Astrophysicist Answers Space Questions From Twitter | Tech Support | WIRED

Astrophysicist Hitoshi Murayama answers the internet's burning questions about space! Are there more stars in space than grains of sand? Can the shapes of constellations change? Will we be able to observe outside of our own universe? What was in space before the universe was born? How do we know there was a Big Bang? Hitoshi answers all these questions and much more!
Correction: At 15:38 and 15:41, the subtitle should read "Anti-matter"
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Correction: At 15:38 and 15:41, the subtitle should read "Anti-matter"

[@Immortal-Daiki]

As a Japanese, I actually first saw this video in the Wired Japanese channel. I am actually surprised (and glad) that Wired is incorporating Japanese/non-English videos into its main channel

[@manuelschneider1105]

I paused for a second in surprise when he wasn't talking in English. But I watch all my anime with subtitles, ... dakara mondai wa nai! #Subsnotdubs

[@dexivela]

it's clear this man loves what he knows and his profession. it's so cool to hear him talk

[@mandeep3.14]

Lovely to see a non-English speaker/ western person. So many incredible minds elsewhere that deserve recognition👏🏼. More of this please.

[@fasterdays]

@@baby8dingo speak for yourself, there's too many western/north american channels

[@skywarior01]

He actually teaches physics at UC Berkeley, and there's a lecture video of him speaking English well enough that even I can understand him.

[@UnforsakenXII]

@@skywarior01 Yeah. Hitoshi taught me and several of my friends quantum field theory and he is by far one of the best English speakers in our department. In terms of teaching, he's number one in my book.

[@AsiaDanceScene]

I'd also love to hear him talk more about his perspective etc. I recently got a chance to attend a lecture by Asian and African researchers and their techniques and perspectives were slightly different and that is really interesting too

[@ApollonDriver]

English is preferred in these videos because that's the language you can reach out to most audience.

[@hackille]

PLEASE BRING HIM BACK, I NEED MORE OF THIS MAN IN MY LIFE

[@Tochir0]

I’ve had the pleasure to meet Murayama-sensei and I’m pleased to report that he is a charming in social settings as he is brilliant in academic ones.

[@lilytea3]

0:41: 🌌 There are more stars in the universe than grains of sand on Earth, but the exact number is difficult to determine. 4:04: 🌌 The size and expansion of the universe and our understanding of it. 7:39: 🌟 There was a period of time in the universe where no stars were shining, followed by the birth of the first stars. 11:15: 🌌 Black holes are believed to grow by consuming surrounding gas and stars, and it is difficult to observe their inner workings. 15:13: 🌌 The total amount of matter in the universe is believed to be relatively constant, but occasional reactions between matter and antimatter occur. Recap by Tammy AI

[@captainkarnage9874]

Trying to comprehend what existed before the big bang and what's outside of this universe fills me with existential dread

[@niyu7423]

literally

[@nihaalsandim9986]

Our minds are too simple to comprehend those answers in my opinion , we are scared of what we cannot understand , thats why we feel like that , and i share that same feeling its quite terrifying

[@krolltheknight]

Perhaps this universe is trying to escape something

[@PanekPL]

God doesn't exist

[@Nathan-oe8ut]

@@PanekPL i'm not religious, but proof?

[@stardustcrosser]

15:38 I think there is a small translation error here where it says “pairs of matter and semi matter are created” late saying they collide and disappear. The correct term would be anti-matter as that is the only thing that when it comes into contact with regular matter would annihilate and become energy. It’s a small error but important to clarify.

[@VikingTeddy]

There were a few other places too where translation seemed to lose something. I knew the things he was talking about, but some concepts might come over wrong if you don't. I suppose the translator wasn't familiar with all the concepts so they did their best.

[@gunhasirac]

you are absolutely right. Semi(半) and anti(反) sounds the same in Japanese.

[@MA-eq7kw]

Sebastian Vettel is better than you

[@ramboog2654]

​@@VikingTeddy bro, i am interested in this topics. I dont even know basics. Where should i start? Like any resources, documentaries, suggestions, books, blogs would be really helpful.

