Richard Feynman is one of my heroes. When I was younger I read "Surely You're Joking, Mr. Feynman!" and "What Do You Care What Other People Think", which are both compilations of anecdotes about Feynman. In 9th grade, we had to take proficiency tests, and the writing section was "Write an essay about a personal hero of yours." I wrote mine on Feynman.

I guess the reason is because here was this unbelievably intelligent person, regarded as a genius by people in his own highly competitive field, who could solve complex equations in his head, who could figure out why the Challenger blew up, and yet he seemed to be an amazingly happy person as well.

Feynman loved science, that's what I really picked up from all the anecdotes. He was happiest when he was solving some little problem of physics that had caught his attention, that he wanted to figure out, not to finish a group project, not for national defense, but just because it would be cool to know the answer.

I went to go see the movie Genghis Blues a few weeks ago. It was about this Californian blues musician named Paul Pena who learns how to do Tuvan throat singing. It's a type of singing that is difficult to learn, sounds deep, gravelly and, well, bizarre, and practically the only people in the world who know how to do it live in Tuva, which is a republic of Russia. Anyway, Pena goes to Tuva to participate in a Tuvan throat singing competition, and a couple of Chicago filmmakers decided to go along and film it and turn it into a documentary. It's very interesting, and I highly recommend it.

The best part of Genghis Blues for me, though, was the unexpected Feynman content. It turns out that Feynman was curious about a series of stamps that had been issued in the 30s from Tuva, and when he and a friend looked it up on the map, they decided that it had to be an interesting place -- any place whose capital was named Kyzyl had to be interesting! It's all consonants! (OK, the y acts as a vowel in this case, but still, come on.) Feynman's friend Ralph Leighton wrote a book Tuva or Bust, and Feynman often talked about going to Tuva, but never actually made it.

So in the documentary Genghis Blues, Ralph Leighton went along for the ride. They actually made him an honorary judge of the throat singing competition, and when he went on stage to be recognized, he yelled, "Feynman lives!" He also left strategically placed "Feynman Lives" bumper stickers in various Tuvan locales.

It was wonderful. I think I mentioned a few entries back that I'm reading Genius, which is a biography of Feynman, and the more I read, the more respect I gain for him. I think that in a time in our society when it is difficult to find true heroes, Feynman stands above the rest. He really was (and is, I think) one of my first role models.

If you want more Feynman info, you should read any of the three books I mentioned above, or go to http://www.feynman.com, which has links to the Friends of Tuva, Feynman Online, and a bunch of other decent sites. The list of Feynman anecdotes is especially good, since there's some on the site that aren't in the books.

In other news. We're getting health insurance at work. This is a Good Thing. I don't plan on staying in this job forever, but if we hadn't got health insurance, I think I would have been looking for a new position as early as next summer. Health care is just too expensive to pay for out of pocket. After having paid for an eye appointment, my contacts, and a gynecological appointment that way, health insurance has become a very big deal to me.

Hail to the Chief. I saw "West Wing" again last night. I really cannot say enough good things about this program. I remarked to Keith that one of the reasons I like it so much is that it's a very opinionated show, but not in any one particular direction. They present very strong viewpoints on certain issues, but then later in the show, they'll present the opposing viewpoint in equally strong terms. I think that's a rarity on television these days. For one thing, it's hard to find a TV show that will express real opinions on ANY topic. They're too afraid of alienating the viewing public, I guess, so they stick with shows where the biggest issue is whether Donna will sleep with Brandon, or whatever. And when you do find the rare show that isn't afraid to be opinionated, more often than not it sounds like the writer's personal soapbox.

I think "West Wing" tends to present both sides of the issue, and I think that's a good thing. Is it too late to nominate Martin Sheen for president?

Back       Next       Journal Home