What Are Particles? Do They ACTUALLY Exist?!

Somewhere between 1926 and 1950, we gave up the concept of particles in favor of quantum fields. In this video, I explain the motivations for that to a non-physicist: my wife.
Nick Lucid - Host, Writer, Editor, Animator
Eric Aspling - Consulting Expert, Fact Checker
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VIDEO ANNOTATIONS/CARDS
Quantum Superposition:
• Quantum Superposition,...
Older video on Quantum Fields:
• What is a Quantum Fiel...
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ScienceClic on Feynman Diagrams:
• Quantum Electrodynamic...
Domain of Science on Feynman Diagrams:
• How To Read Feynman Di...
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SOURCES
www.forbes.com/sites/startswi...
plato.stanford.edu/entries/qu...
General Scientific Papers:
doi.org/10.1119/1.4789885
doi.org/10.1119/1.4812316
Feynman's Papers:
journals.aps.org/pr/abstract/...
journals.aps.org/pr/abstract/...
authors.library.caltech.edu/3...
Overview of Feynman Rules:
particle.phys.uvic.ca/~jalber...
web2.ph.utexas.edu/~vadim/Cla...
www.physics.mcgill.ca/~jcline...
Fundamental Constants:
pml.nist.gov/cuu/Constants/
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Werner Heisenberg:
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TIME CODES
00:00 Cold Open
00:12 Getting a baseline
00:55 Matter and Light: What's it made of?
02:38 What is a Field?
04:09 What is a Wave?
05:33 What is a Quantum Field?
07:50 Quantum Fields Visualized
10:26 Feynman Diagrams Explained
12:20 Virtual Particles Explained
13:50 How to use Feynman Diagrams
15:05 Quantum Electrodynamics
18:15 What is its purposes?
18:40 Do particles exist?
19:14 Featured Comment

[@JohnSalchichon2]

I am a student of physics, whenever I think something is impossible to explain to a physics illiterate you come and show me that it is I who is illiterate in teaching hahahahaha

[@borabingol6797]

Teaching is some other ability, some have it some don’t. He is gifted with teaching.

[@John_SalchiChon69]

I dont think teaching is entirely an unteachable hability, but he very much has it, yes. My main surprise though is that he manages to explain things from scratch without modifying the concepts for ease of teaching, for quantum mechanichs its REEEEALLY UNCOMMON, I wouldnt believe much more channels other than this one if I were you. @@borabingol6797

[@SaniFakhouri]

The "Waaoooommm" sound effect that plays everytime a 'disturbance' happens in a quantum field is fantastic.

[@ScienceAsylum]

😂 I've been using that sound effect since the beginning of my channel. It's an oldie.

[@Nulley0]

i feel like home, when i hear it

[@prabkunvar10]

​@@Nulley0 i can feel a disturbance in the force !!

[@somecsguy9824]

​@@ScienceAsylum please tell me it's just a recording of you making the sound

It gets me everytime 😂

[@thomziq]

I'm still in shock because of how underappreciated this channel is compared to the quality of content it has! Keep up the good work! :D

[@ScienceAsylum]

Thanks!

[@ronnyvbk]

Fully agree and I feel ashamed I m not giving enough attention to this channel lately, it is in fact the channel that turned me into viewing YTvids but nowadays I have so much subscriptions I can't view all content generated. I need to get my priorities sorted out! Great lesson and great format Nick and AkwardM!

[@ashroskell]

This is such a great system of teaching, whereby the Explainer has to explain to a smart person who is not an expert. Thereby testing the Explainer’s capacity to teach and causing growth in both the audience and the teacher. Plus, it’s just a really entertaining format. We are all in the position of your wife, who is asking questions that we would ask, making her a great analogue for your audience. It’s a wonderful service you are doing for science, which deserves plaudits and recognition. Thank you for that. 👍

[@scene2much]

Check out Plato's Dialogues.

[@fundemort]

im sorry but for some reason i can't quite explain. i don't see them as a couple. again im sorry.

