Into The Impossible

  Rebecca Smethurst is known as Dr. Becky on her popular YouTube channel. She is an astrophysicist and science communicator, answering questions about physics and astronomy in engaging videos. Dr. Becky is also the author of the new book “Space at the Speed of Light: The secrets of 14 billion years for people short on time.” She joins me on this episode of INTO THE IMPOSSIBLE to discuss her popularity and the importance of communicating science effectively. Subscribe to my mailing list to receive show notes for this episode: https://briankeating.com/mailing_list.php 04:22 Science communication isn’t “dumbing down” science. 10:07 The value of citizen science to discovery. 16:44 Working towards gender equality in physics. 24:24 Balancing the work of being a minority in academia. 31:36 Dr. Becky explains galaxy quenching. 37:00 The art and title of Dr. Becky’s physics book. 42:22 What ethical will does Dr. Becky plan to leave? 46:03 What knowledge would Dr. Becky put on her monolith? 49:39 What did Dr.

  Well, well, well…now you’re thirsty? Podcast host Jordan Harbinger brings his unique and trenchant expertise to this episode of INTO THE IMPOSSIBLE. He shares invaluable advice from a 16 year career in podcasting. He had me on his podcast (https://www.youtube.com/c/THEJORDANHARBINGERSHOW) recently and I’m thrilled to have the chance to return the favor. His tips for how to get interview subjects off-script, when is too early to advertise, and why you should treat your audience like family are priceless to podcasters everywhere. Subscribe to my mailing list to receive show notes for this episode: https://briankeating.com/mailing_list.php 00:10:19 Being a Wall Street lawyer prepared Jordan for podcasting. 00:18:08 The art of interviewing controversial people. 00:29:43 How to elicit good storytelling. 00:40:53 Earning the trust of your audience. 00:48:35 “What I truly love is having the conversations.” 00:56:20 Self-promotion isn’t inherently selfish. 01:08:52 What ethical will does Jordan Harbinger pla

  Heather Lynn Mac Donald is an American conservative political commentator, essayist, and attorney. She is a Thomas W. Smith Fellow of the Manhattan Institute and a contributing editor of the institute’s City Journal. She has written numerous editorials and is the author of several books. Brian Keating’s most popular Youtube Videos: Eric Weinstein: https://youtu.be/YjsPb3kBGnk?sub_confirmation=1 Jim Simons: https://youtu.be/6fr8XOtbPqM?sub_confirmation=1 Noam Chomsky: https://youtu.be/Iaz6JIxDh6Y?sub_confirmation=1 Sabine Hossenfelder: https://youtu.be/V6dMM2-X6nk?sub_confirmation=1 Sarah Scoles: https://youtu.be/apVKobWigMw Stephen Wolfram: https://youtu.be/nSAemRxzmXM Brian Keating’s most popular Youtube Videos: Eric Weinstein: https://youtu.be/YjsPb3kBGnk?sub_confirmation=1 Jim Simons: https://youtu.be/6fr8XOtbPqM?sub_confirmation=1 Noam Chomsky: https://youtu.be/Iaz6JIxDh6Y?sub_confirmation=1 Sabine Hossenfelder: https://youtu.be/V6dMM2-X6nk?sub_confirmation=1 Sarah Scoles: https://

  Patrick Bet-David runs one of the most successful YouTube channels in history, Valuetainment: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCIHdDJ0tjn_3j-FS7s_X1kQ Let his clarity of purpose and ability to build a great team inspire your next 5 moves! On this episode of INTO THE IMPOSSIBLE, Patrick and I talk about his newest book “Your Next 5 Moves: Master the Art of Business Strategy.” We discuss his approach to business, life, and learning. His enthusiasm and drive to not only succeed but help others reach their potential are great motivators. Subscribe to my mailing list to receive show notes for this episode: https://briankeating.com/mailing_list.php 04:26 Choosing the title “Your Next 5 Moves.” 08:46 Patrick talks personality types. 13:25 The value of Valuentainment fans. 16:46 What is the difference between a visionary and someone who’s all talk? 22:09 The math of life insurance. 26:35 What would Bet-David University teach? 31:52 Patrick knows how to find and retain great employees. Patrick Bet-David immigr

