project tuva
project tuva uses silverlight to show the film (left) and notes by mit' s robert jaffe (right) .
under the title project tuva, microsoft has posted a series of classic physics lectures by manhattan project collaborator richard feynman for free on the web, and in the space of an hour they' ve become one of my all time favourite things .
all the adventures that the two american fans of tuva met during their desperate attempts to visit the center of asia are described in ralph leighton’s book “ tuva or bust ” .
the name “tuva” was chosen because of feynman’s lifelong fascination with the small russian republic of tuva, located in the heart of asia. unfortunately, he was never allowed to travel to tuva during his lifetime, with permission from the russian government coming the day following his death .
project tuva is an enhanced video player platform released by microsoft research to host the messenger lectures series titled the character of physical law given at cornell university by richard feynman in 1964 and recorded by the bbc .
michelle feynman, whose father was richard feynman (1918 - 1988), laureate of nobel prize for physics, and one of the participants in the atom bomb project, came to tuva on june 8 .
project tuva is an interactive video experience that makes learning about science relevant and exciting through annotations authored by researchers and subject - matter experts. project tuva launched with richard feynman’s messenger series lectures, a cornerstone set of seven talks at cornell university in 1964. these videos are enhanced with a number of different layers of contextual information: fully - searchable transcripts and captions, time - synchronized contextual “extras” that link to related web resources, the ability to take notes while watching, integration with microsoft research’s own amazing world wide telescope project, and more .
in fact it took gates more than 20 years to bring tuva to life, since the initial thought that the lectures could help influence a lot more people. the microsoft co - founder owns the rights to the seven lectures in the series, labeled “the character of physical law, ” which have been made available via the website hosted by microsoft research. gates indicated that the purpose of project tuva was to get kids excited about physics and science. the name of the project was inspired by the russian republic of tuva, a personal and lifelong fascination of feynman .
this video demonstrates how easy it is to join the partners in learning network and then have access to a wide variety of ree tools. one in particular called project tuva allows the user to experience complex physics concepts through classic lectures from famous physicists .
updated / corrected: 04 / 21: microsoft acquired the rights to a famed filmed lecture series by nobel prize - winning physicist richard feynman and posted them online for all to see via its project tuva site. the series includes seven lectures by dr. feynman speaking at cornell university in 1964. however, dr. feynman taught an even more famous series of lectures as well beginning in 1961, the the feynman lectures on physics taught at caltech to undergraduates from 1961–64. happy 50 - year anniversary! the project tuva site now includes commentary from mit physics professor robert jaffe .
tuva online reports that michelle feynman, daughter of richard feynman, has realized her father’s ambition of visiting tuva. the full article is at their www site (urltoken). we reproduce the bulk of the article by dina oyun, translated by heda jindrak, here .
the messenger series contains five classic lectures on the laws of nature, and project tuva provides interactive transcripts, time - linked commentaries, and the ability to take notes pinned to specific timestamps. the notes even show up on a global timeline for each lecture, and can be exported as a separate commentary .
feynman never managed to get to tuva. he died in 1988. instead of him, the trip was realized by his daughter michelle .
i met the amazing shafeen charania in san diego as well, and in one of our discussions, he told me about a very cool project he was connected to in microsoft’s education products division. apparently, bill gates was so enchanted by richard feynman’s messenger series of lectures that he acquired the rights so they could be shared broadly. when he asked the microsoft research group what to do with them, they promptly created project tuva, a nifty annotation and information surround to accompany the videos .
bill gates is one of the people whom you would invariably expect to find science fun and interesting. but gates also believes that with the necessary catalysts so can a lot more students – students destined to become the technology innovators of tomorrow, if only they were nudged in the right direction early on. this is what project tuva is all about, making sure that the right nudge is in place. available free of charge thanks to microsoft research and microsoft chairman bill gates, project tuva is a silverlight - based website designed to share with the general public an acclaimed lecture series held by physicist richard feynman from cornell university in 1964 .
