QED: The Strange Theory of Light and Matter
QED: The Strange Theory of Light and Matter by Richard Feynmanby Richard Feynman
Shares rank 19 of 50 popular science books by recommenders
People recommend it as an approachable, descriptive introduction to quantum electrodynamics that needs no heavy mathematics and suits readers with high school understanding.
People recommend it as an approachable, descriptive introduction to quantum electrodynamics that needs no heavy mathematics and suits readers with high school understanding.
5 people gave an opinion
- recommend it
- 5
- criticize it
- 0
- approval share
- 100%
Recommended in 5 of 13 months
- November 2025: not recommended
- December 2025: not recommended
- January 2026: recommended
- February 2026: recommended
- March 2026: not recommended
- April 2026: not recommended
- May 2026: not recommended
- June 2026: recommended
- July 2026: recommended
- August 2026: not recommended
- September 2026: not recommended
- October 2026: recommended
- November 2026: not recommended (month in progress)
Why it doesn’t carry the badge
- 5 people recommend itNeeds 10 or more, not met.
- Nobody criticizes itNeeds 2 to 1 or better, met.
- Recommended in 5 of 13 monthsNeeds 4 or more, met.
The same three rules apply to every product, and the badge can’t be bought. How the badge works
What people say about it
The reasons people give, with the number of comments that give each one. Open a reason to read what they said.
Why people recommend it
Each mark is one comment
Accessible introduction without heavy mathematics
“It covers the topic in-depth in a descriptive, rather than mathematical way”
Comment from 5 Jul 2026 in “Intuitive Quantum Electrodynamics” “It's approachable for anyone with high school understanding”
Comment from 4 Jul 2026 in “Astrophysicists Puzzle over Webb's New Universe” “Feynman's book QED gives a good intro”
Comment from 2 Jan 2026 in “Cameras and Lenses”
Other popular science books people recommend
The four most recommended other popular science books, with the same counts for each, so you can compare like for like. The tick on each bar marks the 2 to 1 line the badge needs.
| Product | Recommend | Criticize | Approval | Months | Owned | Badge |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gödel, Escher, Bachby Douglas Hofstadter | 47 | 10 | 82% | 10 | — | Approved |
| Thinking, Fast and Slowby Daniel Kahneman | 17 | 13 | 57% | 9 | — | — |
| Thinking in Systemsby Donella Meadows | 17 | 0 | 100% | 8 | — | Approved |
| The Selfish Geneby Richard Dawkins | 14 | 5 | 74% | 8 | — | Approved |
| QED: The Strange Theory of Light and Matterby Richard FeynmanThis page | 5 | 0 | 100% | 5 | — | — |
What people said
All 6 comments that mention it, newest first. Each links to the original comment.
“I loved the book QED: The Strange Theory of Light and Matter by Feynman as a child”
“It covers the topic in-depth in a descriptive, rather than mathematical way”
“It's approachable for anyone with high school understanding”
“a formally verified web frontend”
“This criticism is maybe valid for QED-- I am not sure what fraction of that he was really involved in”
“Feynman's book QED gives a good intro”
Counts come from 1,795,640 Hacker News comments, November 2025 to November 2026. How we count. Report a mistake.