"The Feynman Lectures on Physics" saved my life in college.
I was adrift in the physical sciences, not begin able to get my mind wrapped around simple problems in mechanics when a friend wrote down an equation for me (the Lagrangian Equality) and suggested I read Feynman's 3 volume series. I pretty much instantly understood everything that had previously been mysterious in the world of physics. Looking back, I realize that I was learning the right stuff, but didn't have the right vocabulary. Like reading a bad translation of Homer or Virgil. Globally I knew what was going on, but I couldn't do the work myself.
The reason this is relevant is that in the preface to the Feynman Lectures, he talks about the future of science education (remember he wrote this in 1963):
Quote:
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Originally Posted by Richard Feynman
I think, however, that there isn't any solution to this problem of [basic physics] education other than to realize that the best teaching can be done only when there is a direct individual relationship betweek a student and a good teacher - a situation in which the student discusses the ideas, thinks about the things, and talks about the things. It's impossible to learn very much by simply sitting in a lecture, or even by simply doing problems that are assigned. But in our modern times, we have so many students to teach that we have to try to find some substitute for the ideal. Perhaps my lectures can make some contribution. Perhaps in some small place where there are individual teachers and students, they may get some inspiration or some ideas from the lectures. Perhaps they will have fun thinking them through - or going on to develop some of the ideas further.
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In a bit of irony, this is method by which I learned chemistry.