  I thoroughly enjoyed this deep and wide-ranging conversation with two mathematical mavericks. Thanks goes out to both Eric and Stephen for a fascinating live conversation!   Find out more about Wolfram’s Physics Project: https://www.wolframphysics.org Buy Wolfram’s’s new book here: https://amzn.to/3iA6RNh Watch Wolfram’s TED Talk https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=1&v=60P7717-XOQ Find Eric’s Portal Podcast here: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCR85PW_B_7_Aisx5vNS7Gjw Find Stephen on Twitter: https://twitter.com/stephen_wolfram Find Eric on Twitter: https://twitter.com/ericrweinstein Find Sabine Hossenfelder’s commentary on Stephen and Eric here: https://youtu.be/mdu9KvLxHFg    ‍♂️ Find me on Twitter at https://twitter.com/DrBrianKeating Find me on Instagram at https://instagram.com/DrBrianKeating Buy my book LOSING THE NOBEL PRIZE: http://amzn.to/2sa5UpA Subscribe for more great content https://www.youtube.com/DrBrianKeatin… ✍️Detailed Blog posts here: https://briankeating.com/blog.ph

  David Marquet’s leadership transformed the fate of those aboard the U.S. Navy submarine under his command. Watch this episode to learn tips from his latest book and motivate people through your language. David and I talk about the small adjustments in our habits and language that can make a difference. His creation of intent-based leadership programs encourages purposeful and effective leadership, which in turn creates happy and productive workers. Subscribe to my newsletter to receive show notes for this episode: https://briankeating.com/mailing_list.php 10:32 Language matters in leadership. 19:42 The ego of decision making. 25:25 Reprogramming our instincts to live in the modern world. 32:14 Getting real feedback using the “Fist to 5” method 41:44 You can be better every day. 48:03 What ethical will does Marquet plan to leave behind? 49:52 What object or knowledge would Marquet put in or on his monolith? 50:39 What did Marquet think was impossible until he did it? David Marquet served as captain o

  Experimental evidence for any current Theory of Everything is, at best, inconclusive. This is perhaps the greatest fundamental challenges facing physics. That lack of progress has opened up a sea of controversy. Welcome to the second in our two-event series about Theories of Everything! Watch the first one: https://youtu.be/3MX8EpvLwao?sub_confirmation=1 Please subscribe to my YouTube Channel to watch one-on-one interviews with the guest speakers and more: https://www.youtube.com/DrBrianKeating?sub_confirmation=1 Please join my mailing list: http://briankeating.com/mailing_list.php to receive “conference proceedings” and other goodies from these events. From disagreements about the very necessity of TOEs, to questioning the cost/benefit of mega-billion dollar particle accelerators in search of them, to the emergence of competing TOEs from physicists outside of the academic community. In this 90 minute chat, we dive into the existential questions around TOEs. Special thanks to Matt O’Dowd, Lee Smolin, Sabine

  James Altucher is an American hedge-fund manager, author, podcaster and entrepreneur who has founded or cofounded over 20 companies. He has published 20 books and he is a contributor to publications including The Financial Times, The Wall Street Journal, TechCrunch, and The Huffington Post.  ‍♂️ Find Brian Keating on Twitter at https://twitter.com/DrBrianKeating Find Brian Keating on Instagram at https://instagram.com/DrBrianKeating Buy Brian’s book LOSING THE NOBEL PRIZE: http://amzn.to/2sa5UpA Subscribe for more great content https://www.youtube.com/DrBrianKeating?sub_confirmation=1 ✍️Detailed Blog posts here: https://briankeating.com/blog.php Join my mailing list: http://briankeating.com/mailing_list.php Join my Facebook Group: https://facebook.com/losingthenobelprize ️Please subscribe, rate, and review the INTO THE IMPOSSIBLE Podcast on iTunes: https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/into-the-impossible/id1169885840?mt=2 A production of http://imagination.ucsd.edu/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit me

