Suggested preparation: General scientific literacy and an interest in history.
About this course
Trace major changes in modern physics through relativity, quantum theory and the nuclear era. Historical lectures examine scientific ideas alongside education, institutions, secrecy and public life.
Topics and lesson examples
- Lecture 1: Introduction to Einstein, Oppenheimer, Feynman: Physics in the 20th Century
- Lecture 3: Worldviews, Wranglers, and the Making of Theoretical Physicists
- Optional Discussion: The Day After Trinity
- Lecture 21: Teaching Feynman's Tools: The Dispersion of Feynman Diagrams in Postwar Physics
- Lecture 24: The Big Bang, Cosmic Inflation, and the Latest Observations
Course at a glance
| Provider | MIT |
|---|---|
| Platform | YouTube · MIT OpenCourseWare |
| Access | Free Video |
| Level | Beginner — WikiFree study-level assessment |
| Language | English |
| Available lessons | 25 |
| Video duration | 31h 32m · self-paced |
| Details checked | 10 October 2026 |
Preparation and study approach
Suggested preparation: General scientific literacy and an interest in history.
Follow the available videos in sequence, pausing to summarize the main argument or reconstruct a worked example. Keep a short list of assumptions, unfamiliar terms and questions to revisit. Additional reading, problem solving and practice will take time beyond the listed video duration.
Using this video classroom
Select a lesson from the list, or search for a topic. Previous and Next move through the sequence. You can mark lessons complete; progress is stored in this browser without a WikiFree account.
Free access and course scope
The public MIT OpenCourseWare videos in this classroom are free to watch. This listing provides the available playlist recordings, which may include selected lectures, recitations, demonstrations or supporting discussions rather than every component of the original campus course. Textbooks, equipment, software licenses, supervised labs, graded assignments and instructor feedback are not supplied by WikiFree. No purchase is required to watch the videos or use the note-based study approach above.
WikiFree independently organizes these resources for self-paced study. Watching does not award an MIT certificate, academic credit or admission to MIT.
Video provider and credit: MIT OpenCourseWare on YouTube. WikiFree titles, descriptions and cover artwork are independently prepared.
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Beginner
Compare course focus, level and study time
| Course | Level | Focus | Study time |
|---|---|---|---|
| This course — Free MIT Course: History of Modern Physics | Beginner | Lecture 1: Introduction to Einstein, Oppenheimer, Feynman: Physics in the 20th Century · Lecture 3: Worldviews, Wranglers, and the Making of Theoretical Physicists · Optional Discussion: The Day After Trinity | 31h 32m of video; practice time is additional |
| Free MIT Course: Classical Mechanics: Motion, Forces and Energy | Beginner | 8.01SC Classical Mechanics Introduction · 8.0 Week 3 Introduction · 19.6 Rocket Problem 6 - Solution for No External Forces | 18h 22m of video; practice time is additional |
| Free MIT Course: Quantum Physics I: Wave Mechanics and Uncertainty | Intermediate | Quantum mechanics as a framework. Defining linearity · Three dimensional current and conservation · Correspondence principle: amplitude as a function of position | 28h 18m of video; practice time is additional |
| Free MIT Course: History of MIT and Technological Education | Beginner | 1. Introduction, Course Overview, What is Technology? · 3. William Barton Rogers & The Foundational Years, 1861-1896 · 5. MIT and the corporate world in the age of big business, 1890-1930 | 12h 53m of video; practice time is additional |
Provider: MIT. Videos play from the MIT OpenCourseWare channel on YouTube.
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