How Black Holes Break Reality | Marcus Chown [Ep. 493]

Into the Impossible With Brian Keating

Brian Keating

Science, Physics, Natural Sciences

4.7 • 1.1K Ratings

🗓️ 19 May 2025

⏱️ 61 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

Please join my mailing list here 👉 https://briankeating.com/list to win a meteorite 💥 Could a black hole erase your past? Wipe out every memory, every detail, that makes you who you are? That’s just one of the crazy questions we explore as we encounter the insane paradoxes of black holes. Black holes don’t just trap matter. They trap information too. This is what makes them one of the greatest mysteries of our universe. They challenge our fundamental understanding of physics and our reality. Everything we know about our world breaks down when we confront their mystifying properties. Today's guest, Marcus Chown, has spent years tracing the history of black holes—not just the science, but also the brilliant scientists who gave us the knowledge and insight into these marvels. From equations scribbled in the trenches of WWI to a vanishing dark star in the 1970s, Marcus takes us on a journey from discovery to understanding…of all that we know so far. His latest book, A Crack in Everything, tells the astonishing story of how black holes went from absurd fantasy to perhaps the fundamental phenomenon that shapes our entire reality. — Key Takeaways: 00:00:00 Intro 00:01:09 The most terrifying object in the universe 00:03:05 Judging a book by its cover 00:05:10 Paradoxes and information in black holes 00:10:26 Historical figures and black holes 00:23:23 The future of black hole research 00:34:44 Are black holes responsible for our existence? 00:38:53 Do black holes create universes? 00:44:06 Human stories that didn’t make it into the book 00:59:37 Outro — Additional resources: ➡️ Learn more about Marcus Chown: 📚 A Crack in Everything: https://a.co/d/5KI9iZK ➡️ Follow me on your fav platforms: ✖️ Twitter:⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://twitter.com/DrBrianKeating⁠⁠⁠ 🔔 YouTube:⁠⁠⁠ https://www.youtube.com/DrBrianKeating?sub_confirmation=1⁠⁠⁠ 📝 Join my mailing list:⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://briankeating.com/list⁠⁠⁠ ✍️ Check out my blog:⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://briankeating.com/cosmic-musings/⁠⁠⁠ 🎙️ 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 follow so you never miss an episode! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcript

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0:00.0	Could a black hole erase your past?
0:05.0	Wipe out every memory, every detail that makes you who you are?
0:09.0	That's just one of the crazy questions we explore as we encounter the insane paradoxes of black holes.
0:16.0	Black holes don't just trap matter.
0:19.0	They trap information too. This is what makes them one of the
0:22.7	greatest mysteries of our universe. They challenge our fundamental understanding of physics and of
0:28.4	reality. Everything we know about our world breaks down when we confront their mystifying properties.
0:33.8	Today's guest, Marcus Chown, has spent years tracing the history of black holes,
0:37.9	not just the science, but also the brilliant scientists who gave us the knowledge and insight
0:42.5	into these marvelous behemoths of space and time.
0:45.5	From equations scribbled in the trenches of World War I to a vanishing dark star in the 1970s,
0:51.6	Marcus takes us on a journey from discovery to understanding of all that we know
0:56.1	so far and what we do not yet know. His latest book, A Crack and Everything, tells the
1:01.0	astonishing story of how Blackholes went from absurd fantasy to perhaps the most fundamental
1:06.3	phenomena that shapes our entire reality. Let's go. Marcus, soon soon I want to ask you if black holes are actually creators,
1:13.6	a type of force that acts as a womb, perhaps for new universes,
1:17.6	but certainly for solar systems like our own.
1:19.6	But first, let's start where everyone starts,
1:22.6	as black holes as destroyers of worlds.
1:25.6	What makes black holes the most terrifying objects in the cosmos?
1:30.0	Well, the regions of space where gravity is so strong that nothing not even light can escape.
1:36.8	So they do have its reputation for sucking in material relentlessly.
	...

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