58 min listen
Stephon Alexander on The Autodidactic Universe, String Theory, Matrix Models & Cherns-Simons Gravity
Stephon Alexander on The Autodidactic Universe, String Theory, Matrix Models & Cherns-Simons Gravity
ratings:
Length:
96 minutes
Released:
Jan 19, 2022
Format:
Podcast episode
Description
YouTube link: https://youtu.be/4xlXUEEnZ6s
Sponsors: https://curiositystream.thld.co/TOE for 25% off Curiosity Stream. https://brilliant.org/TOE for 20% off Brilliant. For Algo's podcast https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC9IfRw1QaTglRoX0sN11AQQ and website https://www.algo.com/.
Merch (until end of Oct 2021): https://tinyurl.com/TOEmerch
Patreon: https://patreon.com/curtjaimungal
Crypto: 3CSm4FH6975J8wvKp8x8BSefH6QCVuk736
PayPal: https://tinyurl.com/paypalTOE
Twitter: https://twitter.com/TOEwithCurt
Discord Invite: https://discord.com/invite/kBcnfNVwqs
iTunes: https://podcasts.apple.com/ca/podcast/better-left-unsaid-with-curt-jaimungal/id1521758802
Pandora: https://pdora.co/33b9lfP
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/4gL14b92xAErofYQA7bU4e
Subreddit r/TheoriesOfEverything: https://reddit.com/r/theoriesofeverything
LINKS MENTIONED:
-Fear of a Black Universe: https://amzn.to/3rxGFcj
-The Jazz of Physics: https://amzn.to/3qR7KIx
-Brian Keating's podcast with Stephon Alexander: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ehEbrD42U_g
TIMESTAMPS:
00:00:00 Introduction
00:04:46 BTS banter and framing the conversation
00:06:05 The Autodidactic Universe
00:18:54 BMN vs BFSS (type IIA String Theory)
00:26:45 Lee Smolin's evolutionary model of the universe as black hole spawn
00:29:06 Curt posits a link between the matrix models and particles, rather than laws
00:30:36 Explaining D-branes and their dimensionality
00:36:02 When watching TOE, it's okay to be confused
00:36:55 Chern-Simons Gravity
00:49:03 Anomaly Cancellations
00:51:43 Klein Gordon equation and renormalization
00:55:55 What is a Theory of Everything? What are the conditions?
00:59:15 Stephon tells a story about Curt's brother's "genius" (they were in grad school together)
01:02:40 Doubting your own mathematical abilities
01:06:02 Advice for those in their 20s / 30s / 40s learning String Theory without a math background
01:10:24 Brian Keating is no friend to Stephon (kidding)
01:11:08 How does learning math / physics change with age?
01:15:14 Anomalies and purposeful mistakes leading to insights
01:18:02 No Go theorems (and AdS / CFT correspondence)
01:23:26 Why does the Graviton have Spin 2?
01:25:41 There are gems in Geometric Unity
01:29:12 Opinion on Stephen Wolfram's theory / project on physics
01:31:05 Future plans for TOE: Geometric Algebra and Categorical Unification
* * *
Just wrapped (April 2021) a documentary called Better Left Unsaid http://betterleftunsaidfilm.com on the topic of "when does the left go too far?" Visit that site if you'd like to watch it.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Sponsors: https://curiositystream.thld.co/TOE for 25% off Curiosity Stream. https://brilliant.org/TOE for 20% off Brilliant. For Algo's podcast https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC9IfRw1QaTglRoX0sN11AQQ and website https://www.algo.com/.
Merch (until end of Oct 2021): https://tinyurl.com/TOEmerch
Patreon: https://patreon.com/curtjaimungal
Crypto: 3CSm4FH6975J8wvKp8x8BSefH6QCVuk736
PayPal: https://tinyurl.com/paypalTOE
Twitter: https://twitter.com/TOEwithCurt
Discord Invite: https://discord.com/invite/kBcnfNVwqs
iTunes: https://podcasts.apple.com/ca/podcast/better-left-unsaid-with-curt-jaimungal/id1521758802
Pandora: https://pdora.co/33b9lfP
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/4gL14b92xAErofYQA7bU4e
Subreddit r/TheoriesOfEverything: https://reddit.com/r/theoriesofeverything
LINKS MENTIONED:
-Fear of a Black Universe: https://amzn.to/3rxGFcj
-The Jazz of Physics: https://amzn.to/3qR7KIx
-Brian Keating's podcast with Stephon Alexander: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ehEbrD42U_g
TIMESTAMPS:
00:00:00 Introduction
00:04:46 BTS banter and framing the conversation
00:06:05 The Autodidactic Universe
00:18:54 BMN vs BFSS (type IIA String Theory)
00:26:45 Lee Smolin's evolutionary model of the universe as black hole spawn
00:29:06 Curt posits a link between the matrix models and particles, rather than laws
00:30:36 Explaining D-branes and their dimensionality
00:36:02 When watching TOE, it's okay to be confused
00:36:55 Chern-Simons Gravity
00:49:03 Anomaly Cancellations
00:51:43 Klein Gordon equation and renormalization
00:55:55 What is a Theory of Everything? What are the conditions?
00:59:15 Stephon tells a story about Curt's brother's "genius" (they were in grad school together)
01:02:40 Doubting your own mathematical abilities
01:06:02 Advice for those in their 20s / 30s / 40s learning String Theory without a math background
01:10:24 Brian Keating is no friend to Stephon (kidding)
01:11:08 How does learning math / physics change with age?
01:15:14 Anomalies and purposeful mistakes leading to insights
01:18:02 No Go theorems (and AdS / CFT correspondence)
01:23:26 Why does the Graviton have Spin 2?
01:25:41 There are gems in Geometric Unity
01:29:12 Opinion on Stephen Wolfram's theory / project on physics
01:31:05 Future plans for TOE: Geometric Algebra and Categorical Unification
* * *
Just wrapped (April 2021) a documentary called Better Left Unsaid http://betterleftunsaidfilm.com on the topic of "when does the left go too far?" Visit that site if you'd like to watch it.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Released:
Jan 19, 2022
Format:
Podcast episode
Titles in the series (100)
Steven Pinker on the radical left, Jordan Peterson, Chomsky, and Sam Harris: What you're seeing is un-edited, raw footage for the imminent documentary Better Left Unsaid (http://betterleftunsaidfilm.com). Visit that site if you'd like to contribute to getting the film made. Every dollar helps tremendously. The conversation is bet... by Theories of Everything with Curt Jaimungal