I can’t recall from where I learned of these; thought it was CV but I couldn’t find the link there. Cornell has made available three lectures on quantum physics given by the 93-year old Bethe to folks at his retirement home.
They’re a wonderful overview of the whole of quantum theory, rather than just the quantum mechanics that undergraduates in Australia encounter in rigorous detail. The lack of mathematics means that one gains no facility with calculation whatsoever from watching them, but the concepts are lucid. Also noteworthy is Salpeter and Schweber’s introduction – the latter’s writing on the development of the quantum theory is particularly good.
Haven’t watched it yet, but thanks for that.
“rather than just the quantum mechanics that undergraduates in Australia encounter in rigorous detail”
Do we actually get any rigorous detail? The only time I finally started to understand the principles of quantum mechanics was in Martijn’s honours course. Earlier, it seemed like a jumbled collection of odd experimental results and self contradictory hand waving principles like the mythological “measurement” version of Heisenberg’s uncertainty principle.