[@ashroskell]

@@scene2much : I know them well. History is my bag, along with physics, wherein all knowledge lies. My problem is being dyslexic and innumerate, along with a mild form of autism and ADD. Consequently, I have some closer relationships with my books than with people, rather like Machiavelli toward the end of his life, or so my wife thinks. I guess I was kinda’ spelling out the obvious intention of the video’s maker, which will cause some to roll their eyes, but my intent was to help explain some of the educational theory behind this approach and touch on why it’s so important, so that any teachers who come across these videos might be encouraged to recommend them, both to other teachers and their pupils. But I also feel this guy deserves recognition as an educator. He has, over time, managed to crowbar aspects of the theory that don’t come naturally to me into my brain, in a way that many science explainers have failed to do, for which I remain eternally grateful.

[@ashroskell]

@@fundemort : You needn’t believe in their relationship in order to get the science, or be entertained by the videos, so it’s not something you need apologise for, son. They have shared their wedding photos and other evidence of their marriage, in previous videos. But, “believing,” in their marriage is not a, “them,” or a, “me,” problem. Why do you care?

[@fundemort]

@@ashroskell so many assumptions you made there. 1. do i look care? i said i can't explain why, so it's a first impression not a "care" judgement. 2. they really don't seem like a couple they seem more like co-workers. or like a professor to his master or phd student. its not a bad thing though. in fact it could be a good thing. it proves they are able to separate their personal and work life very well. 3. did my comment sound like i make it a problem to you? because i already said sorry. also 4. which part did i say i didn't get entertained or get the science?

[@zbop220]

Ive watched lots of documentaries, read articles and books, scientist interviews and youtubers. You have done the most to supply critically missing puzzle pieces that clarify the picture, make things make sense, and make me say "OOH!" Its the little details.

[@ScienceAsylum]

That's great! I'm so glad I've helped 🤓

[@ericeaton2386]

Same here! In this video in particular, emphasizing that virtual particles and anti-matter going backwards in time are just mathematical tools was very helpful.

[@esra_erimez]

Same for me too.

[@81giorikas]

@@ScienceAsylum But what was the first field and who disturbed it in the first place? Then you model particles with fields consisting of harmonic oscillators of...what? Other mini particles connected by something? How do they touch one another/propagate (distrurbance etc). Reductionism? Again? Is something usefull going to be built out of all of this?

[@randomdosing7535]

​@The Science Asylum this episode was great. I felt that i have a private tutor teaching me. Felt lot more like we are talking in person.

[@kwaherikwasasa]

Feynman was once asked if he could explain Quantum Electro Dynamics so that a lay person could understand it, and he replied, "No." As a certified lay person, I can say you have made some progress in that direction. Also, I have read most of Feynman's books, and they are extremely readable for those of us who are fascinated by the topic but have had nothing more than high school calculus. He was a fascinating person.

[@g3mck120]

Feynman did write a little book in 1985 titled "QED" that gets pretty close to a layman's explanation. But in the 39 years since thee best explanations have gotten even clearer. This is one of the very best.

[@serronpdub]

The episodes when you explain quantum mechanics to your wife, are by far my favorite uploads. I would love to have her add in her comments/thoughts in a bubble or something into your normal uploads. Does not have to be many. Maybe 2-4 per episode.

[@davidkfreeman6107]

I agree. she ask the very questions I want to ask. makes it easier for me to understand. And it's entertaining. LOL

[@DrDeuteron]

my wife has a phd in nuclear physics from the no. 1 ranked school, so it's not so fun for me.

[@paulmendoza9736]

Nick's wife is much cooler than Nick himself. Although I think I am in love with how he explains things.

[@viralsheddingzombie5324]

StopAskingMyName, Please identify yourself.

[@N73B60]

it's the interaction between a noob and an expert that makes great videos

[@abdullahkor5465]

Well, I think I really needed a video like this. Things get very weird at quantum level and thus you can't be sure what's going on. You made my day sir, thanks!

[@ScienceAsylum]

With weird topics like this, it's really helpful to have someone in the room so I can see where the specific mental obstacles are for those who haven't seen it before.

[@Lucky10279]

@@ScienceAsylum It's also fun listening to your interactions with each other. You guys have such good chemistry and I hope you do more videos together like this. Might even be fun to switch things up occasionally and have her explain weird biology stuff to you.

[@oldmech619]

Think of the quantum wold as a far out religious cult that has completely lost touch with reality. As long as they stay in their broom closets, we are all safe.