project tuva was a collaborative research project with bill gates in 2009 demonstrating the potential of interactive video learning by highlighting the “core scientific concepts” of richard feynman’s messenger lectures series. upon release, the first of the seven lectures: the law of gravitation – an example of physical law, was brought to life with interactive visualizations, links to searchable transcripts, integrated note taking capabilities and other features. the silverlight application was retired in 2016, but the richard feynman videos are still available below. learn more .
with microsoft research hosting a copy anyone willing to download the silverlight plugin (or moonlight for linux) can hold a feynman party. one bonsu of project tuva being built in silverlight is that viewers do more than just watch the films. you can search them add notes, and now, read the written remarks added by jaffe .
the two friends founded the organization “friends of tuva in america”, they observed tuvan national holidays, and performed virtual travels through the streets of kyzyl or chadan .
project tuva was bill gates' baby. the story goes, about 20 years ago, gates went on vacation with a friend in which they decided to spend an evening watching videos from a university catalog: the feynman series. in his introductory video to the project tuva, gates called the feynman lectures ,
the best science lectures i' ve ever seen... he makes physics fun. some people might laugh at that phrase, but i' m not kidding when i say it .
gates spent time hunting down and acquiring the rights to the videos and by 2009, the internet made it possible for gates to post the feynman lectures where they live today on the microsoft research website at urltoken
by visiting project tuva, users will also notice that the content is delivered through an enhanced silverlight video player. it was curtis wong, a principal researcher with microsoft research, who took the viewing experience to the next level by allowing users to perform a variety of tasks such as search lectures for particular but also take notes and synchronize them with the video stream (video annotation) and interact with hyperlinks to related web content .
on june 10, michelle feynman met with the head of the republic, sholban kara - ool. during the bbc interview, the tuvan premier answered questions on the subject of why tuva is so attractive to hundreds of foreigners, and how to utilize the energy and potential of the people, who are “obsessed” with tuva like feynman, for the good of the republic and for its development .
project tuva was unveiled last week. it’s named after the central asian country feynman famously and somewhat quixotically wanted to visit before he died. (he never got permission from the soviet union, of which it was then a part, as his friend ralph leighton chronicled in his 1991 book tuva or bust !) the site uses microsoft’s silverlight software, a web - based multimedia player similar to adobe’s flash platform, to showcase a series of lectures that feynman gave at cornell university in 1964. the lectures were filmed by the bbc for broadcast in the united kingdom, and weren’t available to web viewers until microsoft chairman bill gates, a longtime feynman admirer, purchased the rights and asked microsoft research to find a way to host digital versions online .
what makes microsoft research’s new project tuva website so wonderful is not just that it puts some of feynman’s most famous physics lectures online, but that it invites viewers to explore the subject matter in exactly the way feynman would have recommended. the caltech scientist was famous in part for for his lucid way of explaining things like gravity and quantum mechanics—so the lectures certainly stand on their own as educational set - pieces. but the transcripts, note - taking tools, and multimedia “extras” that now show up alongside the videos make the material even more entertaining, accessible, and, well, explorable .
for the concepts behind project tuva, wong told me by phone this week, he reached back to three projects he led in the mid - 1990s. the first was an interactive tour, published on cd - rom, of the barnes foundation’s collection of impressionist and post - impressionist paintings outside philadelphia. the second was another cd - rom about leonardo da vinci, built around a digital facsimile of one of leonardo’s notebooks, the codex leicester, which also happens to be owned by bill gates. (see this may 2008 column for more on those two projects .) the third was an interactive video documentary, developed as a demonstration for pbs but never aired, in which the program’s closed - captioning information was interspersed with hyperlinks that led to related articles in microsoft’s encarta encyclopedia .
feynman and his friend, mathematics teacher ralph leighton, who were both passionate admirers of tva, bombarded intourist and the academy of sciences with petitions; they sent letters to tuvan addresses found in ecyclopedias; they wrote messages with the help of a tuvan - mongolian - russian phrase book and a russian - english dictionary; they attacked moscow radio, which broadcast in english, with a single plea: “help us get to tuva. ” .
each project represented a step in the development of what wong calls his information learning model for interactive media; it’s also been called the “contextual pyramid” or “ecr, ” for engagement, context, and reference. it’s a simple idea: first, you hook someone—whether they’re using a cd - rom, watching a video, or visiting a website or a museum—with a story or an object that produces an immediate emotional impact. then, at the very moment they’re most engaged and curious, you offer them context that broadens their understanding. finally, you provide a deep reference layer, for the people who get so intrigued that they want to know a lot more .
