Well that is Feynman's version. It is in conflict with neutral eyewitness testimony.
RF had every incentive to spin it that way - even when he wasn't joking <g> but there is no doubt that CalTech settled for a large cash sum over his actions. Feynman's supporters will rationalize that settlement as being a prudent way to avoid a bad image. Who do you believe? Mallove reported the plug incident differently in IE, if I remember correctly. There was an eyewitness account that implicated RF but the most damaging thing is that RF was apparently under restraining order NOT TO ATTEND, due to his past conflicts with Papp (aka harassment). That alone would have sustained a reckless manslaughter charge had CalTech not settled. Regardless of where fault lies - there is a prevalent kind of anti-establishment, anti-intellectual sentiment which is also what Rohner has played-on to raise funds. Now let me say that I am a big admirer of RF and also believe that the chances are good that Papp too was a scammer, since like Rossi, he had a history of legal problems (the 300 mph submarine). But I do think that RF probably "pulled the plug" on his own initiative and was partly responsible for the fatality. The saddest thing of all - for society - would be the off-chance (I'd put it at 30/70) that Papp did find a way to convert the energy of radium to torque in a way that avoided thermodynamic issues. We may never know, since radium is heavily controlled and the Big Labs, and certainly CalTech would start no project that has the side-effect of further impugning RFs reputation, even if society could benefit. -----Original Message----- From: Harry Veeder > Even with best intentions, there is an unintentional homicide charge that > can be used at the discretion of the Stat, depending on culpability. This is > often called Involuntary or Reckless Manslaughter. Feynman did take the > risk of "pulling the plug" even when Papp shouted for him not to do it. Was > that reckless or not? According to Feynman: <<Mr. Papp pulled the plug from the wall, and the fan propeller continued to turn. 'You see, this cord has nothing to do with the engine; it's only supplying power to the instruments,' he said. Well, that was easy. He's got a storage battery inside the engine. 'Do you mind if I hold the plug?' I asked? 'Not at all,' replied Mr. Papp, and he handed it to me. It wasn't very long before he asked me to give me back the plug. 'I'd like to hold it a little longer,' I said, figuring that if I stalled around enough, the damn thing would stop. Pretty soon Mr. Papp was frantic, so I (Richard Feynman) gave him back the plug and he plugged it back into the wall. A few moments later there was a big explosion...>> http://www.museumofhoaxes.com/comments/papparticle2.html Harry
