Richard Feynman — "When you are a scientist, you are a member of a community of people who are tryi…"
When you are a scientist, you are a member of a community of people who are trying to find out the truth.
Get This Quote & Author's Image Illustrated On:
Click any product to generate a realistic preview. Up to 3 at a time.
* Initial load can take up to 90 seconds — revising the preview in another color is nearly instant.
Kitchen
Apparel
Other
More from Richard Feynman
"God is always associated with those things that you do not understand. Therefore I don't think that the laws can be considered to be like God because they have been figured out. ... But you need him f…"
"I was never a very good student, and I always had trouble with math. I was always in the bottom of the class in math."
"I have a great deal of difficulty with the idea of 'truth' in the philosophical sense."
"I don't believe in God. I don't believe in anything. I'm a scientist."
"I think it's much more interesting to live with not knowing than to have answers that might be wrong."
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'.
Verification
Unverifiable
Found in 1 providers: grok
1 source checked
Understanding this quote
What it means
Being a scientist means belonging to a collaborative pursuit of truth rather than working in isolation. Science is inherently communal — findings must be shared, tested, and challenged by peers. Truth-seeking isn't a solo act but a collective enterprise where individual discoveries belong to the broader human project of understanding reality.
Relevance to Richard Feynman
Feynman embodied this communal spirit through his role in the Manhattan Project, his decades at Caltech and Cornell, and his famous Challenger investigation. Known for bongo drums and accessible lectures, he valued intellectual honesty above prestige. His Feynman Lectures democratized physics, sharing truth freely rather than hoarding expertise.
The era
Feynman worked through the post-WWII golden age of American science — Cold War funding, Sputnik panic, and the space race transformed science from niche pursuit to national priority. The scientific community grappled with ethical responsibilities after the atomic bomb, making the idea of science as a truth-seeking brotherhood rather than a weapon-making apparatus deeply resonant.
AI-generated insights based on extensive research and information for context. Factual errors? Email [email protected].