“no one was more adept at making science fun and interesting than richard feynman, ” gates explained. “more than 20 years after first seeing them, these are still some of the best science lectures i’ve heard. feynman worked hard during his life to popularize science, so i’m sure he’d be thrilled that now anyone, anywhere in the world, can just click a button and experience his lectures. ”
“there is a lot of public interest in building innovative educational resources online, ” wong added. “this is an opportunity to take some existing educational content and utilize software and the wealth of resources available on the web to create a richer learning experience. and because people can annotate the lectures with their own comments and links to related resources, i expect this experience to become richer and richer over time. ”
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bill gates discusses how he and a friend discovered dr. richard feynman’s messenger lecture series in the 1980s, browsing a university library for something interesting to learn while on vacation. from that moment on he became a big fan of this lecture series that makes science fun and approachable. he later bought limited rights to stream the lectures and as a result, we continue to host this brilliant series of seven videos. we hope you enjoy feynman’s ability to speak on the “character of physical law” showcasing his unique blend of humor and clarity and that it inspires future generations to learn about science. learn more .
dr. richard feynman discusses how the discovery of the physical laws of gravity were foundational to our understanding of nature, marking the beginnings of modern science .
dr. richard feynman explains how the universal language of mathematics functions as the means of applying reason and logic to understanding nature .
dr. richard feynman explains how understanding the conservation principles found in physics is like putting together the pieces of a jigsaw puzzle .
dr. richard feynman discusses how appearances can be deceiving in discerning the true nature of symmetry .
dr. richard feynman explores the philosophical and scientific constructs around the progression of time .
dr. richard feynman explores the role of uncertainty and why the future is unpredictable .
dr. richard feynman discusses the nature of scientific discovery and the philosophical implications of ever reaching a point when there’s nothing left to discover .
over the decades, feynman' s lectures have taken on a legendary status. corrected per note below: the caltech lectures were also edited and illustrated to become the basis of one of feynman' s most enduring books, the feynman lectures on physics: the definitive and extended edition, first published in 1964 with the latest edition published in 2005 .
feynman made the laws of physics entertaining. the commentary by jaffe adds another layer of character. for instance, in the first video, just after feynman is introduced, jaffe notes :
if you haven' t heard feynman' s voice before, his strong
new yawk
accent may come as a surprise. when feynman started doing theoretical physics, it was a pretty esoteric affair, still dominated by europeans, most, but not all, native german speakers. dick cultivated a
bad boy
image from the start - - remember his safe - cracking at los alamos - - and the more irreverent he was, the stronger his accent became .
this week the lectures are back in the spotlight. jaffe explains in one of his comments :
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the laws of physics that feynman has been describing are just as fresh and powerful as they were in 1964, or indeed decades earlier, when they were first discovered. in contrast a 50 - year - old lecture series in biology, chemistry, computer science or the social sciences would be of historical interest only. for better or worse, the laws of physics don' t change (no matter how much we may sometimes wish they would). now, as in feynman' s day, they form the basis of all the other sciences, and feynman' s explanations are as fresh as any lectures in a classroom today .