[@furqanshariff]

The competitive advantage he has above other youtubers is that, he is clear of what he is saying even during an explanation, which makes us think it is easy to understand

[@ScienceAsylum]

I don't want there to be any miscommunication.

[@-_Nuke_-]

@@ScienceAsylum Hey Nick! Have you seen or know about another theoretical physicist and KZbinr named Andrezj Dragan? In one of his videos, named "Quantum Principle of Relativity episode #9" he explains how we could possibly use faster than light travel from special relativity, to explain things in quantum mechanics, ultimately bridging the gap between the two... What are your thoughts on that topic or on what prof Dragan has to say?

[@Samu2010lolcats]

​@@-_Nuke_- That's not new, Quantum Field Theory already uses Special Relativity. The problem is with General Relativity.

[@PatricioHondagneuRoig]

​@@ScienceAsylum you're doing an amazing job at simplifying such a complex body of knowledge to make it fit in our monkey brains 😎

[@ogi22]

@@ScienceAsylum You just took a page out of Feynmans book about how to understand and explain things. And i think he should get another Nobel for "theory of explaining things" 😁

[@tkgsingsct]

Your wife asks my questions!! Super helpful for folks not great with math, thanks for this channel. I think this is the first time I've been confident I have a basic grasp of what quantum field theory actually is (and I'm rather dense, that's a big deal!). 😊

[@ScienceAsylum]

I'm glad we could help 🤓

[@wefinishthisnow3883]

I just wanted to say that I love that despite having over half a million subscribers, Nick actually reads and responds to so many of the comments. Another great video Nick!

[@ScienceAsylum]

I like interacting with people and I try to keep my comment section a friendly place to be for everyone. It's like an extension to the learning. I learn stuff from the conversations too.

[@wefinishthisnow3883]

@@ScienceAsylum ^ You see everyone? This is what I'm talking about! One of many reasons we love you Nick!

[@ScienceAsylum]

@@wefinishthisnow3883 I see _most_ of the comments, but I'll admit I might miss one or two now and then. There are a lot of comments. Sometimes the comment doesn't warrant a response. Other times I don't know the answer to the question their asking. But I try to at least _read_ them all.

[@MrPooPooJohn]

I love when you and your wife do videos together.

[@joshuascholar3220]

Best video on Feynman diagrams, and I've seen them all. Having your wife there to explain things to seems to have inspired you to explain things much better.

[@ronnyvbk]

For me it is the first time I understand a bit what Feynman diagrams are actually about.

[@philochristos]

Nick, you are an exceptional communicator, and your wife is such a good sport.

[@mitch_the_-itch]

Youre my favorite nerd. All of the different versions of you. Its cute you buy them each their own book "Lectures on Physics" instead of reading it three time's. Your wife seems cool too.

[@Muladeseis]

I liked the animation of the Feymann diagrams rotating, very explanatory.

[@baptistebauer99]

I LOVE these episodes where you explain things to your wife. It reminds me of Physics Girl's "explaining to my editor" series (wishing her a fast and complete recovery), but you have a much calmer approach. These are incredible.

[@ScienceAsylum]

Thanks! (I even had on a Physics Girl shirt for this one.)

[@baptistebauer99]

@@ScienceAsylum That's true!! I didn't even notice :D nice attention to details

[@johnharriott7878]

It’s mind bending to think the entire universe, including us are just disturbances of energy fields. Truly amazing

[@anonymizationoverload9831]

The Feynman diagram animations seem so nice for some reason, I just love the bright-but-not-eyestrainy yellow and pink on top of the really nicely textured gray background x) Nice video! I learned something new today :D

[@ScienceAsylum]

Thanks! It was really important to me that they look aesthetically pleasing, so thanks for noticing.

[@samarthpatil2053]

First view❤ I've been following your videos from a long time and I've been benefitted a lot... I've gain more knowledge through your channel... I really like ur humor a lot... Thanks brother❤😊

[@ScienceAsylum]

You're welcome. I'm glad you've found my work enlightening 🙂

[@bdrobe2]

Nick, somehow you always break physics down to where I can actually understand it. You truly have a gift for teaching. I am as impressed by your communication skills as I am with the actual physics. Way to go man! Thank you for all your hard work!