  What are the Leading Theories of Everything? In this 90 minute summit with some of the world’s leading physicists, we’ll go beyond the hype into the heart and soul of physics. The search for a theory that finishes what Einstein began and ties together all the forces of the universe. Can that ever be achieved ? Will it be achieved? When? Is physics stuck in 1920? Join @matt_of_earth and @DrBrianKeating on @PBSSpaceTime with some of the world’s leading physicists for two 90 minute webinars on #TheoriesOfEverything https://www.pbsspacetime.com/events the promo video https://youtu.be/iozCwyjxhyY And stay tuned for Part 2 with Lisa Randal, Sabine Hossenfelder, Lee Smolin and Eric Weinstein! ‍♂️ Find Brian Keating on Twitter at https://twitter.com/DrBrianKeating Find Brian Keating on Instagram at https://instagram.com/DrBrianKeating Buy Brian’s book LOSING THE NOBEL PRIZE: http://amzn.to/2sa5UpA Subscribe for more great content https://www.youtube.com/DrBrianKeating?sub_confirmation=1 ✍️Detailed Blog po

  Rapper and entrepreneur Zuby shares his thoughtful brand of straight talk on this episode of INTO THE IMPOSSIBLE. Topics included whether an AI rapper will ever pass the “Turing Test”, his fitness book “Strong Advice,” his independently released albums, and his REAL TALK podcast. Subscribe to Brian Keating’s newsletter to receive show notes for this episode: https://briankeating.com/mailing_list.php 00:04:04 Is your DNA your destiny? 00:11:44 A day in the life of Zuby. 00:20:05 Prayer as a form of mindful meditation. 00:26:44 Imposter syndrome and handling feedback. 00:36:50 The impacts of artificial intelligence on our humanity. 00:50:00 Authenticity of language in Zuby’s music. 00:57:34 What ethical will does Zuby plan to leave behind? 00:59:18 What object or knowledge would Zuby put in or on his monolith? 01:00:17 What did Zuby think was impossible until he did it? Zuby is a musician, author, podcaster, public speaker, fitness expert, and life coach. He studied computer science at Oxford. Buy Z

  Noam Chomsky is one of the most influential and highly cited scholars of our time. He is a pioneer in the fields of linguistics and cognitive science. This episode of INTO THE IMPOSSIBLE covers those topics and delves into his thoughts on communicating with aliens, meditation, and free speech including his contribution to the “Harper’s Magazine letter”. Chomsky is a prolific author and known political activist. We avoided politics, as is the custom for my interviews. Our conversation also covers the Turing Test, neural nets, and artificial intelligence, including why he expects Elon Musk’s Neuralink project to fail. Subscribe Professor Keating’s mailing list to receive show notes for this episode. 00:11:00 Does Noam Chomsky believe in extraterrestrial life & could we communicate with E.T.? 00:26:30 Busting (or confirming) linguistic myths with the master. 00:41:00 “There is no scientific method, it’s just being intelligent.” 01:00:00 Artificial intelligence applications in cognitive science. 01:11:25 C

  Nobel Prize-winning astronomer Adam Riess is my guest on this episode of INTO THE IMPOSSIBLE. Adam was an essential character in my book, Losing the Nobel Prize. Though at the top of his field, Riess is relentlessly passionate about perfecting his craft and he credits curiosity as the force that sustains his career. Riess and I discussed cosmological controversies including inflation, the Hubble tension, and primordial magnetic fields. We also discuss legacies, prize money, Albert Einstein’s ability to transfix physicists and laypeople.  07:02 Curiosity is the key to a fulfilling career in science. 18:22 9% and why it matters. 26:00 Einstein was a victim of bad data. 33:02 Resolving Hubble tension. 40:56 The pursuit of extraordinary evidence. 52:03 What ethical will does Adam plan to leave behind? 53:28 What would Adam put on a billion year old time capsule? 55:44 What wisdom would Adam share with his younger self? 57:53 How did Adam spend his Nobel Prize winnings? Adam Riess was a recipient of th

