Justin DuJardin |O_o| |x_X| |-_-| |o_O|

Feynman on Physics: Gates Brilliant Philanthropy?

I recently stumbled upon a project at Microsoft Research called “Tuva” which is an enhanced video player that is aimed at providing a rich informational video experience.   It features video searching, full transcripts, interactive extras, an indexed time-line, and bookmarking capabilities.

By visiting the Project Tuva website you can view in their entirety Dr. Richard Feynman’s “Messenger Series” lectures on physics at Cornell university in 1964.

Here’s a quick over-view of the knowledge Feynman will be spitting at you in glorious Black and white video.

The Messenger Series Lectures

1. Law of Gravitation – An Example of Physical Law
2. The Relation of Mathematics and Physics
3. The Great Conservation Principles
4. Symmetry in Physical Law
5. The Distinction of Past and Future
6. Probability and Uncertainty – The Quantum Mechanical view of Nature
7. Seeking New Laws

Each lecture is approximately 55 minutes and is guaranteed to expand your mind, or make you laugh.   Regardless, it’s a good way to kill an hour… or seven.

Neat, but that’s not really brilliant…

As it turns out both Silverlight and project Tuva are quite impressive on their own, but when you add Richard Feynman to the mix you get something really quite remarkable; a philanthropic gesture by Gates that can’t easily be turned against him.

You can knock Microsoft software until the cows come home, but try and knock the free distribution of Feynman lectures on the internet and I will think you a fool.   This  project puts some of the most persuasive and informative lectures about a broad number of topics in physics directly into the hands of anyone that knows where to find them.   I for one look forward to when Tuva becomes more than just a Microsoft Research project.