[@ginussy5510]

@@ramboog2654 @VikingTeddy I second this

[@georgefoord7087]

it is great to see people passionate about their jobs

[@FaizLang]

So cool to have this all in Japanese!

[@jacobtovar6043]

I feel like having to read the subtitle helped me to grasp the concepts a bit more thoroughly and then caused me to ask more questions. Truly engaging content. So many great minds on this planet let’s give them a spotlight.

[@LouforYous]

Am I the only one that noticed that these questions are so intelligent and well thought out, versus an American question that is like, “BRAH why can’t anyone be an astronaut?” Lol I do enjoy non English speaking professionals, and would love to see more like this!

[@nothanks9174]

Versus an English question* Pretty sure other English speaking countries have Twitter.

[@nightspicer]

@@nothanks9174 I'm pretty sure they're talking about how Americans are asking stupid questions, cause ya know, Americans dumb-dumb

[@smittywerbenjagermanjensenn]

@@nothanks9174 not all English speaking people and countries are as stupid as americans.

[@zeropoint2594]

That´s the first thing I noticed too no swearing and stuff like that and all of those questions are very good

[@C.Chandler_May]

I enjoyed this and totally disagree with your hypothesis. Brah..

[@edeary]

Never in my life did i start a 20minute long video and kept staring at the screen like this, i even forgot i was sitting in a weird way bc i was so into this video. The universe truly is the most interesting subject ever, esp. when a professional is talking.

[@mwoodward1240]

He was so passionate! I also loved his bit at the end about how learning about the universe is learning about yourself as well.

[@AangDknight]

I like how he didn't make fun of something fictional like warp or parallel worlds and just straight up explaining if it's possible or not, truly a man deserve some respects for doing so for others.

[@greenLimeila]

There's a difference between "fictional" and "hypothetical." The first doesn't exist (say, Hogwarts), the second still might!

[@na0228]

This is super cool that you guys brought someone who is non-American /English speaking person to do this. There are so many smart people who don't speak English.

[@awesomeguy3211]

He acc worked in the state's for a bit so he definitely speaks english lol

[@anadd6195]

Indeed

[@MarsCapone]

When you’re a baller of science I think you get a pass

[@ivaerz4977]

If I am not mistaken was this guy on Neil degrease Tyson podcast.

[@TheAdrianVillasenor]

Loved it! Super keen on hearing experts speak in their native languages. It really broadens the amount of possible topics.

[@PattonScr]

what are the topics you can't speak about in English?

[@ginussy5510]

@@PattonScr depends on the fluency and vocabulary of a person who doesn't speak english as first language!

[@aresgalamatis7022]

This Q&A was awesome, I wish schools could operate at this level along with teaching the basics they are supposed to, so students don't have to rely on TV to have their simple questions answered :/

[@NrminQurbanova-lm1bg]

I love astronomy and I love japanese. I love astronomy explanation in japanese

[@Bmans88]

This guy is so full of energy and passion!! Glad I clicked on this vid, learned some stuff I didn't know!

[@alldecentnamestaken]

The part about drawing the large triangles finally made sense to me for some reason.

[@Julianaao2601]

This questions were really good ones, no just dumb or silly ones, but serious wanting to learn questions 👏🏼👏🏼 love this one!

There’s a repeated confusion in the captions in English between _years_ and _light-years_ with expressions such as “light-years ago” and “light-years old.” In addition, the use of the word _space_ instead of _universe,_ or the reference to the Big Bang as “the beginning” of space and the beginning of the universe even though in the answer of one of the questions he said it isn’t known what happened before the Big Bang (and I’d add, or even if there was a “before”).

[@edsonpele2013]

when he says that we would like to meet dark matter someday i just found so sweet and beautiful for some reason i want to cry now

[@Tenerens1s]

love this guy. he seems really interested and passionate about what hes teaching

[@asqmate]

The whole drawing a triangle thing blew my mind. Hes so good at explaining!