  Producer Stuart Volkow interviews Dr. Fadel Zeidan, PhD, the Associate Director for Research at the UCSD Center for Mindfulness and Assistant Professor of Anesthesiology at UCSD. He and his laboratory have discovered the neural processes supporting mindfulness meditation and mindfulness-based pain relief. https://www.zeidanlab.com/ https://medschool.ucsd.edu/som/fmph/r… Recently, he and his team have demonstrated that mindfulness meditation is mechanistically distinct from and more effective than placebo, distraction, and relaxation. His research is currently funded by the National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health and has disseminated his findings through traditional media outreach (CNN ; NPR ; Time Magazine , CBS and others), Tedx and recently personally presented his work to His Holiness, the Dalai Lama in Mongolia. In his role at the UCSD Center for Mindfulness, Fadel will focus on expanding his research to focus on working with different patient populations and user-friendly approaches to

   Theoretical cosmologist Janna Levin is an-award winning author of both nonfiction and fiction. In her interview on the INTO THE IMPOSSIBLE podcast, she emphasizes the important role of creativity in science, and life in general. We discussed Levin’s research on the topology of the universe and black holes, including the Event Horizon Telescope. We also discuss her highly-anticipated upcoming book, “Black Hole Survival Guide.” Subscribe to my newsletter to receive show notes for this episode: https://briankeating.com/mailing_list… 00:03:17 Science is part of our culture. 00:12:17 Cultivating communication skills in scientists. 00:16:29 Gödel, Popper, and what constitutes good science. 00:23:55 Extra spatial dimensions. 00:31:45 “Every kid is a scientist.” 00:37:26 Illuminatin Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

   Ann Druyan has brought the universe to millions around the world. The wife of the late Carl Sagan, Ann is a renowned science communicator and producer/writer and co-creator of the upcoming series Cosmos: Possible Worlds. She is the author of the companion book of the same name.  She is an Emmy and Peabody award-winning writer and producer. She co-created and wrote the 1980 TV series Cosmos with Carl Sagan, whom she later married. She also co-created, wrote, produced, and directed the follow up series, 2014’s Cosmos: A Spacetime Odyssey and 2020’s Cosmos: Possible Worlds. She was also creative director for NASA’s Voyager Interstellar Message Project and her brain waves are part of the golden record that has traveled outside our solar system. Druyan discusses her fascinating voyage through the most mysterious phenomena in the cosmos. We discuss her family’s remarkable role as science ambassadors including not only her marriage to Carl Sagan, but her remarkable daughter Sasha Sagan who is continuing their rol

Mathematician, codebreaker, Professor, hedge fund pioneer, & philanthropist Jim Simons makes his first-ever podcast appearance on this episode of INTO THE IMPOSSIBLE with UC San Diego Professor Brian Keating. Learn about Chern-Simons theory, leadership lessons, hedge funds, and a dedication to serve the world through basic research from a master. It is truly a delight to share with you the more personal side of the man who’s been called The World’s Smartest Billionaire: https://youtu.be/gjVDqfUhXOY In this interview, we discuss heroes, fatherhood, leadership and the art of math.    00:15:15 Why he’d invite Abraham Lincoln to dinner. 00:23:42 Discovering Zeno’s paradox at the age of three. 00:34:28 Can math be beautiful? 00:46:25 Lessons from a master investor: alpha vs. beta. 00:56:06 The serendipitous Chern-Simons partnership. 01:03:18 A father’s love. 01:11:09 The legacy of a good example. Jim Simons earned a Ph.D. in mathematics from UC Berkeley at the age of 23. He worked as a mathematician for the

