did the hilarious scrapes in "Surely You're Joking"。Specifically the large section about Feynman's involvement in the Challenger investigation was massively insightful， and a sobering read While certainly less jovial and entertaining than "Surely You're Joking"， I find this follow-on book much easier to recommend。 It generally covers more serious subject matter， and as a result feels less whimsical and more grounded - I got a much stronger sense of who Feynman actually was from this book than I did the hilarious scrapes in "Surely You're Joking"。Specifically the large section about Feynman's involvement in the Challenger investigation was massively insightful， and a sobering read for anyone working on safety-critical systems。 The short essay at the end （titled "The Value Of Science"） is a concise and thoughtful summary of Feynman's world view， and this is the part of the book that I would highly recommend to anyone who has even a passing interest in science and it's impact/relevance to society （a version is available to freely download from Caltech's website: https://calteches。library。caltech。edu。。。） 。。。more
Eugene Bosiakov
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What differentiates me， an ordinary person， from one of the brilliant minds of the generation？ This read gave me an insight。 Courage to question any opinion， even from the powerful ones。 Courage to follow your path， even if it is not conventional。 Full ownership of your life in every way。For me， this book is about honesty with yourself， honesty with people around， and brutal courage。 Excellent read from the person who did not care about what others think of him and where this philosophy led him。
Shashank
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The book is great and follows the original book by Feynman - Surely you are joking。 First part of this second book has his unique interesting adventures and second part is based on his investigations of the Challenger space shuttle disaster。 Lots of unique interesting tidbits and also an avenue into the mind of one of the greatest scientific thinker of our times。
Gregp
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9 out of 10Not quite as good as “Surely you’re Joking”， but damn near。
Borys
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I think it's an excellent book although be advised it is not a single piece like "Surely You're Joking。。。" but rather a set of essays and then a story on Challenger disaster investigation。 This last part is unique in some respects as it opens up a window into NASA internal workings （at least in the late 80s） and how asking tough questions is sometimes necessary to make progress。 I enjoyed all the other stories a lot and think the book is definitely 5 stars。 I think it's an excellent book although be advised it is not a single piece like "Surely You're Joking。。。" but rather a set of essays and then a story on Challenger disaster investigation。 This last part is unique in some respects as it opens up a window into NASA internal workings （at least in the late 80s） and how asking tough questions is sometimes necessary to make progress。 I enjoyed all the other stories a lot and think the book is definitely 5 stars。 。。。more
Maja
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While I enjoyed Surely You’re Joking， Mr。 Feynman！ a little more， I also enjoyed this book。 I think the love story between Mr。 Feynman and his first wife shows a side of him that we don’t see Surely You’re Joking。 It is a story of true love and devotion under difficult circumstances。 This shed a little light on his “love” life after her death。 I am not sure he truly found anyone to replace the love they shared。I am sure there are a number of people who will be turned off by his “antics” but I fo While I enjoyed Surely You’re Joking， Mr。 Feynman！ a little more， I also enjoyed this book。 I think the love story between Mr。 Feynman and his first wife shows a side of him that we don’t see Surely You’re Joking。 It is a story of true love and devotion under difficult circumstances。 This shed a little light on his “love” life after her death。 I am not sure he truly found anyone to replace the love they shared。I am sure there are a number of people who will be turned off by his “antics” but I found him absolutely fascinating。 He is indeed a curious character and curious about life。 He lives life on his own terms and doesn’t let others intimidate him。 I think we learn why when we learn a little about his father。The book is just a disjointed collection of stories about his life。 Most of the book focuses on his time on the presidential commission tasked with figuring out why the shuttle challenger exploded。 He ignores “the way it should be done” and proceeds to find the answer to the question。 He is the one credited with figuring out why but gives credit to the person who pointed him in the right direction。 What I found especially fascinating is how he solves problems and problems that aren’t even in his area of expertise， and how he learns the difference between perspective at the top of an organization and at the bottom and the problems with it。Reading about him makes me wish I had the opportunity to learn physics from him。 While I took physics and passed I wonder how much more I’d have learned in his class。 He has a way of describing complex ideas simply that I haven’t found in many people。 。。。more
Pulkit
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As usual， Feynman’s style makes it a delight to read。 The first half covers his relationship with his first wife Arlene and is very moving。 The later half the investigation into the Challenger shuttle disaster。 The book overall is not as great as the first one “Surely you are joking Mr。 Feynman” but nonetheless makes for an enjoyable read。
Gary
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