#380 – Neil Gershenfeld: Self-Replicating Robots and the Future of Fabrication
Lex Fridman Podcast
Lex Fridman
4.7 • 13K Ratings
🗓️ 28 May 2023
⏱️ 131 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
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EPISODE LINKS:
Neil's Website: http://ng.cba.mit.edu/
MIT Center for Bits and Atoms: https://cba.mit.edu/
Fab Foundation: https://fabfoundation.org/
Fab Lab community: https://fablabs.io/
Fab Academy: https://fabacademy.org/
Fab City: https://fab.city/
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OUTLINE:
Here's the timestamps for the episode. On some podcast players you should be able to click the timestamp to jump to that time.
(00:00) - Introduction
(05:37) - What Turing got wrong
(11:02) - MIT Center for Bits and Atoms
(24:08) - Digital logic
(30:44) - Self-assembling robots
(41:12) - Digital fabrication
(52:07) - Self-reproducing machine
(59:53) - Trash and fabrication
(1:04:49) - Lab-made bioweapons
(1:09:04) - Genome
(1:20:56) - Quantum computing
(1:25:28) - Microfluidic bubble computation
(1:30:49) - Maxwell's demon
(1:39:35) - Consciousness
(1:46:35) - Cellular automata
(1:51:07) - Universe is a computer
(1:55:53) - Advice for young people
(2:05:10) - Meaning of life
Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | The following is a conversation with Neil Gershonfeld, the director of MIT's Center for |
| 0:04.8 | Bits and Adams, an amazing laboratory that is breaking down boundaries between the digital |
| 0:10.6 | and physical worlds, fabricating objects and machines at all scales of reality, including |
| 0:17.3 | robots and automata that can build copies of themselves and self-assemble into complex |
| 0:24.7 | structures. |
| 0:26.3 | His work aspires millions across the world as part of the maker movement to build |
| 0:31.2 | cool stuff, to create the very act that makes life so beautiful and fun. |
| 0:40.8 | And now I'll click the second mention of each sponsor. |
| 0:43.6 | Check them out in the description, it's the best way to support this podcast. |
| 0:47.0 | We've got Element 4, Zero Sugar Hydration, and that's sweet for business management |
| 0:52.4 | software and better help for mental health. |
| 0:55.6 | Choose wisely, my friends. |
| 0:57.1 | Also, if you want to work with our amazing team or always hiring good Alex Friedman.com |
| 1:02.4 | slash hiring. |
| 1:03.8 | And now, onto the full ad reads, as always, no ads in the middle. |
| 1:06.9 | I tried to make this interesting, but if you must skip them, please still check out our |
| 1:10.6 | sponsors I enjoy their stuff, maybe you'll will too. |
| 1:14.2 | This episode is brought to you by Element, spelled L-M-N-T. |
| 1:19.2 | It's an electrolyte drink mix that I'm currently drinking that I drink throughout the day. |
| 1:24.8 | I drink a huge amount of it. |
| 1:27.4 | My favorite flavor is the watermelon salt flavor. |
| 1:29.6 | It doesn't mean it'll be your favorite flavor, but I'm pretty sure it's going to be your |
... |
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