   Part 2 of Brian Keating’s conversation with Eric Weinstein on the INTO THE IMPOSSIBLE podcast pivots from faith & family to the course catalog at “Weinstein University” (fictional, for now!) which would combine scholarship with wonder. We also contemplate the notion of legacies, not just for our actual children, but for our ideological children as well. Show notes and, by popular demand, Eric’s slides from his famous 2013 “Geometric Unity” lecture at Oxford are available when you join my mailing list: http://briankeating.com/mailing_list.php Highlights: 00:12:18 A place for the rituals of religion in an atheist’s life. 00:19:26 Crisis of faith versus crisis of reason. 00:25:20 Eric Weinstein’s parenting philosophy. 00:33:05 Resolving dualities in human lives and behaviors. 00:36:05 Rapid fire questions about God and aliens. 00:40:26 Eric’s legacies in space and time. Eric Weinstein has a Ph.D. from Harvard in mathematical physics. He is the managing director of Thiel Capital. Weinstein hosts the pod

   Physicist, jazz musician, & President of the National Society of Black Physicists, Stephon Alexander is this week’s guest on the INTO THE IMPOSSIBLE podcast. He discussed the foundations of the cosmos, his advice for balancing academic and creative pursuits, and his book “The Jazz of Physics.” Support the National Society of Black Physicists: https://nsbp.org/support-nsbp/support-us Show notes and resources for this episode are available: simply join my mailing list: http://briankeating.com/mailing_list.php and you’ll also get information to enter giveaways to win my guest’s books! Our next giveaway will be Stephon’s phenomenal THE JAZZ OF PHYSICS! 00:14:20 Balancing the creative pursuits of research, jazz, and writing. 00:28:46 Which came first – theoretical or experimental physics? 00:40:30 Creativity and intuition have a role in science. 00:46:48 How legacy and John Coltrane inspired Alexander to write his book. 00:57:18 The power (and limits) of analogies to explain science. 01:07:34 Journal arti

   Sarah Frier is a prolific technology reporter for Bloomberg. Her new book, “No Filter: The Inside Story of Instagram,” is both a compelling account of Instagram’s history and a record of the social media platform’s impact on society. Professor Brian Keating’s interview with Frier covers a range of topics, including the inspiration to research and write the book, the role of augmented technology, and how social media will be changed by the COVID-19 pandemic. Show notes and resources are available here: https://briankeating.com/blog.php Timestamps links 00:07:39 The meanings behind the title and cover of “No Filter.” 00:14:45 Social media moguls as humans and not just characters in the story. 00:22:15 How to tell a story when everyone knows the ending. 00:31:15 Anyone can be an Instagram celebrity. 00:41:00 Will a new platform emerge during the pandemic? 00:47:51 Technological advances keep Instagram relevant. 00:53:11 Questions INTO THE IMPOSSIBLE asks all authors. Sarah Frier is a technology report

Dr. Jud Brewer is a mindfulness expert, using his background in addiction psychiatry to help people around the world. In this interview with Brian Keating, on INTO THE IMPOSSIBLE, Brewer talks about his book, “The Craving Mind: From Cigarettes to Smartphones to Love – Why We Get Hooked and How We Can Break Bad Habits.” Show notes and resources are available here: https://briankeating.com/blog.php 00:08:53 The effects of nature versus nurture on cravings. 00:17:04 Are some cultures resistant to psychotherapy and meditation? 00:26:16 How technology can enhance mindfulness. 00:37:04 How to help our kids develop good habits. 00:44:03 Incorporating artificial intelligence & human empathy in healthcare. 00:49:38 Anxiety is rampant in academia. What can be done? 01:04:45 Questions INTO THE IMPOSSIBLE asks authors. I’ve used Brewer’s teaching in my own life and work. Mindfulness practices can help achieve higher efficiency and happiness at work, and moderate stress of all varieties, including the anxiety that