Feymann’s path integral formulation can’t be that counterfactually large. It’s mathematically equivalent to Schwingers formulation and done several years earlier by Tomonaga.
I don’t buy mathematical equivalence as an argument against, in this case, since the whole point of the path integral formulation is that it’s mathematically equivalent but far simpler conceptually and computationally.
Idk the Nobel prize committee thought it wasn’t significant enough to give out a separate prize 🤷
I am not familiar enough with the particulars to have an informed opinion. My best guess is that in general statements to the effect of “yes X also made scientific contribution A but Y phrased it better’ overestimate the actual scientific counterfactual impact of Y. It generically weighs how well outsiders can understand the work too much vis a vis specialists/insiders who have enough hands-on experience that the value-add of a simpler/neater formalism is not that high (or even a distraction).
The reason Dick Feynmann is so much more well-known than Schwinger and Tomonaga surely must not be entirely unrelated with the magnetic charisma of Dick Feynmann.
Feymann’s path integral formulation can’t be that counterfactually large. It’s mathematically equivalent to Schwingers formulation and done several years earlier by Tomonaga.
I don’t buy mathematical equivalence as an argument against, in this case, since the whole point of the path integral formulation is that it’s mathematically equivalent but far simpler conceptually and computationally.
Idk the Nobel prize committee thought it wasn’t significant enough to give out a separate prize 🤷
I am not familiar enough with the particulars to have an informed opinion. My best guess is that in general statements to the effect of “yes X also made scientific contribution A but Y phrased it better’ overestimate the actual scientific counterfactual impact of Y. It generically weighs how well outsiders can understand the work too much vis a vis specialists/insiders who have enough hands-on experience that the value-add of a simpler/neater formalism is not that high (or even a distraction).
The reason Dick Feynmann is so much more well-known than Schwinger and Tomonaga surely must not be entirely unrelated with the magnetic charisma of Dick Feynmann.