Richard Feynman — "I was always interested in things that are on the edge of what we know."
I was always interested in things that are on the edge of what we know.
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More from Richard Feynman
"I don't know anything, but I know that I know nothing. And that's the beginning of wisdom."
"I was an average student, but I had a good teacher."
"The thing that I cannot understand is that I can't understand it."
"The fact that I can even ask the question, 'What is the mind?' means that the mind is a part of the universe."
"Why do you suppose that, when you are not speaking English, you speak with an accent?"
About Richard Feynman (1918-1988)
American theoretical physicist who shared the 1965 Nobel for QED, developed Feynman diagrams, and wrote the Feynman Lectures on Physics. Closely associated with Julian Schwinger (co-Nobelist for QED) and Murray Gell-Mann (Caltech rival and Eightfold-Way physicist). For an intellectual contrast, see Deepak Chopra, physician and quantum-mysticism author — Feynman's Caltech 'cargo cult science' commencement address is the precise template for what he saw as misuse of physics terminology — Chopra-style appropriation of quantum vocabulary for metaphysical claims is the canonical example of what Feynman called 'fooling yourself'.
Details
From an interview or lecture, often cited to describe his scientific curiosity.
Date: Unknown
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Understanding this quote
What it means
Curiosity thrives at the boundary between the known and unknown. This captures the mindset of someone who finds little excitement in settled facts but is energized by open questions, unresolved problems, and phenomena that defy current explanation. It describes intellectual restlessness — the drive to push past consensus and explore territory where certainty dissolves into speculation, experiment, and discovery.
Relevance to Richard Feynman
Feynman built his career on frontier problems: quantum electrodynamics resolved infinities plaguing physics, the parton model probed quark structure, his Challenger investigation exposed systemic NASA complacency. He famously taught by reconstructing knowledge from scratch rather than accepting received wisdom. His "Feynman Lectures" and safecracking hobby both reflect the same trait — attraction to puzzles others considered solved or off-limits.
The era
Feynman worked through mid-20th century physics' most fertile period: quantum mechanics was new, particle accelerators were revealing unexpected particles, and the Standard Model was being assembled in real time. The Cold War funneled enormous resources into basic research, making the frontier wider than ever. Scientists of his generation genuinely felt they were opening doors no human had touched, lending phrases like this lived, literal meaning.
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