Author(s): Richard P. Feynman

Science

This title provides essential advice on problem solving from physics' clearest teacher. "Feynman's Tips on Physics" is a book in two parts. The first will be a treat for any Feynman fan: it includes a memoir by Matthew Sands about the origins of the "Feynman Lectures on Physics", and is dominated by four lectures, delivered with the rest of the FLP but not included in it, that Feynman gave to help his students review for exams. It is here that readers will get the Feynman approach to problem solving, but there is more to it than this, as Feynman reflects on the problems facing students making the transition from high school to college, and then to real life. The discussion, for example, of what happens when the smartest guy in high school turns out to be the dumbest guy at Caltech is not to be missed. There is also an excerpt of a post-lecture discussion of Feynman with his students, giving a clear picture of what made him such a beloved professor, accessible, helpful, but always intellectually demanding. The second part of the book are the exercises, developed by Gottlieb et al., where readers of the FLP, or any other physics student, can apply the advice they've gotten from Feynman.