[@ScienceAsylum]

Thanks! I put a lot of effort into choosing the correct words.

[@markwarburton8563]

The best simple explanation of Feynman diagrams I've seen. Awesome!

[@LoveCoffee123]

Love that you got those Feynmann Lectures on Physics series in the background

[@vog51]

I've been a fan of your videos for years now. Even though I don't fully understand everything you say, it's still fun to watch you explain them. Keep the videos coming!

[@7177YT]

Very instructive! The laid back vibe made it so much more watchable. Thank you!

[@camielwijffels]

I love the part where you describe the Quantum Field Theory, and for that matter any science, as "a tool to solve problems" (16:32), and the only way you know it is correct because "it gives us answers that match reality" (16:46). For that is what, I think, science is really about. Making progressively more refined models of reality 1. to predict the future more closely, 2. describing/explaining reality more correctly, 3. enlarging our knowledgebase, 4. fidning solutions to current problems, etcetera. Thanks for this beautiful insight.

[@SoundzAlive1]

Nick and Mrs Nick, thank you for explaining the hardest things that most people try to understand. Please keep this format as the Q & A helps answer some questions we ask and keep us entertained. André in Sydney

[@dpactootle2522]

These videos are great for students. Explaining physics to a natural person that knows nothing about the new subject and can ask questions and you have to keep trying until the person (and the rest of us) gets it. Fantastic!

[@oliveralmonte826]

Wow! I truly enjoyed this episode. It was so amazing. Thanks a million for enlightening us.

[@alexandreneo888]

This format is amazing. Congrats! You clarified a ton in s single video in a very comprehensive way. Easily this is your best video EVER! ❤

[@SmashXano]

Thank you for the animation of Feynman diagrams. Finally I feel more comfortable with the time axis being vertical. It is also kind of heartwarming how your wife said your slogan at the end. Made me smile, that she acknowledges and enjoys your own creation - the science asylum and its values and motivations - in that way.

[@greg4367]

Thank you Nick and thank you to your wife, whom I've come to think of as my avatar. When she is asking you questions I feel like those are also my questions. Great video.

[@arwah97]

Wow.. thanks for making Feynman diagram more understandable, Nick! btw.. your Alvarez could use fresh set of strings 😁

[@mcnugget9999]

I really enjoy these quite a bit when you bring your other half on. Nice to see. Thanks for the content!

[@antoniomagana8280]

Thanks to your contagious follies I have finally managed to grasp some of the basics that govern the rules of Feynman diagrams! Thank you for increasing my crazy level!

[@LudusYT]

This was one of my favorite videos you've done. Really well thought out and great questions that allowed you dive deeper into some nuances of QFT! Great video!

[@ScienceAsylum]

Thanks!

[@daniellewilson8527]

I love the way you explain things. You are clear and concise. You define your terms. I wish more of us could explain things as effectively as you.

[@ScienceAsylum]

Thanks. I'm glad you appreciate it. I put a lot of effort into these explanations.

[@Piedog769]

Might be the first video I’ve watched from this channel. I really like the teacher/student dynamic and the skepticism she brings. I doubt I’ll ever understand quantum mechanics fully so the questioning throughout helped me to better understand rather than just nod my head yes while the information goes over my head. Awesome work!

[@ScienceAsylum]

Thanks! It's not the style of every video, but I try to do 1-2 of these per year when the topic demands it.

[@narfwhals7843]

I really like this format. M does a really well keeping the theroetician in check. And Nick does a good job setting up the conversation.

[@Miguel_Noether]

🤯 You have reached the top of the science youtube channels 👏👏

[@connorwicks6647]

You should do a part two of this video on the types of infinities in QFT and the difference between renormalization and non-renormalization theories. I really enjoyed this and it made QFT entirely approachable.

[@gfsandy]

Very engaging discussion. I love the way you two communicate with the side effect of teaching me more effectively.

[@sylvioufba]

Man, I have no words to describe how amazing your channel is. Your content is just super dope. Please never stop. Cheers from Brazil

[@sjzara]

Awesome. What I would love to see is some idea of what is involved in “calculating a Feynman diagram”. It’s clearly computationally expensive and I have never seen explained what’s actually happening in the computing.

[@MasterHigure]

For anyone who wants more, I suggest looking up the Douglas Robb memorial lectures by Feynman himself. He does regular quantum dynamics as well there, but in lecture 3 he goes a little bit deeper into this video's topic (quantum electrodynamics), but staying at more or less the same level of difficulty / abstraction. (Maybe a bit more concrete in its calculations, and it builds upon the former two lectures, so it's not a bad idea to watch those as well.)

[@entropyachieved750]

Every time I watch on of these videos I find a new way at looking at things. Thanks

[@badmeatbrowniesthoughts1327]

Great stuff. Hi Em!!👋 we've missed ya!! I listened several times at work before I got home and watched it. The photon being it's own "anti partical" hurts my brain 🧠..Great stuff as always. Always fascinating 👏..and I'll take the "long form" uploads all day long.

[@collin4555]

"Matter is real, it's not an illusion" That's exactly what an illusion would say

[@ScienceAsylum]

😆

[@andriikulenko]

The illusion EXISTS and it can speak?

[@0-by-1_Publishing_LLC]

(7:45) Your animation skills are spot-on, my friend!

[@ScienceAsylum]

Thanks! I had to learn how to use nodes in Blender for that ripply surface animation.

[@stevealikonis9467]

for most of this channel you break higher concepts down into simpler parts. in this video, the safeties are off. love the honest breakdown w/o holding my hand along the way!

[@nataliebuchinsky8559]

Truly, without a doubt, one of the best videos on this topic I've watched. THANK YOU!!!!

[@Fartalot3000]

Thank you so much for this video, I have been thinking about this question for so long now.

[@ScienceAsylum]

You're welcome. Glad it helped 👍

[@Tokhaar]

I loved this episode, the pace of the explanation was right, and it made sense, the questions were on point. I loved the humor and the interactions between the two of you, it made me feel like I'm sitting there with you and laughing along. Thank you both, wish you the best

[@TL-angzarr]

I love your easily digestable explanations, especially when it comes to less intuitive subjects.

[@jackchalloner5019]

Amazing. Great idea, well executed. Keep on doing what you're doing!

[@yves4360]

Oh man! I love the wife reacts! You 2 are amazing together! Like Bert and Ernie, C-3PO, R2-D2, Batman and Robin, Beavis and Butt-Head, Marlin and Dory, Bonnie and Clyde,... Yeah! Add Nick And AwkwardM to that list!

[@ScienceAsylum]

Glad you like them. We enjoy making them.

[@Culando]

Always love to see Awkward M make an appearance. Also a nice explanation of a concept I like to think of as "keep throwing science at the wall to see what sticks." Even if it doesn't make sense and has ideas that are bonkers (like anti-matter travelling backwards in time) if it leads to a workable conclusion, it was still worth the time to think about it.

[@calyodelphi124]

Fortunately, the bonkers idea of antimatter being time-reversed matter is just a shut-up-and-calculate tool that works because of the symmetries of nature! When you "time-reverse" an electron on a feynman diagram, the other properties that also flip signs are its charge and spin, which bingo boingo turns it into its antimatter complement! :D It's a simple idea that feynman had that tremendously simplified the math of QCD interactions.

[@nizarsmart2119]

This is impressive! Just WOW! I really enjoyed it! Probably your best video yet!

[@WallyMast]

Great format, the discussion/explanation format. Plus, your wife is very funny.

[@sashwattanay]

When Nick talks to his wife, I realize that he is actually a normal person, and not a crazy, hot-headed scientist.

[@erikziak1249]

I really like this format of videos. Your wife is a gem, much better than any of those "clones" of you. 🙂 Great video, but I doubt that the "3D" animation of fields would be hard to process, if done correctly. I have an idea of how it could look like using a 3D lattice rendering.

[@ScienceAsylum]

If you did it with the lattice approximation, you _might_ be able to pull it off. You just wouldn't have a suppressed dimension to use, so you'd have to get creative with colors and textures.

[@viralsheddingzombie5324]

I suspect Nick's wife is posing as his clone.

[@mrgalaxy396]

I've seen the 3D animations and it looks like a cube of jiggly multicolored mess. Not the most intuitive thing to look at if you aren't used to multivariable graph representation.

[@Lucky10279]

@@ScienceAsylum There are Python libraries for domain coloring, which I imagine would automate the process of adding color to represent the 4th dimension.

[@localverse]

Any close examples or hint of what that might look like?

[@jamespottschmidt3883]

Well done! I appreciate this format!

[@gary1anderson]

Thank you for the virtual gentle walkthrough of a very real complex topic.

[@yyattt]

"I'm not hear for that, but ok" is exactly how I feel about particles being their own anit--particles. Like if photons are their own anti-particle why aren't we seeing them annihilate each other all the time?

[@mrgalaxy396]

The short answer is: because maths. Antiparticles are the same distrubance in a quantum field as regular particles. They have the same properties and same quantities for those properties with very minor differences. Antiparticles and particles even being different things is a direct result of the mathematical symmetries that describe the field. The reason particles and antiparticles annhilate is because they have opposite values for some property and when you add them together you remove the entire distrubance in the field and get a vacuum state. That opposite value is a result of a symmetry used tk construct that field mathematically. However, due to the way the photon field is constructed, a different symmetry result is achieved making the photon and antiphoton be the same thing, aka the photon, because mathematically they have identical properties. So there is nothing to cancel each other out mathematically here, so no annhilation. In fact, photons don't even interact with each other at all, they just pass by through each other. It's a rather peculiar field.

[@localverse]

​@@mrgalaxy396 there's gotta be a reason that isn't about math since the universe simply has reactions and doesn't do math!

[@yyattt]

I feel like "photons are their own anti-particle" is the result of someone being really proud of their discovery that all particles have an anti-particle then discovering that it doesn't work for photons.

[@mrgalaxy396]

@@localverse Math is just a model, an abstraction of underlying principles. These particles obey certain symmetries, we can measure and check those symmetries and see how well the model predicts them. The symmetries that photons obey when accounted for in the mathematical model produce an antiparticle identical to photons themselves in this model. The universe doesn't do maths, but it adheres to some set of axioms and we can model them into math, with some assumptions.

[@ScienceAsylum]

Definitely read @@mrgalaxy396 's comment if you want a detailed answers. Here's the quick answer though: Some particles have charge and some don't. There are many types of charge (electric, color, weak, etc.). Antiparticles have opposite values in all those charges. A photon doesn't have any charges, so the only opposite for it to have is spin _orientation,_ which isn't enough to make the anti-photon its own particle. It's just a photon in a different orientation.

[@jjjscharf8059]

Excellent explanation of QFT and the commonly used term "wave". This made more sense to me than many of the other explanations I've seen. Love the channel content!

[@parva777]

Buddy this was so good ! I wished you give us a 1h long video on this subject (without equations please) !

[@Dominis.]

Thank you! I was just wondering about something similar. This was a nice refresher course

[@opossumoutlaw7534]

I absolutely love these videos you do with your partner!

[@narfwhals7843]

@@RS-ls7mm Wives are partners and one should not just assume marital status.

[@RS-ls7mm]

@@narfwhals7843 What a loveless term.

[@ScienceAsylum]

Thanks! They're a lot of fun 🤓

[@narfwhals7843]

@@RS-ls7mm A If you want to argue terms "wife" comes from words meaning either literally just "woman" or something like "servant". Love is what you make of it.

[@opossumoutlaw7534]

@@RS-ls7mm it's a shortening of "life partner", which i think is very nice :)

[@nullbeyondo]

I always thought of particles in "concept" as point fields. And also always thought that if a wave was high frequency & concetrated enough to the point of being too small due to the wavelength being too short, it could behave like a particle. Anyways, I'mma watch the video right now.

[@DrDeuteron]

but a massive particle at rest has a high frequency (Mc^2/h), and a long (infinite) wavelength = h/sqrt(E^2 - (mc^2)^2*) = h/0.

[@scottinharwood]

OK, this is your best overview of QED yet. I loved this video. Your'e other videos tended to loose me in a plethora of unanswered questions that I did not know that I needed to ask before each video. Now, all you ahve to do is start here, with this video, and then reorder all the previous videos so they naturally stem ftom this one - easy riight!? ;)

[@ScienceAsylum]

I'm hoping to do some more QFT/QED video over the next year and organize them into a playlist. This video is just the beginning.

[@flutte1974]

Now I got it! The quantum fields and wave/particle duality just made sense to me! Thanks! 😊

[@desudesudesu5326]

Got a QFT exam coming up. Even though they'll probably be after my exam, I'd still be interested in more videos on QFT. I rarely ever get a broader view of what's going on when I'm 2 hours into a lecture seeing the integral over momentum space divided by (2*pi)^3 for the hundredth time. EDIT: I passed.

[@ScienceAsylum]

There will definitely be more QFT videos. I'm learning it as I go. This was just the beginning.

[@JohnSalchichon2]

@@ScienceAsylum I thought you were a physicist wtf well then, all the more impressive

[@joeheafner2495]

@@JohnSalchichon2 Physicists have to learn things too. It’s not the case that every physicist specializes in every subdiscipline of physics.

[@ScienceAsylum]

@@JohnSalchichon2 I _am_ a physicist. I just never had the opportunity to learn QFT properly. During physics education, you learn a kind of overview of everything and then you specialize in something specific. I imagine a lot of other academic fields are like that too. If we want to deeply learn anything beside our specialization, we have to learn it ourselves and I just never got into QFT before now 🤷‍♂

[@eduardoGentile720]

I would love to see awardM guiding you into biology honestly

[@ScienceAsylum]

We've considered it, but we're not sure very many people feel like you do.

[@marceldifoggi]

​@@ScienceAsylumoh, but we are many, sir. this collab might sound crazy, but then again, it's ok to be a little.

[@plausible_dinosaur]

Wonderfully clear as usual. I especially liked the way you were clear that the mathematical use of fields does not represent the actual mechanism of particle interaction, it is just the mathmatical technique for description.

[@kasimsuleymani1370]

Thanks for this great vide, it answered a number of questions that I had on this topic for a while. If possible please do a follow-up one. I would really like a separate video about Feynman diagrams

[@ScienceAsylum]

This was just the beginning of a playlist I'm hoping to build out. There will be more QFT videos.

[@MessedUpSystem]

For me one of the weirdest concepts in QFT is that the very existence of particles is observer-dependent (Unruh effect)

[@mrgalaxy396]

It's not surprising when you consider that all observations in QFT are essentially just interactions with particles. Meaning when you are observing a field, you are affecting it and introducing additional distrubances. Otherwise how else can you observe something if you don't interact with it? You become coupled with that field so what you perceive is a result of you affecting that field, or rather that field being disturbed by your interaction with it.

[@favesongslist]

@@mrgalaxy396 Very helpful comment TY

[@MessedUpSystem]

@@mrgalaxy396 Well that is like saying the Uncertainty Principle is not surprising hahaha, yeah I agree with you that once you understand the process and think about it that is the only logical conclusion, but it IS a surprise when you see it for the first time, unless you're someone that actively researches the area prior to seeing it for the first time xD

[@sirlancelot6333]

Professor Lucid, I am studying thermodynamics and I am having a very hard time understanding the concept My problems have a lot of roots. One of them is that I can't understand the relationship between total work and ∆K Since I can't still understand that I am having trouble understanding some formulas in thermodynamics too Do you have any suggestions? What do you think I should do? I tried searching for it but I kept getting more confused

[@ScienceAsylum]

Thermodynamics is a lot to take in all at once. I found it helpful to learn the historical motivation behind all the equations. We came up with many of them before we even knew for sure that atoms existed and were made of subatomic parts. Once we knew that, we started to look at it all statistically and that made everything make a lot more sense.

[@mrgadget1485]

What is K in your calculation?

[@sirlancelot6333]

@@mrgadget1485 Kinetic energy

[@sirlancelot6333]

@@ScienceAsylum Thanks you so much ☕🍂

[@narfwhals7843]

@@sirlancelot6333 It sounds like your system has several degrees of freedom. Work can be done on it and this energy may go into other things than linear kinetic energy, like rotation(rotational energy) or the stretching of a spring(potential energy).

[@alexvilonyay8597]

I absolutely love these episodes! Crazy for life! Keep up the good work the both of you

[@chopper3lw]

DO MORE OF THESE! This was great.

[@chyldstudios]

You should have your wife in more of your videos.

[@ScienceAsylum]

I'd like to do these twice per year, but that doesn't always work out. (We actually recorded one last October, but it quickly became clear that after a few very good questions from her, that I didn't understand what I was trying to explain. The topic got postponed.)

[@martj1313]

I somehow feel both smarter and dumber after this.

[@shubhamkhetan02]

The questions asked are really just perfect I was like why it is so and then she just asks it straight away Thanks for the video ❤

[@ScienceAsylum]

You're welcome! We're glad you liked it.

[@TdK-eskAeR]

Remember in school when they taught us how a 3D object passing through a 2D realm would look? These particle fields remind me of that. 🤔

[@KristianWontroba]

This video really helped me understand what is likely going on with the particles and how they interact. Love the videos with both of you on there! ❤

[@ScienceAsylum]

Glad we could help.

[@user-fx5tr4js7r]

I love the videos where you are explaining physics to your wife. You are able to find a way to explain a complex topic to anyone, regardless of their knowledge. That is amazing skill. 😎

[@bradchun21]

I finally understand the diagrams now. thank you so much. I've never had it explained to me that way

[@BritishBeachcomber]

Hi crazy. I love the new format, where you explain concepts to your wife. It helps you to focus on explaining things to people who are new to science.

[@HUEnshiro_do_Norte]

Holy cow! The diagram's lecture blew my mind. Six ways of how to understand an electron. 🤯🤯🤯🤯 Now I really can understand how Feymann was revolutionary.

[@nigeldepledge3790]

This was a good one! I almost feel like I can begin to grasp the basic ideas of QFT. But without the calculations. This sort-of reminds me of a chemistry lecture I attended as an undergrad. It was part of a third-year chemistry module, and the lecturer was explaining what was happening *during* a chemical reaction. My degree was biochemistry with chemistry (so about 2/3 biochemistry and 1/3 chemistry), and this module was attended by many of the straight-chemistry students. I think I was the only biochemist there. Our lecturer at one point made an allusion to ab-initio molecular orbital calculations, and the reaction of those who had previously encountered this phenomenon was a mixture of terror and resignation. Fortunately for me, the lecturer did not have us actually do any ab-initio molecular orbital calculations. I gathered that they're kinda tough.

[@garyfilmer382]

Great video, with the the best explanation of Feynman Diagrams I have seen, thank you.

[@willywalter6366]

Awesome job! First time I got the feeling that I understood a bit about Quantenphysics ❤

[@zerog5551]

Great explanation, I felt like the pace was easy to follow thanks to the back-and-forth. My favorite part of the video was the "do we say waves like we say spin?", lol. At least it's not astrophysics where everything that isn't hydrogen or helium is a "metal".

[@arunsrinivasa8643]

The definition of quantum fields as "existence" was very nice. We are all just transcient undulations or attributes of universal "existence" wow! You are my most trusted expositor of physics . I love the way you care about the details. Keep going.

[@davedsilva]

So well done. I am teaching children of QuantumQid about Feynman Diagrams and this is the best video I have seen.

[@ScienceAsylum]

Thanks!

[@simonmayer8638]

Your wife seems so chill and cool! Always great seeing you two!!

[@gusmore26]

This is the first time I've seen an explanation that matches the answers I came up with to get away from those 'flat & separate fields' of all the other explanations I've seen. I'm not a physicist nor even a scientist, so it nice to have confirmation and to learn a little more too. Thank you for making this video.

[@rgmartinez]

Great introductory explanation! I love these videos...

[@Govstuff137]

Wheeler and Feynman did some excellent work but your description filled in a lot of holes. Especially regarding the Feynman diagrams explaining antiparticles. That Feynman and Wheeler argued over that they seemed to be moving backward in time. But they knew the math worked but could not come to terms that it actually was doing that. But to me, that does make sense. I love it. I can almost visualize it. I wish I was better at math/ physics. Thank you both for making it more understandable. I hope to see your wife in more episodes. May the disturbance be with you.

[@gseeker_anew5479]

I wish my wife had a fraction of her patience with this kind of stuff! Congratulations! 🎈🎉 ❤

[@JackAdrianZappa]

What an excellent description! Thanks so much!

[@ScienceAsylum]

You're very welcome!