When I saw Christopher Nolan sweep into the foyer of Senate House with his entourage some time before The Dark Knight took over the place a few years ago, I knew he was a wrong un because he had his coat unironically flung over his shoulders like a cape. I will never get back the hours I’ve spent watching his very long films. Tobes and I emerged from the IMAX after watching the Dark Knight deeply wrinkled with our beards down to our feet Van Winkle style
I have always been fascinated by the cultural approval of “maths is dull and incomprehensible”. Some people find it easy, some people find it hard, but no one is shut out completely. Yet in the cultural conversation some influential people make out that it’s a Good Thing that they “can’t do maths”. Personally I find Henry James incomprehensible but I don’t want applause. So there’s that. But one thing we should all collectively be over by now is the Great Man Theory of History, and Christopher Nolan is a very naughty boy for promoting it. (In other words: I agree with everything you say here, and you say it very well 😊)
I loved this piece! It made me laugh all the way through and for me personally was very relatable. I’ve yet to watch Oppenheimer and, perhaps perversely, I am now more inclined to do so. It’s always good to have some criticism to push against as well as out and out praise.
My husband is a physicist and it has always been a source of equal frustration and admiration that he can turn his hand to anything. After 25 years of marriage I am resigned to it! I have realised recently though that I really enjoy listening to the discussions of people much smarter than me about things that I am maybe just on the cusp of being able to understand (although I choose to do this via podcast rather than in person.)
I’ve not read Rhodes’ book but I will definitely be looking it up.
Haha, you're probably roght. I can mostly remember him being interested in grabbity (which I found intriguing, noone else seemed to care about grabbity) but with the details filled in that takes a totally more fascinating turn. So now that you have wised up, is there grabbity on the moon?
Nice! That dichotomy between "science" and "culture" was indeed strange. I wonder why it happened? And when? But it's over now. Or is it? It is, isn't it? For me it was definitely over when your son asked me " Do you know about grabity?". It's just that noone told Christopher Nolan....
Re: Moshe Dayan. I remember your Dad discussing his Dayan documentary with my father, and how difficult it had been to get the balance right. And that was in 1982. I can't imagine anyone would even try and take on something like this now. Nice article. Will check out the Rhodes book.
I enjoyed Oppenheimer but was also disappointed by how it avoided the physics. I guess Nolan wanted to focus on the later political battles and the smear attempts which may or may not have been a reference to our present somewhat fevered atmosphere? I also knew very little about Oppenheimer before this but I had read a biography of Richard Feynman years ago so my expectation was shaped by that.
When I saw Christopher Nolan sweep into the foyer of Senate House with his entourage some time before The Dark Knight took over the place a few years ago, I knew he was a wrong un because he had his coat unironically flung over his shoulders like a cape. I will never get back the hours I’ve spent watching his very long films. Tobes and I emerged from the IMAX after watching the Dark Knight deeply wrinkled with our beards down to our feet Van Winkle style
I have always been fascinated by the cultural approval of “maths is dull and incomprehensible”. Some people find it easy, some people find it hard, but no one is shut out completely. Yet in the cultural conversation some influential people make out that it’s a Good Thing that they “can’t do maths”. Personally I find Henry James incomprehensible but I don’t want applause. So there’s that. But one thing we should all collectively be over by now is the Great Man Theory of History, and Christopher Nolan is a very naughty boy for promoting it. (In other words: I agree with everything you say here, and you say it very well 😊)
I loved this piece! It made me laugh all the way through and for me personally was very relatable. I’ve yet to watch Oppenheimer and, perhaps perversely, I am now more inclined to do so. It’s always good to have some criticism to push against as well as out and out praise.
My husband is a physicist and it has always been a source of equal frustration and admiration that he can turn his hand to anything. After 25 years of marriage I am resigned to it! I have realised recently though that I really enjoy listening to the discussions of people much smarter than me about things that I am maybe just on the cusp of being able to understand (although I choose to do this via podcast rather than in person.)
I’ve not read Rhodes’ book but I will definitely be looking it up.
I don't think I'm ever going to get over this:
"I've seen Pugh’s bazookas so often that they now provoke a sense of happy recognition, like spotting two casual acquaintances in a crowd."
🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣
Haha, you're probably roght. I can mostly remember him being interested in grabbity (which I found intriguing, noone else seemed to care about grabbity) but with the details filled in that takes a totally more fascinating turn. So now that you have wised up, is there grabbity on the moon?
Nice! That dichotomy between "science" and "culture" was indeed strange. I wonder why it happened? And when? But it's over now. Or is it? It is, isn't it? For me it was definitely over when your son asked me " Do you know about grabity?". It's just that noone told Christopher Nolan....
Re: Moshe Dayan. I remember your Dad discussing his Dayan documentary with my father, and how difficult it had been to get the balance right. And that was in 1982. I can't imagine anyone would even try and take on something like this now. Nice article. Will check out the Rhodes book.
I enjoyed Oppenheimer but was also disappointed by how it avoided the physics. I guess Nolan wanted to focus on the later political battles and the smear attempts which may or may not have been a reference to our present somewhat fevered atmosphere? I also knew very little about Oppenheimer before this but I had read a biography of Richard Feynman years ago so my expectation was shaped by that.