Design Learning Challenge Co-Authors
Garreth Heidt
English Teacher, Perkiomen Valley High School Doris Wells-Papanek Director, Design Learning Network
Dr. Richard Feynman's Extraordinary Challenge Insightful snippet from The Observer, May 14, 2011:
One of his [Richard Feynman’s] last public roles was as a member of the Rogers Commission, which investigated the disastrous destruction of the space shuttle Challenger in 1986. A scientific purist, Feynman went out of his way to lambast NASA for its failure to put safety above its desire to show off the prowess of its space shuttle fleet. "For a successful technology, reality must take precedence over public relations, for nature cannot be fooled," he said. Quantum Man: Richard Feynman's Life in Science by Lawrence M Krauss – review (The Observer) By: McKie, Robin. Snippets from The Discovery Channel, The Challenger Disaster Based upon Feynman's book What Do You Care What Other People Think?, the film chronicles Feynman's efforts to uncover the cause of the Challenger explosion by deftly navigating the many vested interests represented on the commission, and his ability to quickly learn everything about the vast complexity of the space shuttle. Feynman was chosen by William Robert Graham, one of his former students and NASA's acting administrator, to lend his skills to the commission. Reluctant to participate, Feynman followed his scientific instincts during the investigation unafraid of raising questions in the face of pressure from several commission members. The Challenger Disaster Clip: Combing Through the Wreckage With unwavering persistence he employed exceptional integrity and scientific logic to determine that two of the shuttle's O-rings failed during launch. In a famous televised hearing, Feynman demonstrated that the O-ring was not as pliable as previously thought by submerging a piece of the O-ring in a glass of ice water. At the investigation's conclusion Feynman produced an essential report, "Appendix F - Personal Observations on the Reliability of the Shuttle," that was presented to President Reagan independent of the commission's official report. Source: The Discovery Channel Snippets from articles published on www.Feynman.com
Feynman was always the inquisitive type; he had to have the facts. To find out what happened to the shuttle, he went straight to the people who put the shuttle together.
![]() He learned many things from these people that would help him to discover the cause of the explosion; and also information that helped him realize what a risky business flying a shuttle really is. NASA officials said that the chance of failure of the shuttle was about 1 in 100,000; Feynman found that this number was actually closer to 1 in 100. He also learned that rubber used to seal the solid rocket booster joints using O-rings, failed to expand when the temperature was at or below 32 degrees F (0 degrees C). The temperature at the time of the Challenger liftoff was 32 degrees F.
Source: Feynman Online
Additional Reference Material Timeline of Events Websites Additional Video References The Challenger Disaster First Look Failure Is The Crack Feynman’s Role on the Commission An Explanation Can Be Found Pressure from the Department of Defense "When We Left Earth" - Excerpt from Discovery Channel Series Feynman: The Pleasure of Finding Out Feynman: No Ordinary Genius |