Siddhartha by Herman Hesse [2] for contributing to helping me come out of excessive questioning of everything (philosophy) to science that helps towards actually answering the questions answerable.
Feynman Lectures in Physics [3] and Surely You're Joking Mr. Feynman [4], with no need to explain "how". :-)
The Ghost in the Atom [5] for explaining varied views on the nature of science, especially Quantum Mechanics, and what goes in the minds of the top-notch scientists working on these problems.
Parsing Techniques by Dick Grune [6] for teaching me the fundamentals of computer science and helping me proceed with my deep interest in Artificial Intelligence.
[1] https://www.amazon.com/Minds-Brains-Machines-Mind-Matters/dp...
[2] https://www.amazon.com/Siddhartha-Hermann-Hesse/dp/161382378...
[3] http://www.feynmanlectures.caltech.edu/
[4] https://www.amazon.com/Surely-Feynman-Adventures-Curious-Cha...
[5] https://www.amazon.com/Ghost-Atom-Discussion-Mysteries-Quant...
[6] https://www.amazon.com/Parsing-Techniques-Practical-Monograp...
[1] http://www.amazon.com/Surely-Feynman-Adventures-Curious-Char...
[2]http://www.amazon.com/What-Care-Other-People-Think/dp/039332...
Feynman's entire approach to life seems to be to "play" with it. He's an expert troll, the original pick up artist, nobel prize winning physicist, guest biologist, expert safe cracker, computer programmer, etc. His stories are fantastic, and a reminder that life is a ride. You should enjoy the ride, above all else.
Or more likely because the situation, context and Feynman's actions were highly dissimilar. If you haven't had a chance, take a look at the story in the original source, it's a lot more detailed than an aside in a PG essay.
http://www.amazon.com/Surely-Feynman-Adventures-Curious-Char...
http://www.amazon.com/Surely-Feynman-Adventures-Curious-Char...
"Surely You're Joking, Mr. Feynman!", http://www.amazon.com/Surely-Feynman-Adventures-Curious-Char...
"What Do You Care What Other People Think?" http://www.amazon.com/What-Care-Other-People-Think/dp/039332...
He's of course a good writer. But if you didn't know any better, you'd think him to be a sort of adult-Pollyanna, someone of innocent optimism and immense curiosity. It reminds me a lot of reading Woz's autobiography, in fact; I guess it makes sense that this characteristic of constantly questioning and challenging the norms is what leads to great innovation.
In a chapter from "Surely You're Joking", Feynman describes how he was curious about the accepted fact that dogs have a much better sense of smell than humans. So he went around sniffing objects held by humans, even getting down on the carpet on his hands and knees to see if he could smell his own footprints: http://goo.gl/WBbw1
It's an amusing story, but one that is very telling of Feynman's insatiable curiosity and scientific mind. He did these smell-experiments not as a child, but when he was a scientist at Los Alamos.
ObAmazon: http://www.amazon.com/What-Care-Other-People-Think/dp/039332...
ObAmazon: http://www.amazon.com/Surely-Feynman-Adventures-Curious-Char...
http://www.amazon.com/Surely-Feynman-Adventures-Curious-Char...
As far as mailing lists go, I also would be interested in this.
This is an excerpt from the awesome book "Surely you're joking Mr. Feyman" The whole book is full of short anecdotes like this and is an amazing read.
http://www.amazon.com/Surely-Feynman-Adventures-Curious-Char...
Edit: spelling
Read both in their entirety.
You will gain a new perspective on those who make great achievements. They experience the same self-doubt you do! Feynman notes in dismay that other researchers at Los Alamos effortlessly solved problems mentally after he'd spend days working out the solution. He also mentions when he starts in academia, he was overwhelmed by an academic paper being discussed at a conference because he didn't understand it. Richard Hamming notes a few extra pressures, specifically the pressure to solve great problems instead of small problems, and how this pressure ruins your work
Both books have similar lessons. Feynman says it implicitly, and Hamming says it explicitly: Keep modern, work with others, understand the twists and turns of your field, think about the future, and solve the small problems. You can't force yourself to do great things, but you can stack the deck in your favor.
[0] http://www.cs.virginia.edu/~robins/YouAndYourResearch.html
[1] http://www.amazon.com/Surely-Feynman-Adventures-Curious-Char...
