The Thought Experiment
25 episodes - English - Latest episode: almost 13 years ago - ★★★ - 4 ratingsThe Thought Experiment is a podcast devoted to theoretical situations of the same name. Once a week, we cover a thought experiment from the fields of mathematics, physics or philosophy.
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Episodes
First New Show
August 08, 2011 17:51The first episode of the new joint podcast, "Questioning the Cosmos" is online. Check it out and stuff!
Greetings, friends!
August 07, 2011 01:17By now I'm sure your skeletons have blown away in the wind in anticipation of an update. The Thought Experiment will live on in the Internet's bowels for weeks to come, but a new contender has arisen. The "Question the Cosmos" podcast is its spiritual successor and we've launched a new blog to support it. Indeed, a new youtube page and twitter account for those so inclined. So go and check it out before I take another 2 years to add an update here!
Upcoming interviews
September 03, 2009 14:58Ok I've been too lazy for too long. This weekend before I head off to CERN I'll post the first of a few interviews I did at the American Physical Society. Up first? How about Phil Plait? edit: I will have to upload them when I return to the US on the 15th, since I don't have the software on my laptop to do so. In other news, Hawking says hi!
Shedding Light on Dark Matter (supplement)
August 31, 2008 01:02Shedding Light on Dark Matter Powerpoint I've added as supplementary material here, my actual printed powerpoint presentation slides for the 4-part 50-minute lecture. Although the incredible animation effects that went into the Barry Bonds segment aren't alive on the .pdf document, the images provide backup to all those times that I say, "search this or that." It may also be helpful to scroll through it while listening. Also, I may as well attach my paper, Dark Matter Versus Modified Newton...
Shedding Light on Dark Matter (part 4)
August 29, 2008 19:07Shedding Light on Dark Matter (part 4) In the fall I'm giving a lecture series on topics ranging from the history of the universe to time travel. Dark Matter is one of those topics. In this final part of the series, we go over a very brief history of Dark Matter and some of its competitor theories, such as Modified Newtonian Dynamics (MOND) and Massive Compact Halo Objects (MACHOs).
Shedding Light on Dark Matter (part 3)
August 22, 2008 04:16Shedding Light on Dark Matter (part 3) In the fall I'm giving a lecture series on topics ranging from the history of the universe to time travel. Dark Matter is one of those topics. In this third of 4 part series, we go over candidates for dark matter particles and detection techniques. Next installment goes over the history of Dark Matter and its competitors.
Shedding Light on Dark Matter (part 2)
August 14, 2008 22:32Shedding Light on Dark Matter (part 2) In the fall I'm giving a lecture series on topics ranging from the history of the universe to time travel. Dark Matter is one of those topics. In this second of 4 part series, I do a thought experiment involving Barry Bonds and detail the origin and nature of matter. Next installment deals with detecting candidates of Dark Matter.
Shedding Light on Dark Matter (part 1)
August 09, 2008 01:11Shedding Light on Dark Matter (part 1) In the fall I'm giving a lecture series on topics ranging from the history of the universe to time travel. Dark Matter is one of those topics. In this first of 4 part series, I give a brief introduction and go over distinguishing Dark Matter from what isn't Dark Matter. Next installment deals with properties of matter and Dark Matter and how they apply to baseball.
The Strong Nuclear Force (video)
July 03, 2008 05:44The Strong Nuclear Force The Thought Experiment podcast has been kind of stagnant lately. Largely because I've been so busy here on campus with Dark Matter research and so on and hopefully this video, a talk I gave recently on the strong nuclear force that holds atomic nuclei together, can shed some light on just how jam packed my schedule has been these last few days. The recording quality is rather lacking, yes, but my placement of the microphone in the lecture hall I guess was less than ...
Quantum Tunneling
April 18, 2008 01:57Quantum Tunneling Tunneling is a very, very mathematical process by which a particle can 'leak' out into its surroundings. This has to do with all sorts of things called wave functions, probability densities, and so on, but the real aspect behind them is: how can we use this for our macroscopic advantage?
Intro to Quantum Mechanics
February 14, 2008 04:41Intro to Quantum Mechanics Ironically, the delay for this week's quantum mechanics podcast was brought on by quantum mechanics homework. In any case, this week I delve into the beginnings of what quantum mechanics is, opening up the playing field into the zany world of the small.
Link to Old Shows
February 05, 2008 04:59I realize I haven't put up any new thought experiments quite yet (don't worry, the supply is virtually bottomless), due to exams and other college-related business. Not to worry, more shows are coming and I don't mean the old "tell-them-now-so-they'll-still-be-waiting-6-months-from-now" gag. New shows this weekend or before for sure. With that in mind, I've been getting a lot of requests to link to the old podcast. The Thought-Provoking Discussion podcast was the one we did before this and I...
