Founder of Cellular Automata Unifies Biology, Computation, & Physics

Get 50% off Claude Pro, including access to Claude Code, at http://claude.ai/theoriesofeverything As a listener of TOE you can get a special 20% off discount to The Economist and all it has to offer! Visit https://www.economist.com/toe In this episode, I speak with Stephen Wolfram—creator of Mathematica and Wolfram Language—about a “new kind of science” that treats the universe as computation. We explore computational irreducibility, discrete space, multi-way systems, and how the observer shapes the laws we perceive—from the second law of thermodynamics to quantum mechanics. Wolfram reframes Feynman diagrams as causal structures, connects evolution and modern AI through coarse fitness and assembled “lumps” of computation, and sketches a nascent theory of biology as bulk orchestration. We also discuss what makes science good: new tools, ruthless visualization, respect for history, and a field he calls “ruliology”—the study of simple rules, where anyone can still make real contributions. This is basically a documentary akin to The Life and Times of Stephen Wolfram. I hope you enjoy it. Join My New Substack (Personal Writings): https://curtjaimungal.substack.com Listen on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/4gL14b92xAErofYQA7bU4e SUPPORT: - Become a YouTube Member (Early Access Videos): https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCdWIQh9DGG6uhJk8eyIFl1w/join - Support me on Patreon: https://patreon.com/curtjaimungal - Support me on Crypto: https://commerce.coinbase.com/checkout/de803625-87d3-4300-ab6d-85d4258834a9 - Support me on PayPal: https://www.paypal.com/donate?hosted_button_id=XUBHNMFXUX5S4 SOCIALS: - Twitter: https://twitter.com/TOEwithCurt - Discord Invite: https://discord.com/invite/kBcnfNVwqs Guests do not pay to appear. Theories of Everything receives revenue solely from viewer donations, platform ads, and clearly labelled sponsors; no guest or associated entity has ever given compensation, directly or through intermediaries. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

As a listener of TOE you can get a special 20% off discount to The Economist and all it has to offer! Visit https://www.economist.com/toe MIT physicist Max Tegmark argues AI now belongs inside physics—and that consciousness will be next. He separates intelligence (goal-achieving behavior) from consciousness (subjective experience), sketches falsifiable experiments using brain-reading tech and rigorous theories (e.g., IIT/φ), and shows how ideas like Hopfield energy landscapes make memory “feel” like physics. We get into mechanistic interpretability (sparse autoencoders), number representations that snap into clean geometry, why RLHF mostly aligns behavior (not goals), and the stakes as AI progress accelerates from “underhyped” to civilization-shaping. It’s a masterclass on where mind, math, and machines collide. Join My New Substack (Personal Writings): https://curtjaimungal.substack.com Listen on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/4gL14b92xAErofYQA7bU4e Timestamps: - 00:00 - Why AI is the New Frontier of Physics - 09:38 - Is Consciousness Just a Byproduct of Intelligence? - 16:43 - A Falsifiable Theory of Consciousness? (The MEG Helmet Experiment) - 27:34 - Beyond Neural Correlates: A New Paradigm for Scientific Inquiry - 38:40 - Humanity: The Masters of Underestimation (Fermi's AI Analogy) - 51:27 - What Are an AI's True Goals? (The Serial Killer Problem) - 1:03:42 - Fermat's Principle, Entropy, and the Physics of Goals - 1:15:52 - Eureka Moment: When an AI Discovered Geometry on Its Own - 1:30:01 - Refuting the "AI Doomers": We Have More Agency Than We Think Links mentioned: - Max’s Papers: https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=eBXEZxgAAAAJ&hl=en - Language Models Use Trigonometry to Do Addition [Paper]: https://arxiv.org/abs/2502.00873 - Generalization from Starvation [Paper]: https://arxiv.org/abs/2410.08255 - Geoffrey Hinton [TOE]: https://youtu.be/b_DUft-BdIE - Michael Levin [TOE]: https://youtu.be/c8iFtaltX-s - Iceberg of Consciousness [TOE]: https://youtu.be/65yjqIDghEk - Improved Measures of Integrated Information [Paper]: https://arxiv.org/abs/1601.02626 - David Kaiser [TOE]: https://youtu.be/_yebLXsIdwo - Iain McGilchrist [TOE]: https://youtu.be/Q9sBKCd2HD0 - Elan Barenholtz & William Hahn [TOE]: https://youtu.be/A36OumnSrWY - Daniel Schmachtenberger [TOE]: https://youtu.be/g7WtcTATa2U - Ted Jacobson [TOE]: https://youtu.be/3mhctWlXyV8 - The “All Possible Paths” Myth [TOE]: https://youtu.be/XcY3ZtgYis0 SUPPORT: - Become a YouTube Member (Early Access Videos): https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCdWIQh9DGG6uhJk8eyIFl1w/join - Support me on Patreon: https://patreon.com/curtjaimungal - Support me on Crypto: https://commerce.coinbase.com/checkout/de803625-87d3-4300-ab6d-85d4258834a9 - Support me on PayPal: https://www.paypal.com/donate?hosted_button_id=XUBHNMFXUX5S4 SOCIALS: - Twitter: https://twitter.com/TOEwithCurt - Discord Invite: https://discord.com/invite/kBcnfNVwqs Guests do not pay to appear. Theories of Everything receives revenue solely from viewer donations, platform ads, and clearly labelled sponsors; no guest or associated entity has ever given compensation, directly or through intermediaries. #science Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

As a listener of TOE you can get a special 20% off discount to The Economist and all it has to offer! Visit https://www.economist.com/toe In this episode, I speak with Matthieu Pageau, author of The Language of Creation. This is a rare (and almost unbelievable) interview. With a high degree of likelihood, I can say that this interview, if watched all the way until the end, will change your life. Pageau argues that Satan is first a function—the tester and accuser—before a villain. Think Job’s auditor or a hired penetration tester. When will-to-power takes over, the function falls. He lays out a symbolic grammar: heaven as plan, earth as materials. Water renews. The feminine crowns and renovates forms. Abraham and Moses act as faithful adversaries. Adam and Eve show what secrecy breaks. Borderline stories like Tamar and Ruth trace exile and redemption. Pageau speaks from his own exile, leaning Orthodox/Catholic, critiquing without grasping for power, and letting reality correct him. Join My New Substack (Personal Writings): https://curtjaimungal.substack.com Listen on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/4gL14b92xAErofYQA7bU4e Timestamps: - 00:00 - Who Are You? (Identity as Relational vs. Self-Defined) - 04:54 - How Matthieu’s Project Differs From His Brother’s (Jonathan Pageau) - 10:25 - The God-Created Function of Satan vs. The Fallen Entity - 18:34 - Are Internal Critics “Functional Satanists”? - 23:02 - Satan in the Book of Job: The Divine Hacker - 27:50 - The Axioms of Reality: A Computer Scientist’s Worldview - 32:08 - Heaven as “The Plan,” Earth as “The Materials” - 36:50 - The Dual Nature of Chaos (Symbolism of Water) - 44:08 - Why Are Women Central to the Resurrection Story? - 49:14 - The Simple Act That Could Have Prevented “The Fall” - 52:18 - Gödel’s Incompleteness Theorem as the ‘Feminine’ Crown - 59:31 - Redeeming the Exiled: The Pattern of Ruth - 1:05:00 - A Christian in Exile: Matthieu’s Spiritual Homelessness - 1:16:15 - How to Escape Metaphysical Exile - 1:21:44 - The Will to Power: When Criticism Becomes Corrupt - 1:26:53 - The Paradox: Why You MUST Believe Yours is ‘The Real Church’ - 1:34:25 - What ‘Nature’ Truly Means - 1:47:44 - Why Renewal, Updating, and Competition Are ‘Feminine’ - 1:55:10 - The Story of Tamar: Deception as Righteous Renewal - 2:01:00 - How to Read the Bible Symbolically - 2:09:51 - Why Symbolism Applies to Stories, Not Raw Data - 2:21:34 - The ‘Dangerous’ Vision That Birthed The Book - 2:31:31 - Mind vs. Spirit vs. Outlook (And The Final Paradox) Links Mentioned: - The Language Of Creation [Book]: https://www.amazon.com/Language-Creation-Symbolism-Genesis-Commentary/dp/1981549331/ref=tmm_pap_swatch_0 - Jonathan Pageau [TOE]: https://youtu.be/X3co_AA6yec - Wolfgang Smith [TOE]: https://youtu.be/vp18_L_y_30 - Claudia de Rham [TOE]: https://youtu.be/Ve_Mpd6dGv8 - Leo Gura [TOE]: https://youtu.be/YspFR9JAq3w - The Story Of The Fall: https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Genesis%203&version=NIV - The Most Abused Theorem In Math [TOE]: https://youtu.be/OH-ybecvuEo SUPPORT: - Become a YouTube Member (Early Access Videos): https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCdWIQh9DGG6uhJk8eyIFl1w/join - Support me on Patreon: https://patreon.com/curtjaimungal - Support me on Crypto: https://commerce.coinbase.com/checkout/de803625-87d3-4300-ab6d-85d4258834a9 - Support me on PayPal: https://www.paypal.com/donate?hosted_button_id=XUBHNMFXUX5S4 SOCIALS: - Twitter: https://twitter.com/TOEwithCurt - Discord Invite: https://discord.com/invite/kBcnfNVwqs Guests do not pay to appear. Theories of Everything receives revenue solely from viewer donations, platform ads, and clearly labelled sponsors; no guest or associated entity has ever given compensation, directly or through intermediaries. #science Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

As a listener of TOE you can get a special 20% off discount to The Economist and all it has to offer! Visit https://www.economist.com/toe In this episode, I speak with Frederic Schuller, an award-winning theoretical physicist and professor, who insists the undergrad tale of energy sloshing between kinetic and potential is just talk unless the math says so. Borrowing Port-Hamiltonian thinking, he’s building probability ports to pull measurement talk into actual quantum formalism—no change to QM, just sharper math. He also flips gravity: start from the matter action and construct the compatible gravitational dynamics—Maxwell in, Einstein–Hilbert out. And if nature ever breaks our current causal picture, the scheme points to richer structures (and the gravity to match)—a modest idea, pushed hard. Join My New Substack (Personal Writings): https://curtjaimungal.substack.com Listen on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/4gL14b92xAErofYQA7bU4e Timestamps: - 00:00 - Deriving Einstein from Maxwell Alone - 05:55 - Why Energy Doesn't Flow in Quantum Systems - 11:45 - How Modest Ideas Lead to Spacetime Revolution - 19:00 - Matter Dynamics Dictate Spacetime Geometry - 24:03 - Maxwell to Einstein-Hilbert Action - 31:00 - If Light Rays Split in Vacuum Then Einstein is Wrong - 38:04 - When Your Theory is Wrong - 46:10 - From Propositional Logic to Differential Geometry - 54:00 - Never Use Motivating Examples - 1:02:00 - Why Only Active Researchers Should Teach - 1:09:40 - High Demands as Greatest Motivator - 1:16:00 - Is Gravity a Force? - 1:27:00 - Academic Freedom vs Bureaucratic Science - 1:38:00 - Why String Theory Didn't Feel Right - 1:46:05 - Formal vs Conceptual Understanding - 1:54:10 - Master Any Subject: Check Every Equal Sign - 2:04:00 - The Drama of Blackboard Teaching - 2:13:15 - Why Physical Presence Matters in Universities Links Mentioned: - Frederic’s Papers: https://scholar.google.com/citations - Frederic’s Lectures: https://www.youtube.com/@FredericSchuller - Frederic’s Bio: https://people.utwente.nl/f.p.schuller - General Relativity Lecture Series: https://www.youtube.com/playlist - Quantum Harmonic Oscillator [Lecture]: https://youtu.be/s3I_MGfGm-w - Constructive Gravity [Paper]: https://arxiv.org/pdf/2003.09726 - Geometry Of Manifolds [Paper]: https://arxiv.org/pdf/hep-th/0508170 - Jacob Barandes [TOE]: https://youtu.be/7oWip00iXbo - Roger Penrose [TOE]: https://youtu.be/sGm505TFMbU - All Possible Paths [TOE]: https://youtu.be/XcY3ZtgYis0 - Neil Turok [TOE]: https://youtu.be/ZUp9x44N3uE - Space-Time Structure [Book]: https://www.amazon.com/Space-Time-Structure-Cambridge-Science-Classics/dp/0521315204 - Greg Chaitin [TOE]: https://youtu.be/PoEuav8G6sY - Ivette Fuentes [TOE]: https://youtu.be/cUj2TcZSlZc - Ted Jacobson [TOE]: https://youtu.be/3mhctWlXyV8 - Eva Miranda [TOE]: https://youtu.be/6XyMepn-AZo - Jonathan Oppenheim [TOE]: https://youtu.be/6Z_p3viqW1g - String Theory Iceberg [TOE]: https://youtu.be/X4PdPnQuwjY - Sabine Hossenfelder [TOE]: https://youtu.be/E3y-Z0pgupg - Leonard Susskind [TOE]: https://youtu.be/2p_Hlm6aCok - What Is Energy? [TOE]: https://youtu.be/hQk9GLZ0Fms - Claudia De Rham [TOE]: https://youtu.be/Ve_Mpd6dGv8 SUPPORT: - Become a YouTube Member (Early Access Videos): https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCdWIQh9DGG6uhJk8eyIFl1w/join - Support me on Patreon: https://patreon.com/curtjaimungal - Support me on Crypto: https://commerce.coinbase.com/checkout/de803625-87d3-4300-ab6d-85d4258834a9 - Support me on PayPal: https://www.paypal.com/donate?hosted_button_id=XUBHNMFXUX5S4 SOCIALS: - Twitter: https://twitter.com/TOEwithCurt - Discord Invite: https://discord.com/invite/kBcnfNVwqs Guests do not pay to appear. Theories of Everything receives revenue solely from viewer donations, platform ads, and clearly labelled sponsors; no guest or associated entity has ever given compensation, directly or through intermediaries. #science Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