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they' re brilliant. feynman has a lovely delivery that sweeps you along, together with a depth of understanding that allows him to strip a difficult concept down to its simple foundations, without needing to dumb it down. he just knows the right door to open in order to usher you quickly into his world .
even if you' ve little interest in the topics under discussion, it' s well worth spending a few hours in feynman' s company for the entertainment value. he' s a genuinely funny man able to express his science with a poet' s turn of phrase .
what' s really special though is how microsoft has presented these lectures. it could simply have posted them on the site and everybody would have been happy - after all, bill gates used his own money to track them down, buy the rights and digitise them. instead though, they' ve been enhanced with some truly wonderful technology .
there' s optional audio commentary from physics professors and experts, text commentary for the hearing impaired, and an ability to add your own notes to specific sections of the lecture. a timeline beneath the video allows you to easily spin to the section you want, but it' s also peppered with additional content, including detailed information on people and theories briefly mentioned by feynman. there' s definitions of natural laws, written formulas and, in a couple of cases, an explanation of a joke you may not have gotten .
also superb is that whenever feynman mentions a constellation or spatial anomaly a link will take you to microsoft' s worldwide telescope so you can go and take a look for yourself. it' s so brilliantly designed and wonderfully implemented it' s quite obviously a labour of love. it' s also precisely how i want to see historical information presented and updated .
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“i don’t know what’s the matter with people: they don’t learn by understanding, they learn by some other way—by rote or something, ” physicist richard feynman once said. “their knowledge is so fragile! ”
maybe feynman’s brain was big enough to simply “learn by understanding”—sucking in and comprehending complex realities in a single glance. but what i think he actually meant was that people should learn by exploring and investigating, rather than just memorizing. only then would their knowledge be useful and durable .
“i said we could host them, but we could also do something much more interesting with it, ” says curtis wong, who leads a small division of microsoft research called the next media research group. i’ve known wong for years and i make a point of following his work, because he’s always got some great new idea about how to take a cultural resource and increase its value through multimedia technology .
i’d love to explain all the lovingly crafted ways in which the barnes and leonardo cd - roms and the pbs demo implemented this model, but it would take too long. jump back to 2008 or so: as soon as wong found out about bill gates’ quest to put the feynman lectures online, he realized that
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bill gates has bought the rights to richard feynman’s lectures, the character of physical law, and has put them on the web with the help of the microsoft research team. the historic lectures with lots of annotations and related content can be seen at urltoken .
“no one was more adept at making science fun and interesting than richard feynman, ” said gates. “more than 20 years after first seeing them, these are still some of the best science lectures i’ve heard. feynman worked hard during his life to popularize science, so i’m sure he’d be thrilled that now anyone, anywhere in the world, can just click a button and experience his lectures. ”
feynman was one of the most popular scientists of the 20th century, equally regarded for his scientific insights as well as his ability to convey his enthusiasm for science through his lectures and writings. he shared the nobel prize in physics in 1965 and was also known for his quirky sense of humor and eccentric and wide - ranging interests .
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she is accompanied by ilona vinogradova, a bbc correspondent. this visit is expected to result in a radio program about the dream of the scientist – to visit the republic in the center of asia, which feynman had been trying to visit for almost 20 years .
during this visit, michelle feynman met with throat singers, and with relatives of the famous folklorist ondar kishchalaevich darymaa (he became the first tuvan whom the two friends contacted, when they found his address in a scientific publication after a long search in various libraries) .
this is a very interesting way to re - experience these lectures, or to view for the first time. either way, it’s one of the best ways to see a true genius explaining some of the most important ideas in science .
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project tuva was a collaborative research project between bill gates and microsoft research in 2009 demonstrating the potential value of an interactive video player platform for learning . the platform hosted the messenger lectures series titled the character of physical law given at cornell university by richard feynman in 1964 and recorded by the bbc . according to his video introduction , gates saw the lectures when he was younger . he enjoyed the physics concepts and feynman 's lecturing style , and later acquired the rights to make the video available to the public . he hopes that this will encourage others to make educational content available for free . project tuva was officially released at the microsoft research faculty summit , july 13 and 14 , 2009 . at its inception , project tuva included video of the lectures with expert commentary from stephen d. ellis of the university of washington and the student physics society at the university of washington . the silverlight application also includes text search over transcripts ( which are shown synchronized with the video ) , support for time-stamped note-taking , and " extras " that complement the video with external links , formulae , interactive demonstrations , and embedded worldwide telescope astronomical objects and tours . upon release the extras and commentary were only available for the first of the seven lectures : the law of gravitation - an example of physical law . in april 2011 , tuva was updated with new content and extras curated by mit jane and otto morningstar professor of physics robert jaffe . then , in july 2016 , the project tuva silverlight application was retired . the videos are still available on the microsoft research website . the project gets its name from a late-life goal of feynman 's ; namely , that he would someday travel to the russian land of tuva . unfortunately , he was never allowed to travel to tuva during his lifetime , with permission from the russian government coming the day following his death . the name then invokes the idea that a dream of his is now accomplished – not , of course , traveling to tuva , but rather that the world may now be able to appreciate physics the way he did . the original design for project tuva was carried out by artefact . stimulant provided refinements and developed the experience in silverlight . 
project tuva was a collaborative research project between bill gates and microsoft research in 2009 demonstrating the potential value of an interactive video player platform for learning. the platform hosted the messenger lectures series titled the character of physical law given at cornell university by richard feynman in 1964 and recorded by the bbc. according to his video introduction, gates saw the lectures when he was younger. he enjoyed the physics concepts and feynman's lecturing style, and later acquired the rights to make the video available to the public. he hopes that this will encourage others to make educational content available for free. project tuva was officially released at the microsoft research faculty summit, july 13 and 14, 2009. at its inception, project tuva included video of the lectures with expert commentary from stephen d. ellis of the university of washington and the student physics society at the university of washington. the silverlight application also includes text search over transcripts (which are shown synchronized with the video), support for time-stamped note-taking, and " extras " that complement the video with external links, formulae, interactive demonstrations, and embedded worldwide telescope astronomical objects and tours. upon release the extras and commentary were only available for the first of the seven lectures: the law of gravitation - an example of physical law. in april 2011, tuva was updated with new content and extras curated by mit jane and otto morningstar professor of physics robert jaffe. then, in july 2016, the project tuva silverlight application was retired. the videos are still available on the microsoft research website. the project gets its name from a late-life goal of feynman's; namely, that he would someday travel to the russian land of tuva. unfortunately, he was never allowed to travel to tuva during his lifetime, with permission from the russian government coming the day following his death. the name then invokes the idea that a dream of his is now accomplished – not, of course, traveling to tuva, but rather that the world may now be able to appreciate physics the way he did. the original design for project tuva was carried out by artefact. stimulant provided refinements and developed the experience in silverlight.
project tuva was a collaborative research project between bill gates and microsoft research in 2009 demonstrating the potential value of an interactive video player platform for learning. the platform hosted the messenger lectures series titled the character of physical law given at cornell university by richard feynman in 1964 and recorded by the bbc. according to his video introduction, gates saw the lectures when he was younger. he enjoyed the physics concepts and feynman's lecturing style, and later acquired the rights to make the video available to the public. he hopes that this will encourage others to make educational content available for free. project tuva was officially released at the microsoft research faculty summit, july 13 and 14, 2009. at its inception, project tuva included video of the lectures with expert commentary from stephen d. ellis of the university of washington and the student physics society at the university of washington. the silverlight application also includes text search over transcripts (which are shown synchronized with the video), support for time-stamped note-taking, and " extras " that complement the video with external links, formulae, interactive demonstrations, and embedded worldwide telescope astronomical objects and tours. upon release the extras and commentary were only available for the first of the seven lectures: the law of gravitation - an example of physical law. in april 2011, tuva was updated with new content and extras curated by mit jane and otto morningstar professor of physics robert jaffe. then, in july 2016, the project tuva silverlight application was retired. the videos are still available on the microsoft research website. the project gets its name from a late-life goal of feynman's; namely, that he would someday travel to the russian land of tuva. unfortunately, he was never allowed to travel to tuva during his lifetime, with permission from the russian government coming the day following his death. the name then invokes the idea that a dream of his is now accomplished – not, of course, traveling to tuva, but rather that the world may now be able to appreciate physics the way he did. the original design for project tuva was carried out by artefact. stimulant provided refinements and developed the experience in silverlight.