No doubt there are better examples. But him choosing the Social Network just shows the kinda guy he is. Plus the point of Oppenheimer went right over his head
It is, it's about the creation of Facebook hence the title. The movie itself is very well made and I highly recommend it, but using it as an example... yikes.
I mean watching a bunch of dudes making something did inspire me to make something, but I can think of tons of other shows that does the same without the main character screwing over a lot of people to get where he wants.
This movies takeaway wasn’t good or bad about physics. It was more that nature is a neutral force and humans will always use it to enact awful displays of “justice”. The movie was as much a warning about nuclear weapons as it was a warning that humans will do anything to further their own goals.
I remember hearing similar sentiments from a couple of decades ago about nuclear physics and engineering in particular. Because they’re not seen as cutting edge fields anymore, they have a hard time competing against other sciences and engineering disciplines. When you factor in computer science as well, things look even more grim.
It’s not new, though. The excellent textbook Feynman on Physics was part of an effort by CalTech to make physics more attractive to the smartest students. Their approach was to get Richard Feynman to teach Physics 101 for a year.
I’m not sure CalTech ever had a legitimate problem with attracting brilliant students to study physics, to be honest, and I suspect that if there was a desperate need for nuclear science the government would be pretty free with scholarships and research grants.
I haven’t watched the movie yet, but I am very familiar with the story. I can’t imagine a biography of Oppenheimer in particular would make someone want to go into physics. Maybe a biography of Feynman would, though. Marie Curie. All I can remember about Neil’s Bohr at the moment is that his department made him go into theoretical physics because he was ridiculously clumsy and kept breaking lab equipment. I’m sure there’s others.
Oh yeah, let's use the Nazi opportunist Oppenheimer as an inspiration so we can sweep the fact that the USA recruited him from the rubbles of the German Reich because they were so impressed with his cruise missiles.