As a listener of TOE you can get a special 20% off discount to The Economist and all it has to offer! Visit https://www.economist.com/toe In this episode, I speak with Nobel laureate Gerard ’t Hooft, a theoretical physicist known for his work on the electroweak interaction and his radical ideas about quantum mechanics. To him, the universe is a cosmic pinball machine. Every ball follows a fixed path. No randomness. No mystery. We only invented quantum mechanics to cope with our ignorance. In his picture, there are no real numbers. No wave functions. No superposition. Just discrete states clicking forward, one after another, beneath everything we see. Join My New Substack (Personal Writings): https://curtjaimungal.substack.com Listen on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/4gL14b92xAErofYQA7bU4e Timestamps: - 00:00 - Why Quantum Mechanics is Fundamentally Wrong - 05:00 - The Frustrating Blind Spots of Modern Physicists - 11:27 - The "Hidden Variables" That Truly Explain Reality - 17:00 - The "True" Equations of the Universe Will Have No Superposition - 23:00 - Our Universe as a Cellular Automaton - 30:02 - Why Real Numbers Don't Exist in Physics - 39:14 - Can This Radical Theory Even Be Falsified? - 46:29 - How Superdeterminism Defeats Bell's Theorem - 58:19 - 't Hooft's Radical View on Quantum Gravity - 1:08:24 - Solving the Black Hole Information Paradox with "Clones" - 1:14:00 - What YOU Would Experience Falling Into a Black Hole - 1:20:17 - How 't Hooft Almost Beat a Nobel Prize Discovery Links Mentioned: - Gerard’s site: https://webspace.science.uu.nl/~hooft101/ - Gerard’s papers: https://inspirehep.net/authors/1019113 - Cellular Automaton Interpretation Of Quantum Mechanics [Book]: https://www.amazon.com/Cellular-Automaton-Interpretation-Mechanics-Fundamental/dp/3319823140 - David Wallace [TOE]: https://youtu.be/4MjNuJK5RzM - Emily Adlam & Jacob Barandes [TOE]: https://youtu.be/rw1ewLJUgOg - Roger Penrose [TOE]: https://youtu.be/sGm505TFMbU - Conway’s Game Of Life: https://playgameoflife.com/ - Julian Barbour [TOE]: https://youtu.be/bprxrGaf0Os - Emily Adlam [TOE]: https://youtu.be/6I2OhmVWLMs - Sabine’s video on Gerard: https://youtu.be/2kxoq5UzAEQ - Sabine Hossenfelder [TOE]: https://youtu.be/E3y-Z0pgupg - Tim Palmer [TOE]: https://youtu.be/vlklA6jsS8A - Carlo Rovelli [TOE]: https://youtu.be/hF4SAketEHY - Stephen Wolfram [TOE]: https://youtu.be/0YRlQQw0d-4 - Bernardo Kastrup & Sabine Hossenfelder [TOE]: https://youtu.be/kJmBmopxc1k - Tim Maudlin [TOE]: https://youtu.be/fU1bs5o3nss - Jacob Barandes [TOE]: https://youtu.be/wrUvtqr4wOs - Ted Jacobson [TOE]: https://youtu.be/3mhctWlXyV8 - Claudia De Rham [TOE]: https://youtu.be/Ve_Mpd6dGv8 - Neil Turok [TOE]: https://youtu.be/ZUp9x44N3uE - Latham Boyle [TOE]: https://youtu.be/nyLeeEFKk04 - David Kaiser [TOE]: https://youtu.be/_yebLXsIdwo - String Theory Iceberg [TOE]: https://youtu.be/X4PdPnQuwjY - Birth of Asymptotic Freedom [Paper]: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/0550321385902068 - How To Become A Good Theoretical Physicist [Article]: https://www.goodtheorist.science/index.html SUPPORT: - Become a YouTube Member (Early Access Videos): https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCdWIQh9DGG6uhJk8eyIFl1w/join - Support me on Patreon: https://patreon.com/curtjaimungal - Support me on Crypto: https://commerce.coinbase.com/checkout/de803625-87d3-4300-ab6d-85d4258834a9 - Support me on PayPal: https://www.paypal.com/donate?hosted_button_id=XUBHNMFXUX5S4 SOCIALS: - Twitter: https://twitter.com/TOEwithCurt - Discord Invite: https://discord.com/invite/kBcnfNVwqs Guests do not pay to appear. Theories of Everything receives revenue solely from viewer