Borel's Infinite Monkeys
January 16, 2008 06:59Borel's Infinite Monkeys Returning triumphant for a second season of thought experimenting, we continue on our history of thought experiments into the later 1920s with Borel's mathematical analysis of what happens when you get a ton of monkeys in a room with a ton of typewriters. A Borel of monkeys for sure! Baxiden is by Liquid Tension Experiment
Q&A With Brian Greene
October 21, 2007 17:28Q&A With Brian Greene Last week string theorist and physicist at Columbia University, Brian Greene came to my university as a part of a lecture series featuring distinguished lecturers. He did a question and answer session for a small group of us (about 20 or so people), as well as a planned lecture event. This week is the Q&A session. Theme music by Liquid Tension Experiment
Heisenburg's Uncertainty Principle
September 13, 2007 06:22Heisenberg's Uncertainty Principle What can a retired basketball player and a cannon full of paintballs teach us about quantum uncertainty? A lot, actually. Have a listen in on why we can't tell where a proton is at the same time when we know its momentum: the quintessential uncertainty principle. For a link to the blog post I mouth off about, see the exposé on Ramtha and What the Bleep Were They Thinking? New and permenant theme music: Baxiden by Liquid Tension Experiment
The Banach-Tarski Paradox
September 03, 2007 22:06The Banach-Tarski Paradox A mouthful no doubt! This week we go over just how a mathematical universe differs from a physical one on the basis of the Axiom of Choice. More interestingly, if we exploit this paradox, we can clone anything we want with the exact same properties as the original. As per Andrew's note, you can see an example of a fractal here. Really amazing stuff to say the least. Barbarian Horde is by Hans Zimmer
Rachel Cooper's Overview on Thought Experiments (guest)
August 18, 2007 21:05Rachel Cooper's Overview Rachel Cooper, a lecturer at the University of Lancaster, provides for us an overview as to what thought experiments are and what they are used for. As a side note, she refers to Lucretius' Spear, an earlier podcast. Debussy Reverie is by David DeLucia
Einstein's Relativity
August 07, 2007 06:10Einstein's Relativity So many topics to cover in so little of time! Time dilation, spacetime continuums, all the sorts of fun stuff you learn in upper-level cosmology courses. Alas, we can't do justice to Einstein's theories or results here, but we can take a sure enough stab at it. The book I keep referring to is Einstein, His Life and Universe by Walter Isaacson. It's really a great read and I don't want to sound like I'm just telling you to buy a book just for the sake of buying it. If yo...
Poincare's Conjecture
August 01, 2007 05:51Poincare's Conjecture Amidst more recording troubles, I had to do solo again this week. Alas, the show must go on and this week I talk about how extra dimensions can be rooted out of lower dimensional fields. A great book to check out on this topic is Edwin A. Abbott's Flatland. Specifically on the Poincare Conjecture, there are tons of math books abounding on the subject, since it was only just recently solved. It's worth a look and is on the cutting edge of the fascinating world of topolog...
Kent Hovind's Last Debate
July 24, 2007 05:01Kent Hovind's Last Debate Well, this week we had originally planned to go over Maxwell's Demon, but a screwup in the recording prompted us to ditch the file. Perhaps it was for the better, given that it is the 1 year anniversary of our debate with famed creationist Kent Hovind. Perhaps one of our few PDFcasts, the debate is about 20 some odd pages in length, but filled with comedic gold. As a toast to the convicted tax evasionist and 'scientist', we are putting up for free download a transcr...
Mach's Machine
July 14, 2007 06:28Mach's Machine Courtesy of Stanford Ersnt Mach proposed that perpetual motion machines went against common sense. In this solitary episode, I talk about various claims of pseudo-scientific energy companies and talk about why their murky science is, at best, flawed. From tachyon theory of gravity to consciousness-energy, a short list of problems is noted. White Army, Black Baron is by the Soviet National Choir
Can Life be Patented? (Skypecast)
July 10, 2007 03:37Can Life Be Patented? A deep philosophical question indeed, arisen from the recent episode of Science Friday's discussion on ethics of cloning. Andrew and I are joined by members of the Skype community in the form of a skypecast in which we discuss the ideas and let the fans of the podcast get a word in as well, live. Despite off-topicness and quality issues (Skypecasts have been under repair as of late), we venture forth into a discussion about whether or not life as we know it or not can i...
Olbers' Paradox
July 05, 2007 06:49Olbers' Paradox Detailing how the universe, if infinite, should be as bright as the surface of the sun, Andrew and I also talk about whether or not if theory is ahead of testability and the feasibility thereof. Sorry about the overlap between Andrew and I's speaking, it was a latency error with the recording program used. It gets annoying, but just listen to what Andrew has to say. I only realized at the last possible second that I needed some sort of July 4th theme music, and due to the fa...
Paley's Watch (Guest)
June 26, 2007 05:51Paley's Watch Special guest of the Big Bang and Creationism Podcast and colleague of mine, Robert Lippens joins returning co-host Andrew and I on a discussion about Intelligent Design. William Paley engineered his thought experiment about the watch and the watchmaker close to the turn of the 19th century. Since then, Intelligent Design has gotten lots more public media attention. The three of us roundtable it out on various claims by Intelligent Design proponents. No skypecast for this week...
Sunday Skypecast!
June 23, 2007 08:03This Sunday we'll be graced with the presence of a colleague of mine, Robert Lippens, of the Big Bang and Creationism podcast. We'll be discussing William Paley's thought experiment on Intelligent Design. All are encouraged to join, all you need is skype and patience. It begins Sunday, June 24th at 11:00 am, PST. Follow the link below to listen in. Click right here!