Mindscape AMA, Sean Carroll | September 2021

Patreon: / seanmcarroll
Blog post with audio player, show notes, and transcript: www.preposterousuniverse.com/...
Welcome to the September 2021 Ask Me Anything episode of Mindscape! These monthly excursions are funded by Patreon supporters (who are also the ones asking the questions). I take the large number of questions asked by Patreons, whittle them down to a more manageable size - based primarily on whether I have anything interesting to say about them, not whether the questions themselves are good - and sometimes group them together if they are about a similar topic. Enjoy!
Mindscape Podcast playlist: • Mindscape Podcast
Sean Carroll channel: @Sean Carroll

[@jonwesick2844]

These are more valuable than gold or platinum. Thank you.

[@stevenkrasner5532]

I could not stop laughing, including writing this comment: when you said,"Too bad there is no diagram." in your high sing songy voice. So so funny!

[@mrz3r012]

I'm very lucky to be alive. To have the internet, youtube, and Sean Carroll.

[@isedairi]

Sean I know this implies a bit more work, but can you put questions that you engage in in the description of the video? It's easier to find stuff that way given that AMA videos have no particular topics

[@martinds4895]

I really appreciate all the content in your channel, specially this AMAs. Thank you very much Prof. Dr. Sean.

[@seionne85]

Thanks for taking the time to do this Sean, it was great to listen to on my drive

[@mgenthbjpafa6413]

2:50:47 "Professor, I am enchanted with your subtle answer, pointing to the absurd of the question 😁🔥👍

[@Retro_Rich]

Absurdity. 😉

[@royalbloodedledgend]

This is an incredible 3 and a half hours

[@otherchrismusic]

Really is!

[@SlySoSavage]

thank you sir.

[@tommygrandefors9691]

Finally! September AMA. Thank you Sean very much! It will ruin my night sleep, but I don't care. It's worth it to be tired at work tomorrow, hehe. 👍

[@matthewwarren3758]

I wish it would ruin mine. it takes me days to get through these because I'm off to sleep in 20 - 30 mins max every time. Not a bad thing because since I discovered all Seans pdocasts I havent had trouble sleeping once!

[@justabunchofbees4120]

Great story about John Rawls!

[@titansoftime]

Love these!

[@StayPrimal]

You are amazing !!!

[@famistudio]

Very excited for the "biggest ideas" book series.

[@McMomfaceplustwo]

So for time, would it work to think of the “big bang” propelling us (the matter of the universe) through the time part of space time and it gave us such momentum that the only way to turn back and go against the tide would be such massive gravity that it pulls us back through time?

[@IIIllllIIIIlllll]

Anyone know which episode (and time stamp) in which he talks about the possible futures of covid? I fell asleep to that last night and want to re-listen

[@mgenthbjpafa6413]

Very appealing, when you think of emergence you deal with high lexical ambiguity levels, being an interdisciplinary concept. Scales, on the other hand, are very useful and objective. I have imagined a time where, from "nano bots" we could reach giant biotechnology based interstellar traveling devices... Juvenile dreams are free of almost all boundaries... even when you are not young. 🎂🤔

[@marcomattano3705]

You are my hero (among with Brian Greene) and Theoretical Physics is my SECOND favourite subject. I wonder what is your best guess on my FIRST preferred subject, the solution for the Fermi Paradox. Myself, I would bet that complex life is very very rare, and technological civilizations are extremely rare, but that's just me. No aliens, unfortunately, at least not in our galaxy anyway. What do you think? Maybe there are universes out there where complex life, abstract intelligence and consequently, tech space faring civilizations are pretty common, ours doesn't seem to be one of them.

[@Telemahk]

Marco, Prof. Carroll already answered this exact question in one of his previous AMAs. His answer was exactly as yours "intelligent life is extremely rare in the Universe".

[@Lance_Lough]

I enjoy this ride and anticipate it eagerly. Start watching for it around the fifteenth of each month. Always learn something. Thanks to Dr. Carroll and all the participants.

[@bernieflanders8822]

Is the reason that mass warps spacetime down to the fact that spacetime is dark energy itself and mass slows down the expansion of space-time/dark energy?