donations, platform ads, and clearly labelled sponsors; no guest or associated entity has ever given compensation, directly or through intermediaries. #science Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Curt discusses how philosophy has directly contributed to physics through Bell's theorem, decoherence theory, the hole argument, and more. Meanwhile, via John Norton, we uncover the hidden philosophical assumptions in physics that most scientists don’t even realize they’re making. As a listener of TOE you can get a special 20% off discount to The Economist and all it has to offer! Visit https://www.economist.com/toe Join My New Substack (Personal Writings): https://curtjaimungal.substack.com Listen on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/4gL14b92xAErofYQA7bU4e SUPPORT: - Become a YouTube Member (Early Access Videos): https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCdWIQh9DGG6uhJk8eyIFl1w/join - Support me on Patreon: https://patreon.com/curtjaimungal - Support me on Crypto: https://commerce.coinbase.com/checkout/de803625-87d3-4300-ab6d-85d4258834a9 - Support me on PayPal: https://www.paypal.com/donate?hosted_button_id=XUBHNMFXUX5S4 SOCIALS: - Twitter: https://twitter.com/TOEwithCurt - Discord Invite: https://discord.com/invite/kBcnfNVwqs Guests do not pay to appear. Theories of Everything receives revenue solely from viewer donations, platform ads, and clearly labelled sponsors; no guest or associated entity has ever given compensation, directly or through intermediaries. LINKS MENTIONED: - Curt's Substack article: https://curtjaimungal.substack.com/p/philosophers-vs-physicists - John Norton [TOE]: https://youtu.be/Tghl6aS5A3M - Neil deGrasse Tyson [TOE]: https://youtu.be/ye9OkJih3-U - How Not to Do Philosophy of Science [article]: https://sites.pitt.edu/~jdnorton/Goodies/How_not/How_not.html?utm_source=chatgpt.com - Jacob Barandes [TOE]: https://youtu.be/gEK4-XtMwro - The Hole Argument: https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/spacetime-holearg/ - General covariance and general relativity [paper]: https://sites.pitt.edu/~jdnorton/papers/decades.pdf?utm_source=chatgpt.com - Emily Adlam Λ Jacob Barandes [TOE]: https://youtu.be/rw1ewLJUgOg - Eaters of the lotus [paper]: https://sites.pitt.edu/~jdnorton/papers/Eaters_final.pdf?utm_source=chatgpt.com - John Norton’s profile: https://sites.pitt.edu/~jdnorton/jdnorton.html For further reading on these critiques of instrumentalism: - Hempel (1988) - Oltre il positivismo logico - Popper (1963) - Conjectures and Refutations, Ch. 3 - Deutsch (1997) - The Fabric of Reality #science Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

As a listener of TOE you can get a special 20% off discount to The Economist and all it has to offer! Visit https://www.economist.com/toe In this episode, I speak with Professor Felix Finster, a radical thinker reimagining the foundations of physics. We explore his theory of causal fermion systems, where reality emerges from quantum correlations—without assuming spacetime or geometry. From the Dirac sea to quantum gravity, this conversation challenges familiar concepts and offers a glimpse into where the next physics revolution might begin. Join My New Substack (Personal Writings): https://curtjaimungal.substack.com Listen on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/4gL14b92xAErofYQA7bU4e Timestamps: 00:00 Introduction 03:12 The Origins of Causal Fermion Systems 06:55 Engaging with Alternative Theories in Physics 15:22 The Standard View of Causation 18:21 Classical, Quantum, and Pre-Quantum 23:06 How Spacetime Emerges from Disconnected Points 29:49 Recovering Lorentz Signature Without Assumptions 31:48 Recovering the Born Rule from First Principles 39:39 The Measurement Problem 46:20 Bounds on CSL Parameters 49:45 The Dynamics of Spacetime 57:47 Collaboration with Yao and Reflections on the Theory 1:03:13 A Quantum Gravity Theory Without Supersymmetry 1:05:28 The Dirac Sea 1:11:40 Addressing Infinite Energy in Semi-Classical Gravity 1:13:09 Octonions in the Vacuum Structure 1:17:32 Chirality and the Action Principle 1:20:33 Baryogenesis and Why Matter Exists 1:35:10 Rethinking the Strong CP and Hierarchy Problems 1:38:43 Recognition, Collaboration, and Growing Attention 1:54:00 Mathematical Criteria vs. Experimental Tests 2:01:02 Advice for Young Researchers Links Mentioned: - Felix's Papers: https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=F7ppNroAAAAJ - Felix's Bio: https://www.uni-regensburg.de/mathematik/mathematik-1/startseite/index.html - Causal Fermion Systems [Paper]: https://arxiv.org/pdf/2405.19254 - Linear Dynamics of Wave Functions [Paper]: https://arxiv.org/pdf/2101.08673 - The Principle of the Fermionic Projector [Book]: https://www.amazon.com/Principle-Fermionic-Projector-Advanced-Mathematics/dp/0821839748 - Baryogensis for Causal Fermion Systems [Paper]: https://arxiv.org/pdf/2111.05556 - Holographic Mixing [Paper]: https://arxiv.org/pdf/2410.18045 - Standard Model Physics from an Algebra? [Paper]: https://arxiv.org/pdf/1611.09182 - Barry Loewer & Eddy Chen [TOE]: https://youtu.be/xZnafO__IZ0 - Fay Dowker [TOE]: https://youtu.be/PgYHEPCLVas - String Theory Iceberg [TOE]: https://youtu.be/X4PdPnQuwjY - David Kaiser [TOE]: https://youtu.be/_yebLXsIdwo - Ruth Kastner [TOE]: https://youtu.be/-BsHh3_vCMQ - Amanda Gefter [TOE]: https://youtu.be/yABPvDJ6Zgs - Jacob Barandes [TOE]: https://youtu.be/7oWip00iXbo - Eva Miranda [TOE]: https://youtu.be/6XyMepn-AZo - Emily Adlam [TOE]: https://youtu.be/6I2OhmVWLMs - Scott Aaronson & Jacob Barandes [TOE]: https://youtu.be/5rbC3XZr9-c SUPPORT: - Become a YouTube Member (Early Access Videos): https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCdWIQh9DGG6uhJk8eyIFl1w/join - Support me on Patreon: https://patreon.com/curtjaimungal - Support me on Crypto: https://commerce.coinbase.com/checkout/de803625-87d3-4300-ab6d-85d4258834a9 - Support me on PayPal: https://www.paypal.com/donate?hosted_button_id=XUBHNMFXUX5S4 SOCIALS: - Twitter: https://twitter.com/TOEwithCurt - Discord Invite: https://discord.com/invite/kBcnfNVwqs Guests do not pay to appear. Theories of Everything receives revenue solely from viewer donations, platform ads, and clearly labelled sponsors; no guest or associated entity has ever given compensation, directly or through intermediaries. #science Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

As a listener of TOE you can get a special 20% off discount to The Economist and all it has to offer! Visit https://www.economist.com/toe What if your thoughts aren’t your own? Professors Elan Barenholtz and William Hahn propose that language is not a tool we use but a self-generating organism that uses us. In this mind-bending live discussion at the University of Toronto, they argue that language installs itself in our minds like software, runs autonomously, and shapes behavior at a deeper level than we realize. Drawing on LLMs, autoregression, and cognitive science, they suggest your brain may function like a predictive engine and that “memory,” “self,” and even “God” may just be tokens in an informational system. Join My New Substack (Personal Writings): https://curtjaimungal.substack.com Listen on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/4gL14b92xAErofYQA7bU4e Timestamps: 00:00 Introduction 05:28 The Nature of Autoregression 10:14 Memory and Cognition Redefined 11:28 The Role of Language Models 14:23 Exploring Consciousness and Software 26:22 The Evolution of Language 38:08 Language: A Cultural Artifact 54:19 The Power and Danger of Language 1:02:52 Embracing Uncertainty in Knowledge 1:04:59 Courage to Believe in Ideas 1:09:30 Support and Engagement with Content Links Mentioned: •⁠ ⁠Elan’s Substack: https://elanbarenholtz.substack.com/ •⁠ ⁠Elan’s Papers: https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=2grAjZsAAAAJ&hl=en •⁠ ⁠William’s Blog: https://hahn.ai/blog/index.html •⁠ ⁠Ekkolapto’s Site: https://www.ekkolapto.org/ •⁠ ⁠Andrés Emilsson [TOE]: https://youtu.be/BBP8WZpYp0Y •⁠ ⁠Elan Barenholtz [TOE]: https://youtu.be/A36OumnSrWY •⁠ ⁠Anna Ciaunica & Michael Levin [TOE]: https://youtu.be/2aLhkm6QUgA •⁠ ⁠William Hahn [TOE]: https://youtu.be/3fkg0uTA3qU •⁠ ⁠Michael Levin’s Presentation [TOE]: https://youtu.be/Exdz2HKP7u0 •⁠ ⁠Stephen Wolfram [TOE]: https://youtu.be/0YRlQQw0d-4 •⁠ ⁠Geoffrey Hinton [TOE]: https://youtu.be/b_DUft-BdIE •⁠ ⁠Ai Panel [TOE]: https://youtu.be/abzXzPBW4_s •⁠ ⁠Joscha Bach & Ben Goertzel [TOE]: https://youtu.be/xw7omaQ8SgA •⁠ ⁠Noam Chomsky [TOE]: https://youtu.be/DQuiso493ro •⁠ ⁠Michael Levin Solo [TOE]: https://youtu.be/c8iFtaltX-s •⁠ ⁠Consciousness Iceberg [TOE]: https://youtu.be/65yjqIDghEk •⁠ ⁠Joscha Bach [TOE]: https://youtu.be/3MNBxfrmfmI •⁠ ⁠Scott Aaronson [TOE]: https://youtu.be/gGsh0_-q7LI •⁠ ⁠Iain McGilchrist [TOE]: https://youtu.be/Q9sBKCd2HD0 •⁠ ⁠The Master and His Emissary [Book]: https://www.amazon.com/Master-His-Emissary-Divided-Western/dp/0300188374 •⁠ ⁠Michael Levin & Karl Friston [TOE]: https://youtu.be/0yOV9Pzk2zw •⁠ ⁠Shape Rotators vs Wordcels [Article]: https://sasamilic.medium.com/some-thoughts-on-the-shape-rotator-vs-worcel-meme-f320261a21cd SUPPORT: - Become a YouTube Member (Early Access Videos): https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCdWIQh9DGG6uhJk8eyIFl1w/join - Support me on Patreon: https://patreon.com/curtjaimungal - Support me on Crypto: https://commerce.coinbase.com/checkout/de803625-87d3-4300-ab6d-85d4258834a9 - Support me on PayPal: https://www.paypal.com/donate?hosted_button_id=XUBHNMFXUX5S4 SOCIALS: - Twitter: https://twitter.com/TOEwithCurt - Discord Invite: https://discord.com/invite/kBcnfNVwqs Guests do not pay to appear. Theories of Everything receives revenue solely from viewer donations, platform ads, and clearly labelled sponsors; no guest or associated entity has ever given compensation, directly or through intermediaries. #science Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

As a listener of TOE you can get a special 20% off discount to The Economist and all it has to offer! Visit https://www.economist.com/toe Physicist and philosopher Jenann Ismael joins to unveil a radical idea: free will isn’t an illusion, it’s a physical reality grounded in thermodynamics and relativity. In this conversation, Jenann explains why no system, not even a perfect computer, can predict its own future, and how this inherent unpredictability opens the door to real agency. We explore the paradox of identity, the limits of determinism, the role of memory in selfhood, and why your choices truly come from you. This is the clearest, most rigorous defense of free will in the age of physics. Join My New Substack (Personal Writings): https://curtjaimungal.substack.com Listen on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/4gL14b92xAErofYQA7bU4e Timestamps: 00:00 Introduction 01:42 Free Will 29:16 The Limits of Predictability 41:45 Defining Free Will 59:42 Life and Cognition in the Universe 1:05:30 The Choices We Make 1:08:01 Dark Nights of the Soul 1:09:35 Philosophical Responses to Free Will 1:11:03 Personal Reflections on Life 1:11:54 The Weight of Loss 1:13:40 Patterns of Persistence 1:17:17 Understanding the Self 1:18:41 The Continuity of Existence 1:20:17 The Nature of Mortality 1:22:27 Time and Its Mysteries 1:51:42 The Nature of Existence 2:04:23 The Paradox of Newcomb's Dilemma 2:08:38 Lessons Learned from Suffering Links Mentioned: •⁠ ⁠How Physics Makes Us Free [Book]: https://amzn.to/44CcHr8 •⁠ ⁠Why Physics Should Care About The Mind [Paper]: https://www.jenanni.com/wp-content/uploads/Why-physics-should-care-about-the-mind-and-how-to-think-about-it-without-worrying-about-the-mind-body-problem.pdf •⁠ ⁠Diana Pasulka [TOE]: https://youtu.be/E5MuTHUbMUs •⁠ ⁠Leonard Susskind [TOE]: https://youtu.be/2p_Hlm6aCok •⁠ ⁠Sean Carroll [TOE]: https://youtu.be/9AoRxtYZrZo •⁠ ⁠Matt Segall [TOE]: https://youtu.be/DeTm4fSXpbM •⁠ ⁠Tim Maudlin [TOE]: https://youtu.be/fU1bs5o3nss •⁠ ⁠David Lewis’s Metaphysics: https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/lewis-metaphysics/#Bib •⁠ ⁠Robert Sapolsky [TOE]: https://youtu.be/z0IqA1hYKY8 •⁠ ⁠David Lewis’s Books: https://www.amazon.com/stores/author/B000APAW62 •⁠ ⁠Stephen Wolfram [TOE]: https://youtu.be/0YRlQQw0d-4 •⁠ ⁠Roy Baumeister [TOE]: https://youtu.be/aXoK-C2c2AQ •⁠ ⁠Free Will Ontoprism [TOE]: https://youtu.be/SSbUCEleJhg •⁠ ⁠Michael Levin [TOE]: https://youtu.be/c8iFtaltX-s •⁠ ⁠Dark Night Of The Soul: https://basilica.ca/documents/2016/10/St.%20John%20of%20the%20Cross-Dark%20night%20of%20the%20soul.pdf •⁠ ⁠George Musser [TOE]: https://youtu.be/KVy3NeXpMaI •⁠ ⁠Tim Maudlin & Tim Palmer [TOE]: https://youtu.be/883R3JlZHXE SUPPORT: - Become a YouTube Member (Early Access Videos): https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCdWIQh9DGG6uhJk8eyIFl1w/join - Support me on Patreon: https://patreon.com/curtjaimungal - Support me on Crypto: https://commerce.coinbase.com/checkout/de803625-87d3-4300-ab6d-85d4258834a9 - Support me on PayPal: https://www.paypal.com/donate?hosted_button_id=XUBHNMFXUX5S4 SOCIALS: - Twitter: https://twitter.com/TOEwithCurt - Discord Invite: https://discord.com/invite/kBcnfNVwqs #science Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

