Mindscape 275 | Solo: Quantum Fields, Particles, Forces, and Symmetries

Publication week! Say hello to Quanta and Fields, the second volume of the planned three-volume series The Biggest Ideas in the Universe. This volume covers quantum physics generally, but focuses especially on the wonders of quantum field theory. To celebrate, this solo podcast talks about some of the big ideas that make QFT so compelling: how quantized fields produce particles, how gauge symmetries lead to forces of nature, and how those forces can manifest in different phases, including Higgs and confinement.

#podcast #ideas #science #philosophy #culture

[orthoplex]

The handful of unhinged comments on this video notwithstanding, I think most of us really appreciate your making the 1 step upward from pop sci for a lay audience in the Biggest Ideas series. Please keep it up!

[producer]

Sean Carroll is one of the best public explainers of challenging theoretical physics concepts in the history of science. I am so grateful for his work.

[FigmentHF]

Sean’s like the dad of science. Whenever I have an incredible answer to a question, Sean reminds me that the question itself is wrong, aha.

[publiusrunesteffensen]

It's some of my best moments in life: laying flat on back (relative to the earths surface, but I'll imagine this will work in whatever body orientation you choose), eyes closed, listening to Sean Carroll talk about the wonders of reality.

[eqwerewrqwerqre]

This is God Tier. I've listened to hours and hours and hours of podcasts and videos and lectures about modern physics and there has never been as wide and intelligible an exploration into qft. I will 100% buy this book and when that physics PhD stipend money hits my account in gettin in that patreon!

[Toxoplasmosic]

We live in an era of rapidly improving physics explanations. I am thankful

[ChromeKiddo]

The miracle truly occurs between 1:00:00 & 1:03:20! Wow! It hit me in a flash of realisation... truly a eureka moment!!!... Thanks Sean - I now think I know a little about Fields & Particles. Am definitely buying the book....

[kinleydorji]

Mind blowing. Thank you, Sean.
When I feel overwhelmed by the state of my world, Mindscape is such a wonderful refuge. I instantly feel that all is well.

[billbaggins]

Forces arise as a gauge field, that keeps track of symmetries inherent in quantum fields. Mind Blown. I have been reading popular physics books for over three decades, and have never heard forces explained in such a manner before. It also serves to make force 'particles' more sensible to me now.

Your ability to explain complex ideas has often been remarked upon Mr Carroll. And rightly so.

[jessenyokabi]

I've been waiting for this book way too long. Great news!
CHAPTER 3 on entanglement is in my heart and my exploration topic!

[markdavich]

Some of the best watch-minutes you can spend on youtube are right here.

[kka]

Thank you for realizing that there’s a large group of science enthusiasts like engineers with strong math skills who have little time for or interest in derivation details. I am currently reading and enjoying your book

[davidhand]

I'm forever grateful for Carroll's "Most important ideas in the universe" series during COVID. It explained the standard model symmetries and the Everrett interpretation in a way that really clicked for the first time. I'm an Everrettian convert.

[jeremyholbrook]

I plan to listen to this many times. Not because of a lack of clarity on the part of Sean. Instead, my own inability to internalize the information given.

[danielcook]

Professor Carroll,
Quick question: have you solved time travel, because where on earth do you get the time (and energy) to be as prolific as you are (and with such consistently high end output). It’s the only explanation. I don’t know what’s more astounding: how much you output (and for free) or how much you know. You are a gift to humanity, and I for one am grateful for you.

[ThePlebicide]

My copy of the book is delivered Thursday, very much looking forward to not understanding most of it. ;)

[simplelife]

Just pre-ordered the book. Sean is one of the best science educators in the world.

[XCA]

The fact that everything reduces to just fluctuations in several fields still blows my mind. I think I'll have to get the book and do a deep dive. Love your work Sean, your a great teacher.

[sombh]

Around 38:45 It might perhaps be helpful to point out that a field configuration is not too different from a point in space like a particle if the space is field configuration space. A basis for such a space is spanned by the delta functions which in less fancy language means that the coordinate system for the configuration space has an infinite number of directions corresponding to each delta function and corresponding to them, there is a unit vector |x>, if the delta function is peaked at x, and an arbitrary field configuration is of the form of a sum over these unit vectors with different coefficients for different configurations.
Around 39.30 It might not be remiss to mention that the wave function of a field is exactly analogous to that of a particle except unlike a particle it's spread out all over configuration space just as the wave function of a particle is spread all over ordinary space.
The entire rigmarole that Sean indulges in regarding the Fourier modes and all that is pithily summarized by noting that it's what amounts to a change of basis from the delta functions in ordinary space to those in momentum space.

[iridium]

Love these long solo episodes where you get to really hone in on pedagogical appraoch to these concepts. I'll be buying the 2nd book as well!