Feynman's lost lecture
by David L. Goodstein · first published 1996
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"On March 13, 1964, Feynman delivered a lecture to the Caltech freshman class, "The Motion of Planets Around the Sun"why the planets move elliptically instead of in perfect circles. For reasons unknown, most probably for his own amusement, he chose to make the argument using mathematics no more advanced than high-school plane geometry. Isaac Newton had pulled off much the same trick nearly 300 years earlier in his masterpiece, the Principia. Feynman, unable to follow Newton's obscure proof, invented his own original, geometrical proof in the Caltech lecture." "The subject of Feynman's lecture
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…a freshman lecture on it.' But he came back a few days later to say, 'I couldn't do it. I couldn't reduce it to the freshman level. That means we don't really understand it.'" -- David L. Goodstein, Feynman's Lost Lecture: The Motion of Planets Around the Sun, ISBN:978-0393039184.
on “Habits of Expert Software Designers” ↗…Feynman said, “I’ll prepare a freshman lecture on it.” But he came back a few days later to say, “I couldn’t do it. I couldn’t reduce it to the freshman level. That means we don’t really understand it.” – Feynman’s Lost Lecture by David and Judith Goodstein
on “Explaining to my parents what I do” ↗…for example [1]), the use of calculus immediately opens up a better understanding and the ability to describe and solve more realistic problems (like cars that don't travel at a constant speed). [1] "Feynman's Lost Lecture: The Motion of Planets Around the Sun" by David Goodstein
on “A Unified Mathematical Language for Physics and Engineering (1996) [pdf]” ↗…freshman lecture on it.' But he came back a few days later to say, 'I couldn't do it. I couldn't reduce it to the freshman level. That means we don't really understand it.'" — Goodstein & Goodstein, Feynman's Lost Lecture: The Motion of Planets Around the Sun (Norton, New York, 1996)
on “Plain English: A simple guide on words to avoid in government (UK)” ↗