Cumrun Vafa: Puzzles to Unlock The Universe! (#104)

Join me in welcoming Prof. Cumrun Vafa (Harvard) in his first major
podcast interview! We discussed a wide range of topics including
what message he’d put into a billion-year time capsule. Plus, we
discuss his delightful new book. Beneath all of the complex and
formidable mathematical structures that formulate physical laws
rest simple but deep nuggets of truth. It is these simple truths,
and not the complicated technical details, that scientists strive
for when uncovering the laws of nature. Fortunately, these core
ideas can often be illustrated with simple mathematical puzzles.
These puzzles are so simplified that one can tackle them and
appreciate their meaning without using any complicated math.
His book, Puzzles To Unravel The Universe, includes over
a hundred puzzles and their solutions, along with a discussion
about how they relate to deep ideas in physics and math. Examples
are drawn from classical physics, such as Newton’s laws and
Einstein’s theory of relativity, as well as from modern physics,
including black holes and string theory. This book is designed for
the general public, and it does not require an extensive background
in mathematics or physics–just a sense of curiosity! For more
information about the author see his website:
https://www.cumrunvafa.org/ . Get the book here:
https://amzn.to/3mSFGA1 00:00:00 Introduction 00:01:39 The story
behind the title and book cover 00:03:55 What is a puzzle versus a
mystery? 00:05:48 What puzzles are you most fascinated by? 00:06:26
Black hole entropy 00:07:56 Albert Michelson 00:08:31 Godel’s
Theorem: Are some puzzles not solvable? 00:10:39 Aristarchos of
Samos 00:11:21 Galileo and the Dialogo 00:12:24 Why string theory?
00:17:25 Dimensional Analysis 00:21:35 Singularities 00:28:51 ADS
and 5 Dimensions 00:31:08 string theory 00:35:09 Supersymmetry
00:40:42 On Religion 00:53:05 A scorecard for Physics 00:57:30 What
would your “ethical will” be? 00:58:30 What would you put on
monoliths that would last a billion years? 01:03:10 What have you
accomplished that once seemed impossible? Professor Vafa is
world-renowned for his groundbreaking work in string theory and the
mathematical technology needed to explore this field. He is one of
the founders of the duality revolution in string theory which has
reshaped our understanding of the fundamental laws of the universe.
He has uncovered mysteries of black holes using topological aspects
of string theory and is the founder of `F-theory’ which is one of
the most promising directions in connecting string theory solutions
known as the `string landscape’ to particle physics. His ideas
related to apparently consistent, but ultimately inconsistent,
theories of quantum gravity which he initiated in the `swampland’
project has helped narrow down the vast string landscape and is
currently an active area of research with an impact on cosmology,
as well as particle phenomenology. Learn more about your ad
choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices