Edward Witten: On the Shoulders of Giants

[@WorldScienceFestival]

Hello, KZbinrs. The World Science Festival is looking for enthusiastic translation ambassadors for its KZbin translation project. To get started, all you need is a Google account. Check out Edward Witten: On the Shoulders of Giants to see how the process works: kzbin.info_video?ref=share&v=2UQ8teAebcg To create your translation, just type along with the video and save when done. Check out the full list of programs that you can contribute to here: kzbin.info_cs_panel?c=UCShHFwKyhcDo3g7hr4f1R8A&tab=2 The World Science Festival strives to cultivate a general public that's informed and awed by science. Thanks to your contributions, we can continue to share the wonder of scientific discoveries with the world.

[@kyeterrance6288]

i guess it is quite off topic but do anyone know a good site to stream newly released tv shows online ?

[@estebanterrance5023]

@Kye Terrance Flixportal =)

[@kyeterrance6288]

@Esteban Terrance thank you, I went there and it seems like they got a lot of movies there :) I really appreciate it !

[@estebanterrance5023]

@Kye Terrance glad I could help =)

[@edsonpledger2861]

Me

[@tonyfoxxbuilds1920]

Who else is here from a Joe Rogan podcast? I'd love to hear more lectures from this man. The way he describes physics with ease is kind of relaxing.

[@rodnee2340]

You got me. I just had to see for myself. I hope my brain doesn't explode.🤣

[@csr5139]

Same here 😂

[@76dozier]

Yep, just saw a Joe Rohan short saying this guy is the Michael Jordan of Physics!!!

[@xaviermateman4585]

I am a member brother

[@agist007]

Yep

[@kennethstrand7577]

Its incredible how precise he is in his words and phrasings, its like he says all and only the exactly correct thing.

[@t3hPoundcake]

He's so precise in his dictation that sometimes I play a drinking game where whenever he says something like "uh" or "anyway" or "well, ... " I take a drink. It's usually hard to get a buzz going.

[@vanleeuwenhoek]

Consider how many towering intellects are trapped behind incoherent, autistic rambling. That's the unique genius of this man: crystalline public interface.

[@Pie314159265358]

Like, but not the thing.

[@kuribojim3916]

I am in awe of this remarkable man. His obvious intellect, clarity, and gentle tone of voice are a pleasure to behold.

[@stianaslaksen5799]

Edward Witten is a master speaker. In his entire talk there is not a single "eeh" or "umm", or any other disturbances that creep into normal peoples speech. A pleasure to listen to.

[@executivesteps]

Seriously? Yes he replaced them all with “so”.

[@BoRisMc]

you wanna check Robert Sapolsky to see what a master speaker is man.

[@SaiaFT]

He does say umm and even an uhh in the first minute.

[@zackwentworth2653]

He stumbled over his words more than a 13 year old boy talking to his biggest crush 😂

[@Its0kToBeWhite]

5:26

[@astraldreamhead193]

im mesmerized by this gentleman, the way he talks is so intelligent, and the tone and meter is so lovely

[@WARDISWARD]

he could work a bit on his intonation

[@TwelfthRoot2]

If he changed his intonation then it would be just like everyone else, boring. Once you accept his intonation and try to see where it comes from then things become a little more interesting. Hell do you think Christopher Walken would have been famous if it wasn’t for his strange intonation?

[@elidrissii]

Unarguably the greatest living physicist. And great lecturer and expositor too it seems.

[@elidrissii]

@@someone1059 No.

[@michaelscott5653]

I would say he's the greatest _mathematical_ physicist today.

[@macysondheim]

Un-arguably*

[@macysondheim]

@@elidrissii No

[@27dforce]

Nope, anyone that still believes in string theory or Ed's theory, M theory, isn't the greatest!!!

[@Dr.scottcase88]

It is so refreshing to listen to professor Witten, speak in terminology that is clear and understandable to delay person. So often in his mathematical lectures, he can speak for over an hour long, and I am unable to understand a single sentence in the lecture.

[@BadAss_691]

Most physics students are also lay to his work, this is reality…

[@____uncompetative]

"to the layperson"

[@deeliciousplum]

Professor Edward Witten is a living pioneer. Always a joy to explore this gentleman's thoughts and inquiries.

[@sibbyeskie]

Always pictured Witten as a sort of Ivory Tower figure, solemnly churning out technical papers. Turns out he is actually a terrific engaging communicator.

[@mojowolf5597]

Hahahahaaha...sure, he is a regular smooth talker!

[@A_Frog_from_mars12]

His public speaking skills are made even more impressive because hes most likely autistic. You can see it in his mannerisms in the 1 on 1 interviews. His body language is very stiff, he always Is looking down at the floor avoiding eye contact.

[@feynmanschwingere_mc2270]

He's an incredible mind. The closest thing we have to Einstein (albeit not quite at that level) imo. True genius. He studied history and journalism too; i think he may have dabbled in linguistics as well. He seems very well read.

[@ro4eva]

Maybe it's just me, but his voice and articulation are almost soothing when wearing noise-cancelling headphones. I could comfortably fall asleep listening to him speak - that's meant to be complimentary (for the record).

[@tombeatty4792]

Yes. ASMR physics.

[@aristotle4048]

Witten has always been a role model of mine, and a true giant in his own right.

[@ryanrj7500]

This guy takes raw intelligence to the next level. Wish I could borrow his brain just to see the world from his perspective.

[@balf8215]

And then get back to "average". No thanks :)

[@thepowerman8952]

@@balf8215 Narcissist.

[@max123559]

THIS man should be a celebrity

[@marksw5499]

Absolutely he should. But don't bet on it. People are WAY too damn stupid to fully appreciate people like him. Instead, they'd rather look up to the Kardashians.

[@jamesodin1990]

Mark SW same as china

[@bhavikyadav7495]

@@marksw5499 I think people love Niel Tyson much more than Edward witten and Brian Greene

[@frankienorthtroptriton4771]

@Harsh Raval and he’d interrupt Ed the entire time

[@AWAB55]

@Divyanshu Pandey well explain why do you think he’s an idiot?

[@miscibi]

Again, perfect timing! Just when I needed to see some more from Ed Witten! :) Thank you for making these sorts of presentations available!

[@tattoomas]

he s so hypnotic 🤩 could listen to him talk al day "using the human language" perfectly effortless

[@neilmcintosh5150]

Probably the smartest guy in the world alive today

[@billy-joes6851]

Nope, Chomsky is.

[@neilmcintosh5150]

Bill Hampton No you're mistaken. Witten is.

[@masterchef1837]

+Neil McIntosh Even though it looks like supersymmetry is dead, something he was a big supporter of?

[@PaulDiracTWR]

+Bill Hampton hahaha good joke man, made my day.

[@neuralvibes]

Not so sure about that. Many modern-day physicists are surprisingly ignorant about basic philosophical issues and you cannot really be considered smart, let aalone the smartest, if you lack a solid philosophical foundation upon which you base your reasoning. On the other hand, if you only have in mind formulaic and mathematical smarts then a large number of mathematicians would have to be in contention for the title.

[@bryan3dguitar]

The audio levels change when he approaches the "live" microphone at the podium - while still using his wireless, lapel microphone. Does anyone notice this in the auditorium?

[@DrDave21]

The look on his face at 29:36: "Shit, how can I explain this to a room full of apes..."

[@nachiketkamble2600]

😂😂😂 good one

[@scriabiniste]

Wow: this is really brilliant, even to a layman like me. And how smart was Feynman? Unbelievable.

[@paulmichaelfreedman8334]

Ed Witten has a more or less confirmed IQ of > 200. What's in a name, eh?

[@garymastin5581]

Fortunately Ed has been a star almost since post grad and because so I have watched probably 20 talks by him. ❤

[@thlee3]

anyone else looking for videos of this man making an academic opponent weep and cry

[@tombeatty4792]

I read an article about Witten in the 1980's, I think. It may have been in Discover magazine. The writer said that when very prominent physicists met him for the first time, some of whom thought they might win a Nobel eventually, they just gave up on the dream on the spot. They realized that Witten was so far ahead of them that they didn't stand a chance. This would happen at dinner parties!

[@ypey1]

He is capable i just know it😅

[@NewbFixer]

We appreciate you fella. Thank you for your efforts, discoveries, insights and taking the time to communicate to the public and push science forward.

[@sparhopper]

Shame on the videographer(s) and/or the editors that _failed_ in keeping up with properly showing his slides!

[@markkennedy9767]

What I find is he is so easy to follow. I don't know if this is because of his unusual delivery which I first found slightly jarring but now is actually just really nice to listen to. Even compelling. Really interesting and brilliant guy.

[@goldenphoenixpublish]

Some 20 minutes in, Ed begins to describe how every path a particle can take is possible -- if not necessarily probable. Perhaps one way of explaining this is to say that "Everything in the Universe connects to everything else." Essentially in each and every "instant" of time (understood as a "moment of change") all universal influences converge on the particle -- a particle which itself is in unity with all other particles. The law of efficiency simply summarizes all such influences and 'determines' the particle's path through the greater unity of all things. Of course, this explains why the double-slit experiment gives such surprising results. The investigator's presence is also a factor. (A presence that itself does not exist in isolation from all things either...)

[@michaelcrawford310]

Watched a lot of these lectures. About time to fire the entire sound team.

[@1966Cliffy]

Yes, many comments on the brilliance of the man, and they the Festival gets a couple of media undergrads on comms. - pathetic!

[@FernandoDeLeon]

He is in the league of Newton and Einstein

[@surfermx]

in math he could be even better than Newton and Einstein 😆

[@gru8212]

+Fernando De Leon he is probably challenger

[@junior3082]

Maybe intellectually, but until his theories are proven like their theories were, he can't be viewed in the same light.

[@MARKCREEKWATER1]

I agree: I have much more respect for Dr. Witten after viewing some of his videos, mainly due to his clear and logical descriptions of the history of physics, but I still believe that "string theory" is bunk .....

[@spencerallbritton9459]

Newton is in a class all by himself. There can only be one first. He was the primary builder of modern physics. He also did practically all of his work by himself, and the bulk of his work in a two year span. To top it off, he spent most of his time with alchemy and looking for secret messages and codes in the Bible. Who knows how much more he would have discovered had he devoted his entire life to science.

[@ggrthemostgodless8713]

I am compatible with this guy's sense of humor... he is so subtle.

[@anunusualnick8340]

I have a question. If this string theory is supposed to be the ultimate theory of the universe. Then what are these strings made of?

[@bspain1637]

Dehydrated spittle of the vanquished...

[@orkhanhuseynli7668]

They are pure energy with geometric shapes

[@RottenHussey]

Wormholes

[@DanHowardMtl]

Show the slides maybe?

[@psybin]

+Dan Howard The ones that have pictures are shown, the rest are just text of what he's saying.

[@DanHowardMtl]

Psybin Okee Dokee.

[@scepticalchymist]

@@psybin Maybe, but in science it is common to show the science and not the presenter, since the facts are important and not the guy. The guy is anyhow well known from one picture at the start, but the formulas etc. are important.

[@charleshultquist9233]

One of the best descriptions I've seen.

[@anubha1981]

His interpretation and birds eye view is exhilarating

[@twistedmezelf]

This was the 4th time i watched this talk from start to finish and still i have a hard time wraping my mind around the ideas proposed

[@onebraid]

I would suggest watching the excellent NOVA series called "The Elegant Universe". It's a big time commitment, but it will prim you for Witten-level talks.

[@twistedmezelf]

John Mitchell Do you have an idea what will prepare me? cause i want to be prepared to understand the near future if only to join the existential crisis that follows :P

[@xkCD_cmpnt]

twistedmezelf Sorry late for the reply but you'll need a lot of maths mainly in the fields of Algebra which includes Abstract, Linear and Lie Algebras lots of Algebraic Topology and Algebraic Geometry and sound understanding of Manifold Theory and Lie Groups and that just the Math part. For the Physics prerequisite you'll need sound understanding of Graduate level Physics which involves lots of GR and QFT , after that you can sufficiently ( although with a bit of hassle here and there) understand Wittens work on M Theory and follow papers from other great string theorist like Nimbu, Sen and Randall.

[@srikanthtupurani6316]

The greatest mathematical physicist of all time. No doubt about this. He is frightening like hell. The way he writes equations it appears as if it is some joke for him. The kind of math he knows there are very few people who can come close to witten.

[@allgoodwithme3290]

This comment is so stupid! Largely because it idolises and isolates what is significant from the rest making the assumption that the rest lacks the required knowledge or propensity for that knowledge.

[@KONSTANTINOSDALAKOURAS-w3b]

Terence Tao is better.

[@diegoesteta]

The world is sooo elegant. Thank you prof

[@Lord_Vadr]

Would love to sit down and have his ear for a conversation. A lot of ideas to discover as well as scrutinize.

[@steamerwon]

Very interesting BUT... I wish people who make these videos show the SLIDES that the commentator is continually referring to.. WE all know what the speaker looks like but the information on the slides is often not displayed either at all or only for a brief time... Sooooo pleeeez let us see more of the slides......................

[@jondury9450]

Wow, Steve Weinberg and Ed Witten in a same room.

[@superscienceshow]

the slides they don't show are text of what he is saying. that is how he rolls

[@peterkovacs8876]

there are a lot of popular media physicist (Brian Green, Max Tegmark, Tyson, etc) but the most most most most biggest MIND is WITTEN

[@_paralaks_]

Horrible recording as I see from the first 12 minutes! We should be able to see the slides when EW stops talking and looking at them; at least!

[@JamesEIvoryIII]

“History doesn't repeat itself, but it sure does rhyme”. -Mark Twain 😉

[@polytpe57]

A brilliant man,maybe one of the greatest mathematical physicists in history.

[@andrewcoursaris5063]

Hes very eccentric likeable and very smart

[@tofu8688]

Damn you might as well blow him while you’re at it

[@asimenyekalambo8065]

How can i contact him??

[@edwardjones2202]

Not just an ivory tower guy He wrote a bunch of public letters protesting the Israeli imprisonment of a Palestinian physicist

[@Wasteomindy]

Where are slides? :\

[@kavalkid1]

Wonderful! Oh, my _____ The observation of quantum entanglement may be our hint into the 4 dimensional geometry we seek. The geometric structures we do perceive are viewed from a higher dimensional vantage point. We are viewing entanglement from a dimension below the state this phenomenon exists in. Perhaps it is more a palindrome than a rhyme that can be used to see the commonalities from the inside out. Any entangled pair may be the pushpin or anchor. Any entangled pair exist at the same "place" in 4 dimensional geometry. The Delayed Choice experiment may be our access point.

[@lawrencewamithi4430]

During a physics conference many of the physicist ranked witter to newton and Einstein

[@johnfarris6152]

He almost broke the CC. So far Feynman has been spelled, Fineman and Phiman along with Feynman.

[@hshdhdbnd]

I wonder if we could have a three-dimensional random quantum geometry to get closer to a four-dimensional random quantum geometry (involving space and time). Wouldn't that 3 dimensional theory be an upgrade from String Theory which is a two-dimensional random geometry?

[@suesimmons926]

I was wondering the same thing ... two dimensions of space and one of time.

[@praveenkumardhankar2716]

@13:37 "You couldn't get any credit for scientific ideas nowadays. But apparently in the 18th century you could." ----------> Since gravity is space-time curvature a 'graviton' would be a 'cube' of Planck length in the smallest unit of time imaginable. It won't be a particle or a string. That's why the 'graviton' wasn't discovered or observed at the Large Hadron Collider. Thanks.

[@aristotle4048]

When Witten jokingly remarked that De Maupertuis thought the principle of least action proved the existence of God, I was expecting the audience to react. The fact that they didn't is a little unsettling.

[@anaccount8474]

I do appreciate what an intellectual supergiant he is but it's telling that he's won the Fields Medal but never been awared a Nobel Prize. He's more of a mathematician than a physicist.

[@NothingMaster]

Witten was a history buff, long before he was a physicist.

[@milkymodi6264]

Doesn’t a string need tension in order to vibrate ?

[@ashishkiift]

Privileged to live during the time of Ed Witten ! Wish the cameraman was zooming in on the screen as Ed spoke. Such a shoddy job !

[@paulgets2737]

' On the Shoulders of Giants' ? Edward Witten is undoubtley the greatest living theoretical physicist of the World. But it is overstatement to compare him to Isaac Newton. At least until his M-Theory will be proved a true physical theory. If ever...

[@luiz5411]

Hey camera man we can hear the speaker but rarely see the slides. keep up the good work.

[@ravishingrickyrude303]

How much information does it take to be above probability ?

[@jefferylubinski528]

Who remembers Charles proteus steinmetz?

[@odnewdylee]

2:42: wouldn't that establish light moves as a wave, as water does. Water moves as a wave, electromagnetism moves as a wave right?

[@zerovision1991]

We are blessed by god himself to have Edward Witten

[@daleminkel2816]

We are all here because of the funnel theory. We started at Joe Rogan interviewing Eric Weinstein and were immediately funneled through KZbin where we each clung to a Witten video probably predetermined initially by the KZbin algorithm and finally our personal preference for the length of the video.

[@nictrent3790]

The movie Everything, Everywhere, All at Once makes total sense now :D

[@JetskiDex]

What's his instagram?

[@someluke005]

Why so few slides shown??

[@callmedeno]

So far is string theory still likely to be correct or has it ran into trouble?

[@funmeister]

To lecture/presentation video uploaders: Please stop showing only the presenter and failing to show the slides!

[@jacknicklin953]

Wonderful, thank you.

[@ilanpi]

“If I have not seen as far as others, it is because giants were standing on my shoulders.” -Hal Abelson

[@stevemenegaz9824]

Incredibly insightful.

[@KatrinaDancer]

I take exception to him saying there will only be a few equations. I'm here 4 the math! More math please 😁

[@tarekazzam389]

Thomas Young visited Goettingen (in the 1600 or 1700s?) and stayed in the former Egyptology- and Orientalism-House at Prinznstr. in Downtown Goettingen.

[@vigo47]

This is how a physicist explains physics for laymen not like Eric Weinstein.

[@mikelis106]

this man´s voice is a mixture on the voice of an angel mixed with that of a computer.

[@mitchellhayman381]

Amazing man. Imagine a world where everyone was as highly evolved as this.

[@jackhammer6963]

Is there am age where you are to old for this to have an effect or does your age not matter?? Also how do you find out where the moon was when you were born? How do you determine when you should be saving your self and how long does this period last??

[@TomHamilton221155]

excellent communicator of the complex.

[@gordonwilson2430]

Or as physicist Sidney Coleman once said, "If I have seen farther than others, it is because I stood between the shoulders of dwarves."

People like him make me proud as a human. Thanks, Edward witten for your hard work.

[@Limpn00dle84]

When did Rudy Giuliani become a physicist?

[@Herbert2892]

I wish SO MUCH that this video had "non generated" english subs! I know how to read but my english hearing is not so good...

[@romyou3788]

This man is easily the most brilliant physicist in the world

[@BlackPhilosophy]

With Brian Greene

[@aidanhall6679]

@@BlackPhilosophy Brian Greene would find your comment hilarious

[@christianforts458]

With NDT too

[@advaitrahasya]

A century of these mathematical models. Chronocentric Atomism is exactly analogous to Geocentricism in pre-Copernican astronomy. Manage that, take an overview on the currently popular models as each being a "blind man's report of the elephant" … and understanding most of the puzzles, problems and anomalies becomes trivial. Just as escaping geocentricism made understanding the epicyclic motions relative to a view from planet Earth… quite trivial.

[@williamdrijver4141]

No idea what Mr Witten talks about, but Ihe is an excellent presenter. I do wonder if physicists lose themselves in theoretical stuff. Are they using their superior intelligence to help their country? To improve humanity? Help nature? Make the lives of millions or even billions of people better?

[@soucianceeqdamrashti8175]

Extremely annyoying that the slides are not shown!

[@RottenHussey]

So, you know how time is supposed to be a straight line, with the past, present, and future all happening one after the other? Well, some people think that's not true. They think that all of time is happening at the same time, and that we're just experiencing it one moment at a time. I find that idea really interesting. Imagine if you could travel far out into space and look back at Earth through a powerful telescope. You could see the past! You could watch the dinosaurs roaming the Earth, or the ancient Egyptians building the pyramids. The farther away you went, the further back in time you could see. You could watch the whole history of the world unfold before your eyes. But what about the future? Could you see the future if you traveled far enough away? I don't know. But it's a fun thought to imagine.

[@davidreynolds2450]

Isaac Newton said: "If I am able to further it is because I stand on the shoulders of giants,"

[@dantekierkegaard9763]

*clap* *clap* *clap*

[@robbiejames1466]

My mom says "Newton don't knows nothin'"

[@gamerdio2503]

@@robbiejames1466 Newton invented the entire subject of calculus. Just saying.

[@robbiejames1466]

@@gamerdio2503 god invented calculus

[@gamerdio2503]

@@robbiejames1466 Evidence?

[@PistonDriven]

When every sentence is a world, undiscovered..

[@ExMachina70]

Oh great! They're grading on a curve! Oh crap! Did Edward Witten sign up for this class too?

[@SenorAhole]

Amazing man, M theory is brilliant theory!

[@paulmichaelfreedman8334]

Yes brilliant math work. But string theory has a lot of problems. There's still no way of testing the theory, and the Standard model is basically complete - including all evidence of existence being of > 5 Sigma significance. The untestability says something about a theory. The math, as said is brilliant and Witten just saw the common components of 5 different string theories and combined them into one (Due to the complexity it required a mathematician with extreme intelligence to solve). That is pure math magic and has nothing to do with presenting any evidence or proof that string theory is correct. Bottom line: Witten made string theory "Elegant" with M theory, but that does in no way prove it - it is still likely it is completely wrong with respect to what it represents.

[@twoscoops1509]

I've always wanted to give him a hug. Edward witton is my hero from since i was a small child. I love how he explains the most complex concepts. His books are even better.

[@fahimullah8490]

He never wrote books for laymen. Lol

[@abdusabdud8218]

which planet are you from?

[@priyabratadash4542]

thank u so much WSF .. i was wandering why he has not been invited yet.. it was a great talk

[@forsak3nkill3r]

Wish they gave him another hour or two so he could fully explain everything without feeling short on time. Great video though.

[@travisfitzwater8093]

I think the Quantum Field Elemental Point (FEPs or Feptons) -whose size cannot be measured directly but only ever by inference with regard to its behaviors when interacting with other Feptons) always prefers interaction when possible. Like in the crudely analogous situation of a child's carnival bounce house or a large trampoline with 4 iron weights placed equidistantly on the surface and 300 magnets from 1/2 centimeters to 4 centimeters in size randomly and carefully scattered across the surface. Some will initially fall towards a weight others will land in the interstitial space. When the surface is carefully agitated, say by the introduction of three chipmunks to it: the agitation by their scurrying will cause the magnets to migrate -variously, but not precisely predictably- towards one or another of the weights where they will bind and remain stationary until three Golden Retrievers are permitted to trapse about the surface in which case the iron weights may clump variously together or into a singularity of them all.

[@Leopar525]

What?

[@travisfitzwater8093]

@@Leopar525 Yo, I was trippin'. I was dreaming when I wrote that and I think that it went astray. But when I woke up this mornin' Could've sworn it was judgment day The sky was all purple There were people runnin' everywhere Tryin' to run from the destruction You know I didn't even care 'Cause they say two thousand zero zero Party over, oops out of time So tonight I'm gonna party like it's 1999 I was dreamin' when I wrote this So sue me if I go too fast But life is just a party And parties weren't meant to last War is all around us My mind says prepare to fight So if I gotta die I'm gonna listen to my body tonight Yeah, they say two thousand zero zero Party over, oops out of time So tonight I'm gonna party like it's 1999 Yeah, yeah Lemme tell ya somethin' If you didn't come to party Don't bother knockin' on my door I got a lion in my pocket And baby he's ready to roar, yeah yeah Everybody's got a bomb We could all die here today, uhh But before I'll let that happen I'll dance my life away, oh They say two thousand zero zero Party over, oops out of time We're runnin' outta time So tonight we gonna, we gonna (tonight I'm gonna party like it's 1999) Say it one more time Two thousand zero zero Yeah, yeah Party over, oops out of time So tonight we gonna, we gonna (tonight I'm gonna party like it's 1999) 1999 (1999) Don't ya want to go (1999) Don't ya want to go (1999) We could all die here today (1999) I don't want to die I'd rather dance my life away by

[@newbiebyte4377]

why do people say this is not correct anymore?

[@changethisonceamonth7516]

Why was he not in The big bang?

[@1artillery1]

I think space is never totally empty.