Discover the Joy of Science w/ Jim Al-Khalili (#392)

Into the Impossible With Brian Keating

Brian Keating

Science, Physics, Natural Sciences

4.7 • 1.1K Ratings

🗓️ 6 February 2024

⏱️ 42 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

Please join my mailing list here 👉 https://briankeating.com/list to win a meteorite 💥 Remastered from our interview in 2022. What can science learn from poetry? Can you teach someone to become a scientist? And what’s the biggest source of hype in science right now? In 2022, I had the pleasure of discussing these topics with the amazing Jim Al-Khalili. Jim is a theoretical physicist at the University of Surrey, where he holds a Distinguished Chair in physics as well as a university chair in the public engagement in science. He received his Ph.D. in nuclear reaction theory in 1989 and has published widely in the field. His current interest is in open quantum systems and the application of quantum mechanics in biology. Tune in to discover the joy of science with us! Key Takeaways: 00:00:00 Introduction 00:01:18 Judging a book by its cover 00:03:28 What can science learn from poetry? 00:07:17 What does the phrase “follow the science” mean to you? 00:10:10 What do you think about Karl Popper's philosophy and the falsification rule? 00:17:58 How can you teach someone to be a scientist? 00:25:17 On science communication and popularization 00:29:07 What is the biggest source of hype in science now? 00:30:57 The self-correcting essence of science 00:35:10 What have you changed your mind about? 00:37:27 What's the most exciting area of physics? 00:39:47 How do you explain the difference between electricity and electromagnetism? 00:41:49 Outro — Additional resources: ➡️ Check out Jim Al-Khalili: 📚 Get The Joy of Science on Amazon: https://a.co/d/c4v0iLE 💻 Website: https://jimal-khalili.com/ ✖️ Twitter: https://twitter.com/jimalkhalili 📝 Get one month of Snipd Premium for free with this link: https://get.snipd.com/Cx7S/brianSnipd Snipd lets you take Smart Notes 🧠 with AI 💡 — it’s my favorite podcast player 😀 ! 👉 Want to stay fully informed on breaking news, compare coverage, and avoid media bias? Go to https://www.ground.news/drbrian and sign up through my link for 30% OFF unlimited access! 📰 📢 Ownership of your health starts with AG1. Try AG1 and get a FREE 1-year supply of Vitamin D3K2 and 5 FREE AG1 Travel Packs with your first purchase 👉 https://drinkag1.com/impossible ➡️ Follow me on your favorite platforms: ✖️ Twitter: https://twitter.com/DrBrianKeating 🔔 YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/DrBrianKeating?sub_confirmation=1 📝 Join my mailing list: https://briankeating.com/mailing_list ✍️ Check out my blog: https://briankeating.com/blog.php 🎙️ Follow my podcast: https://briankeating.com/podcast Into the Impossible with Brian Keating is a podcast dedicated to all those who want to explore the universe within and beyond the known. Make sure to subscribe so you never miss an episode! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcript

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0:00.0	When I communicate science as someone who doesn't have the background expertise, they're not dumber than me.
0:04.6	You know, this idea that we said we are dumbing down in order for people to understand, they're not dumber than me.
0:10.0	They just haven't had the benefit of years of dedicated thinking about this stuff that I have.
0:14.4	Getting an idea across in a way that I think they can understand, sure I'm going to probably
0:19.4	leaving out some of the details of the algebraic derivation that are not important in getting the concept across.
0:24.8	But it gives me genuine pleasure to see that penny drop.
0:28.8	The light bulb come.
0:30.3	Oh, I see now.
0:32.8	I get the same sort of tingle or enjoyment
0:35.4	of someone understanding something
0:37.0	that I got when I first learned that. Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic.
0:52.1	Open the pod bay doors now.
0:54.0	Today you are all in for a treat as we speak to Professor Jim Alkalele, who is a fellow of the Royal Society, a quantum physicist and holder of the University of Surrey Distinguished Chair as well as a personal chair in physics.
1:10.4	How many chairs can you have? You've got a university chair, a personal chair and the public
1:14.4	engagement of science? I've got a whole three-piece suite, I say. You're like a one-man IKEA.
1:20.3	Exactly, exactly. I am going to try to be mindful of your time because I know it's a very
1:28.4	gracious of you to spend any time here but we have a new book that's coming out
1:32.0	called The Joy of Science.
1:33.6	So I want to start off by doing what you're told never to do in life, which is to judge a book by its cover.
1:40.4	So Jim, tell me, what is the origin of this book's title, subtitle, and the awesome
1:47.2	cover design as well?
1:48.8	I had all a whole list of different titles that I had suggested to my publishers, Princeton University Press,
	...

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