758K views · Apr 15, 2009 · 4:43 · 8 HN recommenders · 14 mentions · discussed 2010–2023
A short clip from a Richard Feynman interview in which he explains fire, describing how burning wood releases sunlight stored by the tree, which built itself mostly from air. It showcases his curiosity and plain-spoken explanations.
Why Hacker News points people here: HN repeatedly cites it as an elegant, eye-opening explanation of fire and photosynthesis and as an example of Feynman's infectious love of knowledge.
“it's impossible to stay in any kind of negative mood if you watch Feynman”HN comment, 2010
“it's impossible to stay in any kind of negative mood if you watch Feynman”
Feynman on fire and trees; his love of knowledge is infectious.
I don't want to offend anyone but that article was extremely boring (I did end up reading it). I suppose I'd seen the Richard Feynman video on fire and trees quite recently beforehand and was in an intolerant mood. But it's impossible to stay in any kind of negative mood if you watch Feynman, his love of knowledge is just infectious. this video
“Richard Feynman explains it wonderfully”
Feynman explains fire and trees wonderfully and elegantly.
If anyone wants to know the answer to that question, Richard Feynman explains it wonderfully: (He starts talking about trees at 2:00, but his explanation of fire is equally elegant!) this video My first instinct was to say that a tree's mass comes from dead stars. Imagining how it got from those stars to the air that eventually becomes the tree would keep you busy for a while :D
“its a really eye opening perspective”
Fire's light is stored sunlight from the wood.
Checkout this explanation of fire by Richard Feynman - its a really eye opening perspective this video He explains the light of a fire is just the light of the Sun, it's just been stored in the wood
“I’m a big fan and believe his crude straight to the point style”
Feynman's storytelling and genuine curiosity make fire explanation special.
this video Feynman explains fire. I’m a big fan and believe his crude straight to the point style, coupled with an incredible ability to storytell is what made him special. I think it’s pure, genuine, curiosity and the intellectual capacity to understand the complexities.
“I'm referring to an interview series with him”
Feynman interview series with elegant explanations.
I'd really like to hear Richard Feynman's answer. I'm sure if an 11 year old had asked the question, instead of a journalist, it would be the perfect answer. (I'm referring to an interview series with him: this video ) Makes me sad to think I will never meet this man, nor ever be as awesome.
“I thought this would be a link to a Richard Feynman video where he 'explains' fire.”
Feynman's explanation of fire.
I thought this would be a link to a Richard Feynman video where he 'explains' fire. But it isn't, so here you go: this video
“explain where the energy in the wax came from like Feynman does when explaining fire”
Feynman explains the sun as the energy source in burning wood.
> Wax is made of hydrogen and carbon. Too bad he doesn't explain where the energy in the wax came from like Feynman does when explaining fire: this video Paraffin wax is derived from petroleum, so like the wood in Feynman's explanation, the energy is from the sun via ancient photosynthesis.
“Compare a bunch of chemical formulas and equations in this blog with Richard Feynman's explanation of fire”
Intuitive explanation of fire compared with formula-heavy writeups.
Compare a bunch of chemical formulas and equations in this blog with Richard Feynman's explanation of fire: this video
“as Feynmann says, plants make themselves out of air”
Feynman on plants making themselves out of air.
> I suspect it's not about transportation costs so much as ecology. The amount of biomass available to animals at the top of the food pyramid is inversely proportional to the height of the pyramid. Right on. The thing to remember here, is that, as Feynmann says, plants make themselves out of air ! < this video > (If you doubt, go back to your basic biology education and remember the formula for photosynthesis.) So a Mars colony's farms are basically chemical solar collectors doing two things: 1) providing chemical energy to the colonists (food) and 2) Converting Martian CO2 and water into biomass. If you introduce too many warm blooded animals into the system, a lot of your energy input gets wasted as livestock body heat. tldr - By going vegetarian at first, the Mars colony accumulates usable biomass faster.
“as Feynmann says, plants make themselves out of air!”
Feynman on plants making themselves out of air.
tldr - By going vegetarian at first, the Mars colony accumulates usable biomass faster. (Also, the "Up on the Farm" chapter of this book is a good background read for this discussion: link ) The thing to remember here, is that, as Feynmann says, plants make themselves out of air! < this video > Go back to your basic biology education and remember the formula for photosynthesis. < link > So a Mars colony's farms are basically chemical solar collectors doing two things: 1) providing chemical energy to the colonists (food) and 2) Converting Martian CO2 and water into biomass. If you introduce too many warm blooded animals into the system, a lot of your energy input gets wasted as livestock body heat. So by going vegetarian at first, the Mars colony accumulates usable biomass faster. The faster you accumulate biomass, the faster you can make more biomass. This is also the principle behind the tactic of mostly making construction vehicles at first in Starcraft, or concentrating early on customer acquisition in a startup.
“But if you ask, where the substance comes from... the trees come out of the air?!”
Feynman on trees coming out of the air.
Related Explanation/Discovery : "But if you ask, where the substance comes from... the trees come out of the air?!" -Richard Feynman this video
“I first learned the idea of fire as breaking molecular bonds formed during photosynthesis from a video snippet of Richard Feynman”
Source for fire as breaking bonds formed in photosynthesis.
I first learned the idea of fire as breaking molecular bonds formed during photosynthesis from a video snippet of Richard Feynman [1]. 1. this video
Feynman listed among thinkers whose style can't be summarized.
This is an extremely difficult question that I've been grappling with myself. My first strategy is to create writings that can't be summarized. I try to make essays that are dripping with idiosyncrasy. I can't win in an information war, but I can stay competitive for ~10 years in a creative clash: [1] link [2] link [3] link [4] link [5] link I myself draw lots of my inspiration from my "sages of style", in the same way that AIs will try to replicate my voice. None of these great thinkers can be summarized or replicated in any meaningful way: [6] David Foster Wallace: link [7] George Carlin: link [8] Derek Sivers: link [9] John Green: link [10] Roman Mars: link [11] Alan Kay: link [12] Alan Watts: link [13] Richard Feynman: this video [14] Raymond Smullyan: link But style only takes you so far. My second strategy is to socialize IRL. This year, I'm starting a tech conference called "Outland" to foster community in an age where community might be all that matters. [15] link
“fire is basically reversing the process - releasing the sunlight that created the plant”
Fire releases the sunlight that created the plant.
Trees are renewable. The mass of a tree comes from the carbon it extracts from the air. [1] It's not a zero-sum, though. Why does my cilantro need to come in a plastic bag? At the farmer's market, it doesn't come packaged. [1] And, fire is basically reversing the process - releasing the sunlight that created the plant: this video