[@doinkily9371]

I discovered this podcast several months ago and have been making my way through it the episodes slowly trying to catch up. I really love it and I love Sean, but I wonder if he has any regrets about being so wrong about the corona virus, especially the efficacy of the vaccine. I guess maybe I'll find out if I ever catch up.

[@mr51406]

2:14:21 Orientation: in fact the plane of our solar system is tilted by like 60° to the plane of the Milky Way, in other words tilted by 2/3.

[@HarryNicNicholas]

i just heard there is a theory that there is only one electron in the universe, that it time travels to be everywhere....have i been mislead?

[@dwivedikaustuv]

I put your podcasts on and do QM numericals ... I don't know why, but it helps (not with tough questions) 😂😂

[@patrickearley2878]

Z

[@user-kv8pt2rf9h]

@@patrickearley2878

[@user-kv8pt2rf9h]

ช

[@user-kv8pt2rf9h]

ช

[@user-kv8pt2rf9h]

ช

[@dirkschwartz1689]

Bones consulting reference around 2:28:50 : "The Spark in the Park", S9E11

[@seionne85]

Thanks!!

[@tech-utuber2219]

I'd like to see the episodes with guests also go as long as this one did, if the guests agree to it.

[@deeptochatterjee532]

I don't think he has enough time in his life for that

[@user-hk7rf5bh2b]

Great!

[@freehat2722]

1:41:23 There was the gain of function done in a terrible lab, immunologists were silenced (including the inventor), mandates for novel drugs when other treatments were available etc...

[@nowhereman8374]

Abriturary long or strong cords are like spherical cows, Sean!

[@HarryNicNicholas]

1:37:00 i'll ask again just in case. my branches question is, if harry potter (the character) is a character in this universe, do fictional characters remain fictional in all universes, or is there the proposterous (!) possibility he is an actual hogwarts magic student in another universe somewhere? how does that apply to god?

[@cardinality1975]

I do not want to put it out as a full text, but your question is easily interpreted as wrong by nature. If you want those arguments to be true there is an unbeliabky large amount of work to be done in QFT.

[@HarryNicNicholas]

@@cardinality1975 thank you for your brilliant and enlightening reply, thank you mr murgatroyd.

[@mattgraves3709]

No shit about Bones?? That's one of my favorite episodes of any show ever... To confirm, do you mean the episode about the "dancer moving through space in physics " No way Sean how cool. Edit, yep the one about the Gymnast. "Spark in the park" How cool, I mean you are famous anyway but... Have you seen the show Elementary? The episode on P vs NP was awesome also.

[@yaserthe1]

Woohoooo

[@TheMacdod]

Just have relationships with good people!

[@spaceinyourface]

Love been Carrolized

[@Telemahk]

good one

[@chromeome5245]

Subscribers with the patreon thing, ask this guy more questions on relationship advices. He keeps it short and what he says makes so much sense.

[@ryan-gn2jy]

🎉

[@ryan-gn2jy]

😢😢😢😢😢😮😮😮😮🎉

[@ryan-gn2jy]

🎉

[@ryan-gn2jy]

😮😢😢😢😮😮😮

[@blablah6763]

Wow

[@captainzappbrannagan]

At some point in the infinite future there will be truly empty space, that is space that is totally void of vacuum energy (any energy/particles/virtual particles)? So what's the argument against time's "speed" kzbin.info/www/bejne/n3O3lq1jo7l-m9U. I have never understood how white holes cold be a thing, if a black hole leaks matter/energy on the other side via white hole, wouldn't the black hole mass shrink away quickly?

[@rich5034]

Present

[@escapefelicity2913]

there was no big bang

[@lucadinca192]

😊😊

[@coldpizza0123]

basically the only reason why you did them is momentum, try doing them still lol

[@HarryNicNicholas]

2:44:00 surely the problem is not the system of government, but who is governing and to what end. communism, dictatorships, democray can all be beneficial to the populace, and the world, but so far the people who set these systems up aren't really looking to the interests of anyone but themselves. 45's administration can't be counted as any better than a lot of dictatorships. what is needed is a way to get people with good ideas and intentions beneficial to the population and the rest of the world into power. in the UK i think we should lose the house of lords and have a house of experts / scientists, people who more partial to the state of the planet than the state of their stately home.

[@denalozecon9074]

Around 2:02+ a 'free quark' is described as having infinite energy attracting other quarks? No way am I going to fully quote Sean Carroll on what he is describing. So I think the Gluon Field attracting Quarks to other Quarks is supposed to be the inverse of Gravity; basic or ground state when they are touching...and getting stronger with distance, up to that limit of infinite strength for the 'impossible Quark that is alone' Just Yikes! This is not sci fi; this is what a respected Quantum Physics Theorists says is HOW matter functions. But since that 'free and alone quark' is not possible; that would imply quarks could be created only in stable groups. What are stable groups? Proton and Neutron are the known ones, but Quark Stars or generally inside Neutron Stars are theorized as maybe existing with Strange Matter...that would have any arbitrary number of quarks less than the mass needed to create a black hole. Anyway no free quark could be created for this to make sense; it would be a hidden phenomena that absolutely requires quarks to be created in a stable group...so at least 3 quarks at a time. So so weird! If accepted as truth implies some questions; what is the maximum number of quarks that could be created from one reaction of other particles? Is the requirement some multiple of 3 at a time? If the requirement is not a multiple of 3 the Proton or Neutron amount, it would be even weirder...and however it is explained it would itself be a bizarre bit of math logic.

[@denalozecon9074]

Seriously! I never heard this description of Atoms! At 2:14 to 2:17 an Atom is described as all the Quarks in a pool of Strange Matter...NOT as separate Protons and Neutrons all stuck together. I will listen again to make sure I did not misunderstand. Also the definition of "Composite Particle" is pretty cool. Sean Carroll seems confident; that he is describing truth not a specific theory. So if this is how Atoms are; not a collection of Protons and Neutrons...then Strange Matter is every location with an atom Larger than a Proton. For years I thought Strange Matter was supposed to be in only rare extreme locations such as Neutron Stars.

[@mgenthbjpafa6413]

"We" feel that you are scaling up your explanatory level, based on an "evolution" on the level of questions. That first analogy between philosophy and cosmology made by John Rawls has escaped me at first hearing. I sense also that the rhythm or cadence of speech as increased, but I may be me, living a slow day... or both, or neither, truth. Your courses are very pedagogical oriented, and schedule into thirty clear minutes. Or maybe you, moving the server to Massachusetts have picked up a little piece of the eastern coast 1.2/1.3 speed up... Pardon me, your supporters just should not inquire those unnecessary observations. I have your podcast as THE top, neat, scientific podcast, (with Lex Fridman on your tail...) 🔥🤗🙏

[@mgenthbjpafa6413]

Congrats, it is a pleasure. Sincerely, best of luck with your business and career!

[@Slimm2240]

Sean, Michio and Leondard Susskind have to be the most articulate people I've ever heard speak.

[@shiniqwe]

😊😊😊

[@natemontgomery5740]

Is there one single solitary aspect of any of this that can be proven scientifically? Or is it all just math equations and Pseudoscience nonsense?? Serious question

[@JasonLuther1]

Good question!

[@Dillinger86]

Epistemic structural realism

[@ciarandevine8490]

Sean it’s hard to listen to your constant mentions the Big Bang. There was no big bang. 🌟

[@jasonmarshall7983]

Have you heard of flat-earth?

[@mgenthbjpafa6413]

We could do it but we would not.

[@wizzelhoart]

Aren’t there an infinite number of universe where ice NEVER melts at room temperature? And even more where Ice doesn’t melt only once? Why can’t this universe be one?

[@mattheworlando5908]

No I don’t agree w your logic

[@therundown5208]

I want to ask you a question I think I figured out how to travel back in time but you need a wormhole to be able to work see if this makes sense to you you open a wormhole from Earth to Proxima Centauri 4 light-years away then you open another Wormhole back to Earth it should be four years in the past that point right the reason why because light from Proxima Centauri is 4 years old or any Star for that matter you could travel back in time as much as you wanted but you just travel to a store where you got the time that it was the planet you make the Wormhole come out at that point then you turn around and come right back to her however for out you traveled and returned that many years have passed because wormholes should be instantaneous transportation across the universe

[@F_L_U_X]

666th like

[@aresmars2003]

My question would be - can God make a galaxy sized black hole? Specifically, escape velocity of a galaxy can get high with a very low density, so if God kept dropping in new mass in circular orbits in a galaxy, you can reach a point where escape velocity approaches the speed of light, while internally, orbital velocity is comfortably lower than the speed of light. So what happens in the limit? Will this galaxy just "fall out of spacetime"? And if so, would it become a separate universe? And what would its boundaries look like from the inside? It doesn't seem like you need any "singularity" in the center if kinetic energy can keep the mass from all falling into the center.

[@matthewwarren3758]

The problem there is that God doesn't exist

[@aresmars2003]

@@matthewwarren3758 And we can't fly at the speed of light, but that little fact didn't stop Einstein from a thought experiment.

[@aresmars2003]

​@@mrloop1530 Like the bigger brother of Slartibartfast, a designer of galaxies.

[@seionne85]

It would just appear redshifted to an outside observer. It wouldn't be a black hole, it would be a high mass galaxy. I don't think you grasp how dense a black hole would be.. you'd have to keep adding more mass until there was no space left, then keep adding more until there is no space for neutrons left, then keep adding more

[@aresmars2003]

@@seionne85 Not true. This is simply escape velocity: v=√(2GM/R). If density, d, is kept constant, mass increases with cube of radius. This gives v=R√(8Gdπ/3). So if you double the radius of a galaxy, escape velocity also doubles (w/ same density). So just take the density of an ordinary galaxy, and scale it up in radius until escape velocity equals the speed of light.

[@Ppbtthl]

Yeah he's a brilliant guy, but I won't be able to rest until Sean learns to stop saying "phenomena" instead of "phenomenon".

[@origins7298]

The singular is 'phenomenon. ' The plural is 'phenomena. ... Its meaning hasn't changed, and you still make it plural like you make Greek words plural. The plural is “phenomena.” What are you saying that he mixes up the singular and plural? I'm much more troubled by his continued alluding to LaPlace is demon as a good way to conceptualize the universe. I know he knows better but he makes people believe that this is like a real possible thing and it's worth considering It's in flagrant violation of multiple points of both classical and quantum mechanics. We can't predict how any complex system will evolve such as the weather because it's physically impossible. And there's no type of intelligence that can because that intelligence would have to fundamentally violate the laws of physics. He talks about this idea least twice every Ama as on most podcast. Why don't we constantly Muse about perpetual motion machines while we're at it

[@Ppbtthl]

He uses "phenomena" instead of the singular, yes, like a lot of otherwise educated people.

[@rhumbatron2912]

But you need less senators and that means people who demand to live in cities have two things: 1.) Access to better living including afluent access to better facts and discourse, examples of progress and justice, innovative aproaches etc.,2.) less access to representative democracy proportionate to the population compared to corn farmers. Boohoo🙉

[@ryannickens7848]

Sean, you can lose the intro music. Do it now. We don't need it

[@hannahbanana3851]

Stfu that’s my favorite song 🎵

[@Telemahk]

You can always move the slider couple of minutes into the podcast. Voila.

[@ryannickens7848]

@@Telemahk I often listen to Sean's podcast while I sleep. I have yet to learn how to control KZbin from there!

[@Telemahk]

@@ryannickens7848 at least you can start your first nightly podcast of Prof. Carroll without this intro music. lol

[@TROwens]

I can't stand being around other humans, I find it almost impossible to talk to people in person. I rarely leave my room. I don't have friends or family. I avoid interacting with other people physically and become extremely uncomfortable when forced by circumstances. I don't trust anyone. I don't like anyone. This is as close as I get to interacting with other humans

[@nah656]

Smile more

[@hammbaby]

the fact that you comment this shows how much you care for socialization

[@Ruhan885]

"Look at me!!!"

[@Brett.1984]

Dido

[@jwd3344]

We can be so deep in that thought pattern that we can't even tell between anxiety or excitement anymore. It still takes me weeks sometimes to get back to loved ones or commit to being around people. It is truly exhausting. People fucking suck. Going out and having a small experience like sharing a hello and smile with an elderly person can personally change my entire outlook and energy for the day though. Keep rolling along ❤

[@lucadinca192]

😊😊

[@lucadinca192]

😊😊

[@lucadinca192]

😊😊