Mindscape Ask Me Anything, Sean Carroll | April 2020

[@reculture]

Dr. Carroll, I know I'm not the only one who would like to thank you for your efforts which are not only admirable but also a remedy for many of us in these challenging times. Would also like to extend my appreciation for our little resident community we have here. Wish all of you well & please keep up the good work!

[@BrianFedirko]

"Static interpretation of time" is the mis speak of Judith Marsh (28:43), which is how it is spoken of from Albert Einstein's special relativity and Hermann Minkowski's extension of special relativity. (not static time of course)

[@steliosp1770]

loving that you 're producing so much content lately Dr. Carroll. Thank you. the comment on Dr Carroll's way of speaking is spot on. personally at least I absolutely find it very easy to listen to and it definitely adds to his ability to convey deep concepts to even us lay people.

[@volaireoh883]

Couldn't agree more. Thank you so much for these 😊

[@parjohansson3118]

Dear Sean Carroll . Regarding extracting energy from a black hole (1:28:46 to 1:30:25), I would recommend trying to obtain a "standard industrial neuble" (that is the tricky part...). The Hawking radiation would generate almost 350 MW for a 2500+ Gigayears. Black hole calculator here: www.vttoth.com/CMS/physics-notes/311-hawking-radiation-calculator The surface temperature of 100+ GigaKelvin may present a bit of a technical challenge though.

[@duVillage]

One thing I noticed about your speech pattern is that you only rarely pause with an "eeh" or equivalent. It seems you elongate words when you need additional time to think. Did you purposely work towards removing "eeh" and "eer" from your speech?

[@mattwalter5184]

I have to say, two years later this is still just an okay AMA.

[@kagannasuhbeyoglu]

I can't believe my eyes, Sean Carroll, which I read very fondly, is on KZbin and we answer questions. That's amazing! Q: Dear Sean Carroll, what do you think about the fate of string theory? Will it be proven in the future or will it lose its claim? I will also ask this question to Brian Greene :)

[@jimtuv]

Every time I hear Lenny Susskind speaking I get hungry for cookies.

[@pb4520]

Thankyou for your wonderful talks!

[@tommygrandefors9691]

I just totally love this Sean. Please never stop your "Ask me anything" pod casts. Here you excel for real. Thank you.

[@JasonWalsh-b4n]

THE ALL TOO MANY VIRUSES AND BACTERIUM IS VERY UNFORTUNATE.

[@ghoulunathics]

the way you speak is so zen

[@cjmahar7595]

You're like a total Spock dude! I love it, man. The way you rearrange peoples questions into one that can actually be answered "logically". That's really enjoyable to listen to a very helpful service, Thank You!

[@waizwaidarenosa9032]

Sean Carroll is better than a Hollywood blockbuster. Dear Sean Carrol, I have to travel 25,000 lightyears within 7 weeks. How can I do it? By the way Sean, your voice is lovely, soothing and imprinting..

[@jandolfing3580]

Dear dr. Carroll, there is consensus about the age of the Universe being about 13,7 billion years old. My question is: what does a "year" mean when the earth orbits around the sun do not exist. How can one determin the duration of a "year" before the earth existed.

[@larsalfredhenrikstahlin8012]

That question doesn't really make any sense to me. A year is just a unit. It could be measured in minutes or blarublaberahsdjhses which is a unit i just made up. A year is still a year long after the earth is gone and the sun has burnt out. The same applies to before the sun. A year is still a year then too. It is just a unit decided by us based on our orbit around the sun

[@Stadtpark90]

01:19:49 The one number for the universe obviously would be 42. And then we'd need a bigger universe to find out what the question was... - maybe that's why the universe is expanding: it's trying to find the right question...

[@mehdibaghbadran3182]

Hi , Sean , thanks to explaining before Big Bang theory , I’m so excited to meeting you .

[@godfreyofbouillon966]

"You are using a lot of words that are either being used in a slightly technical or slightly nonstandard ways" is the most polite description of technobabble I've ever heard ;)

[@charonme]

are the split "universes" independent and non-interacting absolutely or could a separate outside independent observer still see an interference pattern (in which case the independence of the universes are just relative to observers entangled with the observed system)?

[@iruleandyoudont9]

what does it mean to say that clocks tick at 1 second per second? are you just saying that euphemistically or is it a precise way of describing it? isn't it just a tautology?

[@WitzyZed]

Sully Sullivan saying a clock is a clock, no?

[@iruleandyoudont9]

@@WitzyZed my point is saying a clock is a clock isnt really an informative statement. it's just saying "the law of identity" basically. "A=A" I don't see it meaning anything beyond that

[@iruleandyoudont9]

@@oaksnice he said this in response to two questions

[@slash196]

"Clocks still tick at one second per second, regardless of whether there is a cosmological constant or not". I don't know whether this is true of the universe we live in, but it is exactly the kind of question I would like to see investigated much more carefully. It does not seem to me to be self-evident. It may describe a permissible solution of Einstein's equations but that's quite a bit less interesting of a statement. Your earlier comment about a uniform metric being associated with a universal proper time is, I think, a much more interesting statement, and I would really encourage you to think more deeply along those lines. I have a feeling deep in my bones that there is something incredibly important there...and anyway, it's not like we have any better ideas about dark energy.

[@User-jr7vf]

@@nihlify yes it does

[@calvinmadison6065]

I like your precise enunciated talking

[@PeterMcLoughlinStargazer1877]

I think what people believe abstractly and believe implicitly are two different things. As someone who deals in QM I am sure you bumped up against this distinction.

[@misterkriskooper]

Wouldnt a counter argument to Dennets explanation be that if one doesnt have control over whether theyve been appropriately educated or are able to understand and apply the concepts of morality doesnt mean it is impossible for one who has been exposed to these experiences to apply their understanding of morality? Of course Im not suggesting these people have control over whether they want to be moral, just that morality, like anything else, is a learned behavior. I think there is a recent study that shows the universe isnt expanding at the same rate in all directions? Assuming it's true, does this change the need or application for inflation and or what would be your first reaction to how or if DM or DE could be influencing the distances? Also if this is true would this change the amount of entropy at the big bang?

[@josephwanderingspirit739]

*stands slowly* "I am Abacus.."

[@madderhat5852]

No, I am Abacus

[@captainseanw]

ok so far i have learned quite a bit actualy thru the different science channels, my question is this, what if like a quark or q-bit being in a state of super position that when it is measured it stops in one position or the other what if the same pricipal could applied to the big bang?

[@gixelz]

yes

[@shivam000]

I recently heard about the theory that says there was no big bang and says the whole thing is the outcome of some quantum fluctuations. also, I want to know how space can be created. does bang created the space or space was already there for the bang, could you elaborate on that.

[@krzysztofm1059]

Perhaps it's not gravity that is weak, it's the spacetime that's very rigid?

[@johnphil2006]

The algorithm used in Darwinian evolution would be same which is used for whole cosmic evolution. Whether the evolutionary process itself evolving through evolution?

[@raysalmon6566]

Is this the same author of "The Big Picture" of which I am reading now?

[@volaireoh883]

Yes😊

[@raysalmon6566]

@@volaireoh883 Naturalistic Materialism seem quite void to me I haven't read the transcript on this yet but presume it built on that premise

[@iwanvandermerwe2597]

Excellent like all your work Sean.

[@DAVIDPETERS12C]

On the topic of trusting an expert: In paleontology, I found you can see the specimens in museums, conduct your own phylogenetic analysis, then add taxa (as they are described) to see how that changes anything in the cladogram. That's how I discovered the ancestors of bats, snakes, dinosaurs, pterosaurs and the two unrelated clades of whales (mysticetes and odontocetes) while these remain traditional enigmas in the academic world. Details here: www.ReptileEvolution.com

[@dt5072]

what are the logistics of a quasar beam weapon

[@FreethinkingSecularist]

You need to add a question mark and pay him on patreon if you would like his answer to the question. You may get lucky and ask a question intriguing enough to inspire a patreon supporter to ask for you, however that is going to be a longshot. Good luck sir or ma'am!

[@sipplix]

Talking about people's particular styles of speaking, check out Cliff Stoll, now that's unique.😳 I admire him massive.

[@charonme]

1:33:14 I suspect Sam wished you'd evaluate the analogy between climate change policy and pascal's wager

[@phoule76]

thanks, Patreons. this was entertaining.