[@GanesaAudrey]

His enthusiasm is endearing! Definitely loves what he does. So charming to watch :)

[@TheRafaelRamos]

Murayama-san really knows how to speak about the Universe! I love him

[@michellecastelino514]

The questions were so unique and i really loved how he answered everything in detail this is the best wired support video ive watched

[@MaryBethPetra]

This was a very lively, thoughtful, and lovely talk. Thank you!

[@twilight_lupinesilva4691]

I love this guy. He has such a passion and energy about him that I can't help but be invested in whatever he is talking about, even though I need subtitles to understand him.

[@timmys1877]

I get tripped out sometimes thinking about how without the universe there is literally nothing. I can't explain it but life and time itself would not exist

[@timmys1877]

I hate to sound corny but it does kind of make you think that there could in fact be a higher power out there. I am not religious at all but still

[@aliyahharris7698]

Time already does not exist it's a measurement we made to help us like most other things

[@timmys1877]

@@aliyahharris7698 yes I know lol I said LIFE and time

[@munashemanamike4217]

​@@timmys1877 Also the fact that he said the universe is so impossibly perfect that scientist think it has to be a multiverse 😬

[@O-Demi]

I still can't wrap my head around the idea that time is a human construct, and that's why I'm not in STEM XD

[@triple_gem_shining]

It's a construct of progression and relative point of reference.

[@triple_gem_shining]

So not limited to humans. But life in general. However there are areas of deep space or micro scopic worlds that don't adhere to the same linear growth and growing principles. Leading to a sense of timelessness

[@MaxIronsThird]

it's not a human construct, the universe created time.

[@stefan-ox8qs]

​@@MaxIronsThird the universe created seasons, humanity created the time minutes and houers. I have never seen a animal with a watch only humans do that. Time is just a invention for economicale efficiency.

[@erlandochoa8278]

@@stefan-ox8qs “the universe” created causality; A leads to B. For this to be true, time must exist, a medium for events to flow through. We named time, but we didn’t invent it, just like we didn’t invent space, despite animals never walking around with maps or like how we didn’t invent heat, despite animals never walking around with thermometers. Explaining, naming, “creating” the concept of something is not the same as creating the thing of which that concept is based upon.

[@ExileOfSand]

That was so good, super knowledgeable and gave such great answers. Also the questions were really good questions

[@venanciofilhoyoga]

Fantastic theme, fantastic language to hear, fantastic person speaking. Awesome video!

[@JR-mk6ow]

Me opening this video to have something to hear in the background while I make dinner: 👁️👄👁️

[@Alr1ghtyThen]

Wire played s trick on you lol

[@thescottishaccent]

I want this man to be my uncle please and thank you. :D

[@Maleni143]

He was wonderful to watch and listen to!! My favorite so far 🙌🏻🙌🏻

[@Zero.0ne.]

To answer his closing question, yes I had fun.

[@keti.rg.editzzz]

I could listen to him all day

[@AnitaB_1987]

Same!!!

[@olmava]

The questions asked are fascinating 😮

[@OliverPereira-tl2qv]

This man is awesome, just loved the explanation!

[@WilliamCarterII]

The question "what existed before the big bang" and "other universes" gave me some existential terror/dread I was not ready for lmao

[@orion7763]

This is the longest I've ever heard Japanese spoken, and I was here for all of it. More international experts would be great to see!

[@ArlecchinoMyDarlingChief17]

heck yeah, been waiting for this

[@eyeofthasky]

3:43 i think there are some translation issues -- the solar system is a tiny part of the galaxy, so it the solar system = human body, the galaxy cant be "this earth (globe)" -- it would not even fit the proportions if he said "the earth" and refered to the actual planet we are on if the scale of comparison is

[@digi47]

Yhh, put me off watching the rest of the vid, just in case there are other errors.

Other possible translation issues (I can’t verify them since I don’t speak Japanese): “light-years ago” and “light-years old.”

[@grasshorses]

He didn't mean the actual size of the globe he was holding, he meant the size of the earth (that's why he mentioned how big a human would be as well)! So if the solar system was the size of a human on earth, the galaxy would be a couple of times bigger than earth. Does that make sense?

[@grasshorses]

incidentally i can't speak for the accuracy of the fact itself as im not a science person but the translation of what he was saying is not inaccurate 😂

[@UnashamedlyHentai]

yeah, it's a poor translation. in his example, the solar system is the size that a human would be on his example earth, and the galaxy is several times the size of his example earth. Many orders of magnitude larger.

[@wattsmichaele]

Excellent!!!

[@saisanz419]

To learn about the universe is to learn about ourselves. Beautiful.

[@RoaldvdM]

Yes, a passionate speaker - answering quite simple questions, but there is much more to know. I have been reading about astrophysics for decades - it is fascinating stuff. I encourage anybody to pick up some books on the subject.

[@Katshuri]

Love it! Do another :D

[@Sidecutter]

OMG I love this guy. I had a few teachers like this, people who were truly passionate and enjoyed teaching their subject. I did well in those classes, because they could make their subject become fascinating stories that you wanted to follow so you didn't miss something important.

[@MrRenhoeck]

Por favor, más de este caballero y más de esos brillantes preguntones. Hay preguntas y dudas que no se habrían ocurrido en la vida.🤯

[@kaemincha]

Even if it is in a different language, I can tell his explanations are very accessible for the average person! What a great science communicator!

[@buhbird4698]

"dark matter is our mother, I hope to meet her one day" is such a good quote

[@atift5465]

i love these types of videos

[@ekrwhnantnygucwfu]

that was a great one. need more :D

[@SA-jo6wd]

I couldn't watch this while having my dinner so saving it for later cause I can't eat and watch out for the subtitles at the same time.

[@camillenicole211]

I’m glad so many people have the same questions I would ask.

[@needheartranken]

Dang it's so refreshing to hear another language contemplating the Universe!

[@adrianoalves20]

Very interesting!

[@manuelschneider1105]

Is there anything better than listening to an expert answering question, who him/herself is very exited about what they're talking about? I think not

[@Babylooney23]

I think I just fell in love with his whole vibe ❤❤❤❤❤

[@andromeda1515]

Probably my favorite one yet

[@xmohaiya]

The timing on this video coming out during my trip to Korea startled me. I thought I was getting Japanese media because of my location 😅 I didn’t know he was the feature for this episode. Always amazing content

[@kirtanashanchez6534]

We need more non-English content and speakers talking about the subjects that they're experts in! This was so fascinating!

[@ATier87]

I love how he repeatedly says "big bang". BIGGU BANGU

[@jupiterwilkymay5161]

So cool!

[@CompleteHypnosis_]

Somebody is still gonna want a dubbed version 😂

[@Alr1ghtyThen]

I am someone 😂

[@sickbyy]

I do. Can't have this playing on the second monitor while I'm doing stuff (and still understand)

[@caz5021]

Sub > Dub 😏

[@lanxy2398]

I want dubbed, I want to listen while i’m doing tasks

[@whathell6t]

@@caz5021 On which medium? Anime or Tokusatsu?

[@weirdchamp7790]

hes so passionate and ambitious

[@AnitaB_1987]

I love him omg That was fascinating Bring him baaaack please

[@PanekPL]

PLEASE!!!! MORE MR. MURAYAMA!!!!!!

[@jrkivee]

hes so cute and expressive with his gestures

[@SmileTV.]

Interesting video! :D

[@arnelilleseter4755]

I don't know if something was lost in translation. What he is explaining at 14:05 is a wormhole. A warp-drive works by stretching and contracting space pulling a spaceship along as if it's riding on a wave. Warp drive may be possible in theory but would require a lot of energy, maybe even more energy than exists in the universe.

[@bananaposo]

i love this guy

[@AsiaDanceScene]

His Japanese, for those that speak, is really lovely too, he speaks like your favorite uncle who is also really smart😊

[@EBE-13]

Normally if I clicked on a video that has a non-english speaker I would immediately click off as I don't want to read subtitles, but this gentleman held my attention with his cadence and expressions bringing what he was saying to life.

[@alexisdavidson19]

I had an existential crisis listening and thinking about all this

[@mariamaximova9482]

Thank you!

[@MrFackoffline]

I just realized I want to listen to Japanese more, it's so good to ears!

[@SecretWars98]

Good questions! ❤

[@imkurisuchan]

Two of my most favorite things in the world: Astronomy and Japanese.

[@melanieOh]

This guy talks with his hands. I like him.

[@eyeofthasky]

5:10 the "curvature" of space is a metaphorical denomination, in fact to be precise it is talked about the curvature of SPACETIME as one entity, and if you'ld span a huge triangle in the void there would be no curvature causing bigger angles since space itself is not on the surface of a sphere . . .

I guess he used the example of a triangle on a curved/non-flat 2D space (the surface of the earth) as an analogy.

[@Spike00773]

He's talking about the shape of the universe. People are trying to test if it's flat or curved by the triangle experiment

[@frede1905]

No, in this particular instance we're talking about the curvature of space, not spacetime (although spacetime is curved too). Here he's talking about the three possible ways that space (not spacetime) could curve; negative (open), zero (flat) or positive (closed) curvature. So yes, if you literally did make a large triangle in space, then assuming space isn't flat, you would indeed find that the angles didn't add up to 180 degrees. This is not because space is on "the surface of a sphere" (whatever you mean by that), but because the geometry is curved/non-Euclidean.

[@gjl4101]

Japanese Twitter gave me some hope in Twitter

[@Aizu94]

Oh trust me, the JP twitter sphere is very different to western ones

[@mattraviler8500]

Is it me, or is hearing a different language satisfying...

[@imkurisuchan]

Not just you. Japanese specifically, is very satisfying to hear

[@tompolak8873]

@@imkurisuchan how would you know, Bocchi-chan? :D

[@imkurisuchan]

@@tompolak8873 lmao

[@Continentalmunkey88]

15:53 lemonade stand analogy for non-state

[@mac23806]

We're all astro nerds now

[@danroberts2055]

I think the person asking about warping of space was thinking in term of the concept of surfing a or creating a bubble in which to fly in. Warping space around a ship is a theoretical concept in which the fabric of space-time is manipulated to create a "bubble" around a spacecraft. This bubble would contract space in front of the ship and expand space behind it. As a result, the ship could move vast distances across the universe without actually moving through space. The ship would remain stationary inside the bubble, and the space-time warp would move the ship along with it. This concept is inspired by the idea of "warp drives" in science fiction and some theoretical physics research, but it's important to note that it remains speculative and hasn't been demonstrated experimentally.

[@siniister710]

what an energetic legend

[@MrStephen092]

It's hard to imagine what it was like before the Big Bang. Like how was there anything in existence for the Big Bang to occur?

[@zaphandar]

that red line on the big bang definitely seems like a radio-wave to me..

[@Amonimus]

I don't get how "space has a beginning" answers why don't stars fill the sky. Because they're not actually everywhere and if they're far away they're hard to see, no? Also I believe that most stuff not in our galaxy group would eventually disappear beyond observable range is known. I've thought matter slowlys turn to energy due to decay and entropy.

Matter doesn’t disappear because of entropy. As for "decay," most of the matter in the universe isn’t made of unstable atoms or particles, and even those which are don’t disappear into nothingness. They turn into something else.

[@Threadsinger]

I wish I could understand japanese, the subtitles help with the comprehension but I'd love to be able to understand the energy and wisdom conveyed here, unfiltered!

[@shadetouchcatchemall5134]

Its not too hard if u really want to learn it. Its a pretty straightforward language. And yes its pretty unique this video even understanding a little.

[@deanopain]

Not too sure about the reliability of the subtitles. For example "semi-matter" should be anti-matter.

[@SB-yl1ng]

The 97 cent question ⁉️ buddy love ❤️

[@jimbojazz96]

Where can I get one of those CMB globes?

[@lamorrafierro2573]

Wow just wow

[@anadd6195]

WOW thank you teacher!