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Richard Feynman

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Scientist

The Resume

    (May 11, 1918-February 15, 1988)
    Born in Queens, New York
    Professor of theoretical physics at Caltech
    Co-winner of the Nobel Prize in Physics for his work in quantum electrodynamics (1965)
    Author of the autobiographical 'Surely You're Joking Mr. Feynman!' (1985) and 'What Do You Care What Other People Think?' (1988)
    Lectures compiled in 'The Feynman Lectures on Physics' and 'QED: The Strange Theory of Light and Matter'

Why he might be annoying:

    He did not talk until after his third birthday.
    While working on the Manhattan Project in Los Alamos, he entertained himself by picking the locks of cabinets containing classified papers.
    William Rogers, the head of the committee investigating the Challenger explosion, called him 'a real pain in the ass.'
    He was better to known to the public for his image as a free-spirited eccentric than for his scientific work.
    He experimented with marijuana, LSD, ketamine and sensory deprivation.
    He is one of the few scientists to illustrate a textbook with a picture of himself playing bongos.

Why he might not be annoying:

    He loved teaching, considering his students a source of inspiration.
    He was known for his ability to provide 'freshman level' explanations of abstruse physics concepts.
    He was the only patron of a topless bar near Clatech to testify on the owners' behalf when the county tried to shut the bar down.
    He popularized nanotechnology in 'There's Plenty of Room at the Bottom.' (1959)
    While investigating the Challenger explosion, he demonstrated how the shuttle's o-rings had failed at cold temperatures by placing a clamped o-ring in a glass of ice water during a televised hearing.
    His last words were 'I'd hate to die twice. It's so boring.'
    A shuttlecraft in Star Trek: The Next Generation was named after him.

Credit: C. Fishel


Featured in the following Annoying Collections:

Year In Review:

    For 2024, as of last weekly ranking, Out of 2 Votes: 0% Annoying
    In 2023, Out of 4 Votes: 0% Annoying
    In 2022, Out of 8 Votes: 12.50% Annoying
    In 2021, Out of 9 Votes: 66.67% Annoying
    In 2020, Out of 3 Votes: 66.67% Annoying
    In 2019, Out of 11 Votes: 54.55% Annoying
    In 2018, Out of 4 Votes: 50.0% Annoying
    In 2017, Out of 43 Votes: 72.09% Annoying
    In 2015, Out of 11 Votes: 27.27% Annoying
    In 2014, Out of 10 Votes: 60.0% Annoying
    In 2013, Out of 23 Votes: 47.83% Annoying
    In 2012, Out of 16 Votes: 37.50% Annoying
    In 2011, Out of 28 Votes: 35.71% Annoying
    In 2010, Out of 112 Votes: 68.75% Annoying
    In 2009, Out of 37 Votes: 43.24% Annoying
    In 2008, Out of 33 Votes: 36.36% Annoying
    In 2007, Out of 15 Votes: 40.0% Annoying