Lex Fridman Podcast

#204 – Cumrun Vafa: String Theory

Jul 26, 2021

02:18:36

Creator website

Highlights

AI Chapters

Episode notes

Einstein's theory of special relativity: Simple math leading to deep physics

01:23

The Discovery of Positrons and Antiparticles

01:25

The Size and Nature of Strings in Physics

01:24

The harmonious approach to math and physics

01:23

Introduction

2min

Sponsored by Jordan Harbinger Show

5min

The Difference Between Mathematics and Physics

3min

Is There a Revolution in Newtonian Mechanics

3min

Is Mathematics More Dangerous Than All Physical Ideas?

3min

Is It the Chicken or the Egg?

4min

The Philosophy of Physics Is Common

2min

Aristotle's Idea of Spontaneous Synthesis Breaking

2min

How Geometry Can Be Used to Understand Reality?

5min

10.

The History of Physics

5min

11.

Physicists Develop Intuition

4min

12.

Is There a Way to Replace Intuition?

5min

13.

What Is the Biggest Leap of Genie?

2min

14.

Quantum Mechanics - What Is It?

1min

15.

Is Quantum Mechanics the End of the Story?

5min

16.

What Is a Quantum Field Theory?

2min

17.

Is Duality Fundamental to the Universe?

4min

18.

The Basics of String Theory

2min

19.

Is There a String in Physics?

4min

20.

The Theory of Quantum Gravity Was Not Solved.

2min

21.

What Is Super Symmetry?

5min

22.

The Problem of Entropy in String Theory

4min

23.

How Do We Intuition the 10 Dimensions?

3min

24.

How Do We Come Up With Intuition?

4min

25.

Strength Theory

4min

26.

String Theory

3min

27.

Y It's Four Plus One Space Time Dimensions

4min

28.

The Nobel Prize for String Theory

4min

29.

Do You Think String Theory Will Get the Nobel Prize?

3min

30.

Is Edward Whitten a Powerhouse of a Human?

2min

31.

What Have You Learned From Edward Witten?

2min

32.

The Interconnections Between Ideas and Physics Replaces Mathematical Rigorousness

4min

33.

String Theory Landscape and the Swamp Land

3min

34.

Is Gravity Consistent With Gravity in String Theory?

5min

35.

The Theory of Everything That Unifies General Relativity and Quantum Field Theories

5min

36.

Loop Quantum Gravity - Is There a Connection?

1min

37.

Can Physics Help Us Understand Life?

2min

38.

Is There a Change in the Theory of the Universe?

3min

39.

Is There a Phase Transition Between Water and Vapor?

2min

40.

Is There a High Consciousness in Life?

2min

41.

What Advice Would You Give to Young People Today?

2min

42.

Are You Afraid of Death?

2min

43.

The Finiteness of Life of Mortality

3min

44.

Physics Is in the Most Important Thing Love Is

2min

Cumrun Vafa is a theoretical physicist at Harvard. Please support this podcast by checking out our sponsors:
– Headspace: https://headspace.com/lex to get free 1 month trial
– The Jordan Harbinger Show: https://www.youtube.com/thejordanharbingershow
– Squarespace: https://lexfridman.com/squarespace and use code LEX to get 10% off
– Allform: https://allform.com/lex to get 20% off

EPISODE LINKS:
Cumrun’s Twitter: https://twitter.com/cumrunv
Cumrun’s Website: https://www.cumrunvafa.org
Puzzles to Unravel the Universe (book): https://amzn.to/3BFk5ms

PODCAST INFO:
Podcast website: https://lexfridman.com/podcast
Apple Podcasts: https://apple.co/2lwqZIr
Spotify: https://spoti.fi/2nEwCF8
RSS: https://lexfridman.com/feed/podcast/
YouTube Full Episodes: https://youtube.com/lexfridman
YouTube Clips: https://youtube.com/lexclips

SUPPORT & CONNECT:
– Check out the sponsors above, it’s the best way to support this podcast
– Support on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/lexfridman
– Twitter: https://twitter.com/lexfridman
– Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lexfridman
– LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lexfridman
– Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/lexfridman
– Medium: https://medium.com/@lexfridman

OUTLINE:
Here’s the timestamps for the episode. On some podcast players you should be able to click the timestamp to jump to that time.
(00:00) – Introduction
(07:08) – Difference between math and physics
(09:51) – Evolution of quantum mechanics
(13:09) – Can mathematics lead humanity off track
(14:07) – Beauty in mathematics
(19:27) – Philosophers using symmetry
(25:20) – How can ancient geometry be used to understand reality
(28:32) – Key ideas in the history of physics
(31:26) – Einstein’s special relativity
(35:03) – Physicists building intuition
(43:01) – Best work by Einstein
(44:45) – Quantum mechanics
(54:47) – Quantum gravity
(57:02) – String theory
(1:13:11) – 10th Dimension
(1:19:48) – Skepticism regarding string theory
(1:30:53) – Key figures in string theory
(1:35:13) – String Theory’s Nobel Prize
(1:38:18) – Edward Witten
(1:46:56) – String Theory Landscape & Swamplands
(1:55:46) – Theories of everything
(2:10:12) – Advice for young people
(2:13:14) – Death

Get the Snipd
podcast app

Unlock the knowledge in podcasts with the podcast player of the future.

AI-powered
podcast player

Listen to all your favourite podcasts with AI-powered features

Discover
highlights

Listen to the best highlights from the podcasts you love and dive into the full episode

Save any
moment

Hear something you like? Tap your headphones to save it with AI-generated key takeaways

Share
& Export

Send highlights to Twitter, WhatsApp or export them to Notion, Readwise & more

AI-powered
podcast player

Listen to all your favourite podcasts with AI-powered features

Discover
highlights

Listen to the best highlights from the podcasts you love and dive into the full episode

Lex Fridman Podcast

#204 – Cumrun Vafa: String Theory

Einstein's theory of special relativity: Simple math leading to deep physics

The Discovery of Positrons and Antiparticles

The Size and Nature of Strings in Physics

The harmonious approach to math and physics

Get the Snipdpodcast app

AI-poweredpodcast player

Discoverhighlights

Save anymoment

Share& Export

AI-poweredpodcast player

Discoverhighlights

Get the Snipd
podcast app

AI-powered
podcast player

Discover
highlights

Save any
moment

Share
& Export

AI-powered
podcast player

Discover
highlights