As a listener of TOE you can get a special 20% off discount to The Economist and all it has to offer! Visit https://www.economist.com/toe Professor John Norton has spent decades dismantling the hidden assumptions in physics from Newton’s determinism to the myth of Landauer’s Principle. In this episode, he explains why causation may not be real, how classical physics breaks down, and why even Einstein got some things wrong. If you’re ready to rethink the foundations of science, this one’s essential. Join My New Substack (Personal Writings): https://curtjaimungal.substack.com Listen on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/4gL14b92xAErofYQA7bU4e Timestamps: 00:00 Introduction 03:37 Norton's Dome Explained 06:30 The Misunderstanding of Determinism 09:31 Thermodynamics and Infinite Systems 14:39 Implications for Quantum Mechanics 16:20 Revisiting Causation 18:15 Critique of Causal Metaphysics 20:21 The Utility of Causal Language 24:58 Exploring Thought Experiments 33:05 Landauer's Principle Discussion 49:48 Critique of Experimental Validation 52:25 Consequences for Maxwell's Demon 1:13:34 Einstein's Critiques of Quantum Mechanics 1:28:16 The Nature of Scientific Discovery 1:42:56 Inductive Inferences in Science Links Mentioned: •⁠ ⁠A Primer on Determinism (book): https://amzn.to/45Jn3b4 •⁠ ⁠John Norton’s papers: https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=UDteMFoAAAAJ •⁠ ⁠Causation as Folk Science (paper): https://sites.pitt.edu/~jdnorton/papers/003004.pdf •⁠ ⁠Lipschitz continuity (wiki): https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lipschitz_continuity •⁠ ⁠The Dome: An Unexpectedly Simple Failure of Determinism (paper): https://philsci-archive.pitt.edu/2943/1/Norton.pdf •⁠ ⁠Norton’s Dome (wiki): https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Norton%27s_dome •⁠ ⁠Approximation and Idealization (paper): https://sites.pitt.edu/~jdnorton/papers/Ideal_Approx_final.pdf •⁠ ⁠On the Quantum Theory of Radiation (paper): https://www.informationphilosopher.com/solutions/scientists/einstein/1917_Radiation.pdf •⁠ ⁠Making Things Happen (book): https://ccc.inaoep.mx/~esucar/Clases-mgc/Making-Things-Happen-A-Theory-of-Causal-Explanation.pdf •⁠ ⁠Causation in Physics (wiki): https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/causation-physics/ •⁠ ⁠Laboratory of the Mind (paper): https://www.academia.edu/2644953/REVIEW_James_R_Brown_Laboratory_of_the_Mind •⁠ ⁠Roger Penrose on TOE: https://youtu.be/sGm505TFMbU •⁠ ⁠Ted Jacobson on TOE: https://youtu.be/3mhctWlXyV8 •⁠ ⁠The Thermodynamics of Computation (paper): https://sites.cc.gatech.edu/computing/nano/documents/Bennett%20-%20The%20Thermodynamics%20Of%20Computation.pdf •⁠ ⁠What’s Actually Possible? (article): https://curtjaimungal.substack.com/p/the-unexamined-in-principle •⁠ ⁠On a Decrease of Entropy in a Thermodynamic System (paper): https://fab.cba.mit.edu/classes/862.22/notes/computation/Szilard-1929.pdf •⁠ ⁠Landauer’s principle and thermodynamics (article): https://www.nature.com/articles/nature10872 •⁠ ⁠The Logical Inconsistency of Old Quantum Theory of Black Body Radiation (paper): https://sites.pitt.edu/~jdnorton/papers/Inconsistency_OQT.pdf SUPPORT: - Become a YouTube Member (Early Access Videos): https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCdWIQh9DGG6uhJk8eyIFl1w/join - Support me on Patreon: https://patreon.com/curtjaimungal - Support me on Crypto: https://commerce.coinbase.com/checkout/de803625-87d3-4300-ab6d-85d4258834a9 - Support me on PayPal: https://www.paypal.com/donate?hosted_button_id=XUBHNMFXUX5S4 SOCIALS: - Twitter: https://twitter.com/TOEwithCurt - Discord Invite: https://discord.com/invite/kBcnfNVwqs #science Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices