#204 – Cumrun Vafa: String Theory

Cumrun Vafa is a theoretical physicist at Harvard. Please support this podcast by checking out our sponsors: – Headspace: https://headspace.com/lex to get free 1 month trial – The Jordan Harbinger Show: https://www.youtube.com/thejordanharbingershow – Squarespace: https://lexfridman.com/squarespace and use code LEX to get 10% off – Allform: https://allform.com/lex to get 20% off EPISODE LINKS: Cumrun’s Twitter: https://twitter.com/cumrunv Cumrun’s Website: https://www.cumrunvafa.org Puzzles to Unravel the Universe (book): https://amzn.to/3BFk5ms PODCAST INFO: Podcast website: https://lexfridman.com/podcast Apple Podcasts: https://apple.co/2lwqZIr Spotify: https://spoti.fi/2nEwCF8 RSS: https://lexfridman.com/feed/podcast/ YouTube Full Episodes: https://youtube.com/lexfridman YouTube Clips: https://youtube.com/lexclips SUPPORT & CONNECT: – Check out the sponsors above, it’s the best way to support this podcast – Support on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/lexfridman – Twitter: https://twitter.com/lexfridman – Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lexfridman – LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lexfridman – Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/lexfridman – Medium: https://medium.com/@lexfridman 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 (07:08) – Difference between math and physics (09:51) – Evolution of quantum mechanics (13:09) – Can mathematics lead humanity off track (14:07) – Beauty in mathematics (19:27) – Philosophers using symmetry (25:20) – How can ancient geometry be used to understand reality (28:32) – Key ideas in the history of physics (31:26) – Einstein’s special relativity (35:03) – Physicists building intuition (43:01) – Best work by Einstein (44:45) – Quantum mechanics