A theologian, a lawyer, and a rationalist meet at a cocktail party.
"Theology is the most intellectually demanding field," says the theologian. "The concepts are so abstract, and many key texts are obscurely written."
"Oh please," says the lawyer. "I once knew a bright fellow who became a theologian because he couldn't make it as a lawyer. He read and studied and tore his hair out, but he just couldn't get how the law works."
"I've got you both beat," says the rationalist. "Rationalism is so hard, no one's figured it out!"
EDIT: Too bad there's no prize for the lowest rated joke. Sorry if this joke offended people. It wasn't meant to reflect badly on any of the characters or anyone in real life.
I don't think people were offended -- it probably just didn't make them laugh. The punchline's rather weak -- or else I don't get it.
This is one of two autobiographies (along with Ben Franklin's) to actually change my life. I've seen it quoted often on LessWrong, as Feynman has a point of view on life that fits well with the ideas we explore here. In addition to his rationalist side, Feynman also exhibited a wonderfully free sense of humor. Even when working at the Manhattan Project, he joked around and never took himself too seriously. I think our community would benefit if the rationalism here were likewise leavened by some self-deprecating humor.
I will mail the autobiography, at my expense, to whomever posts the best corny rationalist joke in the comments below, as judged by karma voting. Anything goes. Here's a little inspirational prompting:
Edit (April 12th): The winner of the corny rationalist joke contest is this one-liner by SilasBarta, which collected 17 net up-votes:
The runner-up (and my personal favorite) is this exchange by Bo102010, which collected 14 net up-votes. The full comment thread for this one has an explanation and suggested refinements.
Thanks to everybody who contributed and voted on corny jokes.