[@auxbonnieux]

You and Brian Greene had a tweet re: joining podcast forces. Definitely want to see/hear that!

[@paulmace7910]

We look at the universe and run the movie backward to get the age of the visible universe and the theory of the big bang. How about the rest of the universe outside of what we can see? If the entire universe is say, twice what we can see doesn’t that double the age? Or is inflation affected?

[@johnschort7634]

If the universe is only 14billion years old, why can we see 45 billion light years in any direction?

[@origins7298]

There's no problem with denying free will but still holding other people accountable and having a legal system and forms of checks and balances on Behavior. Because that's all part of the system that we live in. You don't have to have free will to react to someone's behavior and do what is necessary to maintain order in a society. Let's face it the universe is a system we are systems everything is best thought of as a interactive system with feedback loops excetera! There's no problem with strictly saying there's no such thing as free will because after all no one chooses to be born no one chooses their genetic code no one chooses the forward momentum of the universe Etc! But with that said we naturally have certain reactions to each other and we naturally have a system that has a valve so the fact that technically speaking there's no free will doesn't mean we can't hold people accountable because that's all part of the system we live in. In other words if you look at it logically the criminal doesn't have free will but neither does the police and neither does the jury and needed as the judge they're all following the momentum of the universe Anyway it always amazed me that people could say well if there's no free will then there's no accountability but they couldn't see the fact that if the criminals doesn't have free will will neither does the judge and neither do the police. Why does somehow not having free will make the fact that we have a system that has taking hold on this planet a system of people and relationships why can't the phone momentum of that just play out. Anyway I always thought that was weird that people couldn't realize that no the criminal doesn't have free will but neither do the judges. They have abilities to learn into adapt to situations but technically speaking we're all products of the universe

[@origins7298]

I hear you I'm not really arguing the issue one way or another I'm rather pointing out that if someone says Free Will doesn't exist. Then the Criminal Who commits the crime is not free but neither are the police and neither are the judge and neither are the legal system I'm just pointing out that people's objection that if we have no free will than we have no responsibility doesn't take into account that you're basically arguing that the whole system isn't free so clearly people are still going to hold others accountable just because that's their nature that's what the universe is dictating I'm not arguing that this is the best conception of reality or there might not be other more interesting ways to discuss it I'm just saying that it always boggled my mind how someone could say that if there's no free will then we can not hold anyone accountable. But again that misses the whole point that our holding people accountable is just as much not free as someone committing a crime

[@origins7298]

@@elontusk610 okay but I will give you my best conception People have evolved to have a range of possible behaviors And the laws of physics tell us that it is impossible for any intelligence to know the future of the universe due to the fact that trying to gain information is an active process which influences the situation you are measuring So I think the best conception of Free Will is just the fact that people have a range of possible behaviors and we will never know what the future holds in any certain way But I certainly don't think any naive conception of free-will such as people are really free to determine their actions without any influence is at all realistic. Obviously people don't choose to be born and they don't choose the situations that they encounter. And they certainly don't choose the laws of physics or the nature of the universe or anything like that. Anyway Free Will is like many abstract Concepts it's a vague notion that simply denotes the fact that we have a range of possible behaviors and it is impossible to know how any of those behaviors will play out. It's also the feeling that we make choices and make decisions so in that sense it's a cultural construct that simply gives us a feeling of how to think about our relationship to society and the people around us. In that sense it's an abstract concept like justice or morality In that it is determined by our psychology our cognition and so on.

[@Life_42]

52:40 I'm surprised Sean Carroll knows about DragonBall Z!

[@alexj9111]

I think that free will has been ruled out because of the brain delay experiment? A six second time lag to the moment we make a decision. Thats really depressed me. I hope there's a way out with QM.

[@alexj9111]

Cool, thanks.

[@JiminiCrikkit]

Wow you really are working hard answering all these questions for this length of time... well done :D

[@dt5072]

so wheres that dark matter at

[@romanghenciu6420]

Hello, how to calculate the size and age of the visible universe when it began transparent after bigbang?

[@TheBig3s]

Roman Ghenciu the light became transparent in the universe when enough matter and atoms formed to transport light through space, which was around 380,000 years after the Big Bang moment. Since then it has been 13.8 billion years and the universe has been expanding at (x) rate, so it has been expanding that fast and that long and right now from one side of the universe to the other, it is about 92 billion light years across. In another billion years it will be even larger.

[@ToddDesiato]

Things in the physics publication community haven't changed a bit! It's impossible to publish something new about Gravity, and they will reject any articles not written by university sponsored or affiliated research. If an outsider tries to get something published, it is rejected 100% of the time, regardless of the journal. IOP, APS, etc... If you're not a member of their club, don't bother submitting.

[@mitchkahle314]

"Pascal's Wager" encourages betting the farm on trillions-to-one odds. With all the possible gods (literally trillions), Pascal wagered his life on his one particular God. Dumb idea from the start.

[@lower_case_t]

Considering how horribly Pascal's life ended and how his decision brought him nothing but senseless suffering and finally a painful death, I wonder how anyone can seriously ask what believers would have to lose. He himself was the perfect example how bad it can get.

[@deeptochatterjee532]

As someone else said I'd be really interested in what you think of Eric Weinstein's work on geometric unity. To me it seems like you think spacetime is emergent from quantum mechanics so I'm wondering if that's at odds with this idea of geometric unity

[@replica1052]

where consciousness is an echo of our senses, the ego is the smallest universe possible

[@akumar7366]

Thank you for sharing this video, I really like your personality and the topics are brilliant. Iam a big fan of Roger Penrose CCC theory, would love to hear your view on this idea.

[@spencerdelallo5745]

Do something on how neutrinos get mass, I'd love some light shed on that

[@jacksonkenny1]

Long time reader and big fan; Who wrote and played your theme song?

[@alexj9111]

I think reality might be like a computer game. We are controlling our characters but there's a few second lag before the outcome. That would explain the brain delay experiment paradox. Sorry if this sounds crazy but iv'e had a few whiskeys. LOL.

[@DraftScience]

response video: kzbin.info/www/bejne/hoCsmpqIjtJrf5o

[@twonumber22]

Glad you're doing well during all this.

[@dimitriskaraiskos8559]

In many worlds wouldn't the gravity "leak" around the worlds like it would in a 3d 4d reality?

[@wraithofsolidarity]

Thanks for the questions and answers podcast. I use scale to visualize. The string theory 10^500 universes, for example, All the atoms in the universe, each with a universe of atoms and each of those atoms have a universe of atoms within, which is 10^240 and so on. To imagine the 10^80 number, the body contains 10^27 atoms, each of those would have a body with atoms in and so on. 10^27 isn't that far away from the millions, billions and trillions, we're accustomed to. It's easy to feel, yet difficult to visualize; a lot of concentration is required, it's like meditation, or astral projection. Have a great day!

[@Ofinfinitejest]

At 12:42 Sean deals with ideas relevant to thinking about the great film "Primer," and the excellent new series "DEVS."

[@jackhammer8439]

Question: Just watched Eric Weinstein discussing his theory of everything about geometric unity and the observerse. I can’t make heads or tails of it. Curious if Sean has listened to it/what he thinks of it.

[@jackhammer8439]

Or maybe an interesting guest and discussion for a podcast.

[@callummacdonald3557]

inflation? deflation?

[@johnschort7634]

Also, if inflation has been around since the big bang, how much was the dollar wodth in todays dollars back then?

[@Intuitioncalling]

I hear your lucid explanations like I used to listen to music. However no matter how much I try, I just can't seem to shake off my agnostic tendencies. Please do a full episode on the probability of the existence of a deity (not a theistic one necessarily). I know that if there's probably someone who can change my mind, it must have to be you.

[@lashram32]

why ... why can't Sean Carroll run from president?

[@subjectivepersp1937]

Slap down your IQ’s mine’s 12

[@dt5072]

55

[@myothersoul1953]

All it takes to simulate me is an abacus? Now I'm really depressed.

[@SuperDynamite666]

Can quantum mechanics be used to destroy viruses? :)

[@alexj9111]

Computer viruses maybe?

[@alexj9111]

@Alex Rickelton I thought he was being ironic

[@alexj9111]

No me bad sorry man i'll delete the lol.

[@facesmelt9903]

FIRST

[@thecryinglennyface166]

Yeet