Episode 58 · · 03:26:10
How do bacteria power one of the most sophisticated molecular machines in nature? In this episode, we speak with Dr. Michael Manson, one of the pioneers of bacterial motility researc...
Episode 57 · · 01:23:08
Why are so many companies betting on neutral atoms to build the first useful quantum computers? In this episode, we speak with Mark Saffman, professor at the University of Wisconsin–...
Episode 56 · · 01:39:03
Why are some of the world's largest technology companies betting on silicon photonics? In this episode, we speak with John Bowers, professor at UC Santa Barbara and one of the pionee...
Episode 55 · · 01:27:04
How can a flatworm regenerate a complete head after being cut in half? In this episode, we speak with Michael Levin, developmental biologist and director of the Allen Discovery Cente...
Episode 54 · · 01:59:39
Are quantum computers changing the way we discover cancer treatments? In this episode, Misha and Yudong spoke with Fred Chong, Seymour Goodman Professor at the University of Chicago,...
Episode 53 · · 02:01:13
How do you measure something as small as a single electron or map quantum behavior at the nanoscale? In this episode, Misha spoke with Amir Yacoby, professor at Harvard University, a...
Episode 52 · · 01:13:59
How do you turn a flat piece of nanostructured material into a secure biometric sensor? In this episode, we speak with Rob Devlin, co-founder and CEO of Metalenz, about how metasurfa...
Episode 51 · · 01:37:34
Are data centers in space physically possible, or just another overhyped idea? In this episode, we speak with Philip Johnston, CEO of Starcloud, about the technical and economic case...
Episode 50 · · 02:03:47
How do you actually make quantum algorithms work on real hardware? Build your own quantum circuits in Crumble: https://algassert.com/crumble In this episode, we speak with Craig Gidn...
Episode 49 · · 01:30:27
How do neurons convert electrical signals into chemical messages in under a millisecond? In this episode, we speak with Thomas Südhof, Stanford neuroscientist and Nobel laureate whos...
Episode 48 · · 02:03:45
How do engineers solve problems that seem to violate the laws of physics? In this episode, we speak with Dan Gelbart, a prolific inventor and precision engineer, about what it really...
Episode 47 · · 01:55:42
How does experience rewire the brain—and why is vision the ideal system for understanding neuroplasticity? In this episode, we speak with Mark Bear, MIT neuroscientist and a pioneer ...
Episode 46 · · 02:13:09
How can flat surfaces shape light as powerfully as bulky lenses? In this episode, we speak with Federico Capasso, Harvard physicist and pioneer of metasurfaces, metalenses, and nanop...
Episode 45 · · 02:47:03
How do electrons behave when they’re confined to a single layer, and why do entirely new laws of physics emerge when dimensions shrink? Papers discussed in this episode: Experimental...
Episode 44 · · 02:34:48
What makes high-temperature superconductors and “strange metals” some of the most perplexing systems in modern physics? In this episode, we speak with Dr. Subir Sachdev: Harvard phys...
Episode 43 · · 01:50:14
Would we get a quantum computer sooner if everything was open source? In this episode, we speak with Austin Fowler, one of the architects of quantum error correction and a pioneer of...
Episode 42 · · 02:04:26
Why is syncing atomic clocks still one of the hardest problems in physics and engineering? In this episode, we speak with Judah Levine—legendary NIST physicist and one of the key arc...
Episode 41 · · 01:18:29
Why do civilizations rise, prosper, and then collapse? Here's what the math tells us. In this episode, we sit down with Peter Turchin, complexity scientist and founder of the field o...
Episode 40 · · 01:00:47
You can’t copy a qubit. So how do quantum computers remember anything? In this episode, we sit down with Mikhail Lukin, Harvard physicist and co-director of the Harvard Quantum Initi...
Episode 39 · · 01:05:36
The scientific stories behind this year's research that made people LAUGH, then THINK. Watch the 2025 Ig Nobel Ceremony here: https://youtu.be/z1cP4xKd_L4 In this episode, we bring t...