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Richard Feynman. Why.

firewalker · 5.5M views · 2012-04-02 · 7:33

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Overview

A short clip of Richard Feynman answering an interviewer's question about why magnets repel, explaining that a 'why' question depends on a shared framework of understanding. It illustrates how hard it is to explain fundamentals to a layperson.

On Hacker News

Cited constantly as the classic answer to 'why' questions, on explanation, frames of reference and the limits of physics.

Recommended by 5 HN people across 5 months · HN mentions 2019–2026

Topics

Scientific method & science communicationFundamental physics
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feynmanwhy questionsmagnetsexplanationphilosophy of science

What people said

magicalhippo · 2024-02 · Recommendation

Richard Feynman addresses a similar "why" question in a great way in this interview[1], and how "why" questions are problematic in science. [1]: [VIDEO]

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rlpb · 2021-03 · Recommendation

There's a really good clip by Richard Feynman on explanations and frames of reference: [VIDEO] I think he does an excellent job of explaining why it's so hard to explain this type of thing.

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tsbinz · 2020-04 · Recommendation

Regarding "fully" understanding physics, I like to refer people to Feynman's answer to a question about why magnets repel each other[0]. "Assuming something" is one integral part of the scientific method. You formulate a question, you build a hypothesis from prior knowledge, you make predictions, you test them, you analyze your results which might lead you to change your hypothesis or not. "Greatness" is finding simple hypotheses (like "the laws of physics are the same as viewed from any inertial frame and the speed of light is the same for every observer") that predict/"explain" effects that were inconsistent with prior hypotheses. Of course you can never really prove a model of the world is correct - another model that predicts differences that are too small for us to measure might be the "truth", but, until we can measure it, there isn't much use in pondering ... [0] [VIDEO]

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Sources

Video by firewalker, played through YouTube.

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