David Spergel: Way of the Peaceful Cosmologist (#130)

Into the Impossible With Brian Keating

Brian Keating

Physics, Natural Sciences, Science

4.7 • 1.1K Ratings

🗓️ 26 March 2021

⏱️ 63 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

David Spergel is one of today's most respected and accomplished astrophysicists. He has made foundational contributions to our understanding of the origin and evolution of the universe via the Cosmic Microwave Background and observations of distant compact objects. He is a member of the National Academy of Sciences, recipient of the Breakthrough Prize, and is the incoming President of the Simons Foundation whose mission is to advance the frontiers of research in mathematics and the basic sciences. In this bucket-list interview, conducted just before his 60th birthday, David reveals his scientific mindset, his top habits for physical, mental, and creative health, his pedagogical philosophy, and gives his take on the role of controversies in cosmology and beyond. David played a huge role in my book, Losing the Nobel Prize, which he also graciously blurbed :-) You do NOT want to miss David's answers to my Thrilling Three Impossible Questions! To receive them, you'll need to subscribe to my mailing list where you will also get resources and enter giveaways to win a FREE copy of my book (and more) http://briankeating.com/mailing_list.php 📝 00:00:00 Introduction 00:02:01 What's your daily routine? 00:06:00 Thoughts on academic prizes. 00:11:46 God, cosmology and the authority of prizes. 00:16:01 Thoughts on leadership: Are leaders born or made? 00:24:06 Balancing leadership with providing autonomy. Hear all voices! 00:30:00 The benefits of failure. 00:33:15 What makes a great leader? 00:43:37 Popularization of science, controversies and standards of proof. 00:49:01 What do you think of theories that can not be falsified? 00:56:07 How much of your work do you think really matters? 🎥 🎥 Watch my most popular videos🎥 🎥 Frank Wilczek https://youtu.be/3z8RqKMQHe0?sub_confirmation=1 Weinstein and Wolfram https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OI0AZ4Y4Ip4?sub_confirmation=1 Sheldon Glashow: https://youtu.be/a0_iaWgxQtA?sub_confirmation=1 Michael Saylor The Physics of Bitcoin https://youtu.be/CaN_CDKqXOg?sub_confirmation=1 Sir Roger Penrose, Nobel Prize winner: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AMuqyAvX7Wo?sub_confirmation=1 Jill Tarter https://youtu.be/O9K9OBd3vHk?sub_confirmation=1 Sara Seager Venus LIfe: https://youtu.be/QPsEDoOTU6k?sub_confirmation=1 Noam Chomsky: https://youtu.be/Iaz6JIxDh6Y?sub_confirmation=1 Sabine Hossenfelder: https://youtu.be/V6dMM2-X6nk?sub_confirmation=1 Sarah Scoles: https://youtu.be/apVKobWigMw Stephen Wolfram: https://youtu.be/nSAemRxzmXM 🏄‍♂️ Find me on Twitter at https://twitter.com/DrBrianKeating 🔥 Find me on Instagram at https://instagram.com/DrBrianKeating 📖 Buy my book LOSING THE NOBEL PRIZE: http://amzn.to/2sa5UpA 🔔 Subscribe for more great content https://www.youtube.com/DrBrianKeating?sub_confirmation=1 ✍️Detailed Blog posts here: https://briankeating.com/blog.php 📧Join my mailing list: http://briankeating.com/mailing_list.php 👪Join my Facebook Group: https://facebook.com/losingthenobelprize 🎙️Please subscribe, rate, and review the INTO THE IMPOSSIBLE Podcast on iTunes: https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/into-the-impossible/id1169885840?mt=2 🎙️Listen on all other platforms: https://wavve.link/into A production of http://imagination.ucsd.edu/ Support the podcast: https://www.patreon.com/drbriankeating Artwork: Sloan Sobie Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcript

Click on a timestamp to play from that location

0:00.0	Any sufficient advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic.
0:07.0	Welcome everybody to the latest edition of the Into the Impossible
0:17.2	Podcast. Today's a special episode for me because I get to interview one of my
0:22.1	heroes in astronomy on the eve of his birthday.
0:25.7	It's not actually his birthday.
0:27.4	But I dressed up nonetheless.
0:28.9	I was going to have a party hat, but I decided against that because I'm already having a bad enough hair day as it is.
0:36.0	Today's guest is none other than Dr. David Spurgel, who I've known for many, many years,
0:42.0	his legends are numerous plentiful and well deserved
0:45.5	I describe him whenever I'm given the honor of introducing him at a talk or a speech of any kind.
0:52.1	I always say he's Astronomy's Chuck Yeager because as you guys
0:56.2	know I'm a pilot and whenever I'm putting around in my little tiny Cessna I will get the chance to talk to air traffic control.
1:04.3	And every pilot, no matter the tiniest plane whatsoever,
1:08.2	will channel Chuck Yeager.
1:10.2	We're going to go take off an runway way, six, three, and take on,
1:13.7	and go southbound and take the airway.
1:16.2	And then you just channel it with that drawl.
1:18.6	And then air traffic control, you may not know this.
1:20.8	They have to treat you like your Chuck Yeager even if you're doing you
1:24.1	know a whopping 75 knots so it's a sessna six three no no it's good to see today you're
1:29.5	clear to class proper aerospits and I just feel when I'm doing that, I'm Chuck Yeager, and I feel that like Chuck Yeager,
1:36.7	every astronomer wants to be you in one way or another.
	...

Please login to see the full transcript.

Previous episode | Next episode

Disclaimer: The podcast and artwork embedded on this page are from Brian Keating, and are the property of its owner and not affiliated with or endorsed by Tapesearch.

Generated transcripts are the property of Brian Keating and are distributed freely under the Fair Use doctrine. Transcripts generated by Tapesearch are not guaranteed to be accurate.