[jleyank]

As various books describe, this was one of the events that released Feynman from his post war funk and made physics interesting again. He was not interested in producing on demand. He just wanted to do interesting things.

But Bethe’s role was important, protecting Feynman from needing “results”. Having to generate grants to fund other areas of the university is a cross all profs bear.

[pddpro]

The crux is the realization of the absurdity of (unrealistic) expectations. Those who figure it out early are able to find balance. But those who succumb to it generally end up hating themselves and their research because of how inadequate it makes them feel.

I do agree upon the role Bethe played in Feynman's early career and I think both of us concur that we need more Bethes today.