Brian Greene: The Truth About String Theory, & TOEs (Ep 369)

Is it still possible to make a case for string theory? And should we treat the multiverse as a serious idea and explore it mathematically? Here to discuss these fundamental questions with me today is the one and only Brian Greene.

Brian Greene, of course, needs no introduction. He is an American theoretical physicist and mathematician. He’s a professor at Columbia University and the director of Columbia’s Center for Theoretical Physics.

Greene has gained a lot of popularity through his books that bring complex physical issues closer to general audiences: The Elegant Universe (1999), Icarus at the Edge of Time (2008), The Fabric of the Cosmos (2004), and The Hidden Reality (2011), a book he promoted in the TV show The Big Bang Theory!

In this episode, Brian and I discuss the experimental relevance of string theory, the multiverse hypothesis, the likelihood of alien life, and much more.

Tune in!

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Key Takeaways:

Intro (00:00)
What’s the experimental minimum? (00:51)
String theory’s experimental relevance (08:20)
An alternative path to Einstein’s equations (20:02)
Are we neglecting some ideas? (25:20)
Calabi-Yau manifolds in string theory (36:40)
Lorentz invariance and signals that are faster than the speed of light (42:27)
The multiverse and its implications for science (1:00:00)
Inflation doesn’t resolve all questions (1:04:32)
The role of a scientist as an educator (1:17:19)
UFO sightings and the likelihood of alien life (1:29:58)
Outro (1:40:40)

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Please watch: "Neil DeGrasse Tyson: Plays the Race Card!"
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[DonHeritage]

I've learned a lot of physics from Brian Greene. He's a great teacher and one of my favorite teachers.

[guiart]

If Brian Greene was speaking Chinese I would somehow think that I was understanding what he is saying! What a communication genius he manifests! One of my all time favorite interviews!!!❤

[pharaoh]

I was in grade 3.
The teacher asked which direction the sun rises.
One kid raised his hand and said “ the Sun raises in the West and set in the East.
Teacher: does anyone agree with Johnny.?
One by one every hand went up, but one...
“What do you say Kenny?” She asked.
“ it Rises in the East and Sets in the West”
Everyone laughed at, mocked him, called him dummy.

I learned several things that day.
- There is a Truth . Your desires and beliefs are irrelevant.
- People will mock you (and worse) if you go against the group.
- Related to this video: it doesn’t matter how large and inclusive the “community” they can still be wrong..
- Seeking Truth is better, using any metric, than seeking approval.
- speaking Truth can be dangerous and unpopular.

Five lessons I learned at 8 that the majority of adults today still haven’t learned.

[frankwestphal]

Thank you Dr. Keating and Brian Greene for having these types of conversations, and making them public. You are doing huge services for the advancement of the study of physics (through the increasing of public awareness of it's importance and relevance), and you are inspiring the next generations of physicists (and probably other fields as well) discoveries.

[ToddDesiato]

Just goes to prove, two Brians are better than one! That was a great conversation. I wish I could be more than a fly on the wall.

[hgillung]

Congratulations Dr. K. another home run Brian. I first heard of Brian Green in the late 1990's while on a business trip to LA. Brian was on a local PBS or NPR station plugging his new book, The Elegant Universe. I was fascinated with his presentation, I went out and bought the book the next day. A few years later I bought the DVD PBS series. It is a great gift to explain these complicated concepts to the everyday guy. Thank you!
Another congratulations, when I subscribed you had <20, 000 subscribers, wow now your approaching 200, 000!

[busybillyb]

What a fantastic guest. Amazing interview, Dr. Keating!

[bobbda]

My heroes. Can't get enough of you two. So much passion and enthusiasm for the big picture of reality and in general.

[User]

32:50 if particles are made of momentum the E8 model could be useful in showing us how each particle is made, which momentums make which particles
It could be like the next periodic table.

[spaceinyourface]

Wow! Brian Greens wedding anniversary is either the 9th or 10th October, , thats exactly the same 2 days my wedding with my wife was.
We were married first on the 9th in the registar office, then on the 10th by our (at the time ) church leader.
32 years ❤

[jtinalexandria]

In the multiverse, can there be a universe where no multiverse exists?

[stevencoardvenice]

The segment about the solar system and the planets in Brian Cox human universe audio book with the British narrator is the best astronomy/planetary science thing I've ever heard. So well written. And narrated. Only Sagan's cosmos is in the same league

[soucianceeqdamrashti]

Great discussion and Dr Keating, one good thing you do is that you are not afraid to push back when need and ask the hard questions. Good! That's what we want to listen!

[grantjohnston]

YES.
but what we know of or see is only an almost finite part of the one Universe.

[LeadPhalanx-zvwx]

I enjoyed the conversation and subscribed I also viewed a portion of the Michio Kaku video of which I will return and see them in full..
I hope that you continue with more of Michio's videos in the future as I enjoy them very much, Michio has a way of not only covering the material but also making it fun to listen too, that said I do notice a big difference in the way you did your questioning as seen here vs the Michio video and I would of been interested in seeing this video with Michio as the guest that said I enjoyed this one

[Shadow_Bnned]

Even if there is a multi-verse it doesn't exist to us. I think a better question would be if Absolute Time exists or not. I think it does as the present time is obvious. Time dilated objects still exist in the present.

[williambunting]

To my observation, Brian left, the Calabi-Yau shape is an attempt to confine the self exciting energy of a particle, presumably a quark, into a fixed volume. What if you don’t need to confine the energy, what if it is confined by the present scalar Higgs Field which we know is the key player in confining photons to the speed of light. If you have a dense package of energy in the nucleus of a Proton and Neutron, why would the Higgs Field not play a role in the confinement. We know that as a particle attempts to reach the speed of light the scalar field acquires immense energy, one would expect the same at the boundary of a Proton Nucleus. That scalar field energy in a balanced situation dissipates away from the boundary by the square of the distance, becoming the Gravitational force in the form of the Proton pushing away from the field gradient intensity towards other matter. A repulsion force rather than a force of attraction.

[magnushorus]

I LOVED that joke about theorists, thank you for this wonderful and interesting conversation

[serheikozlov]

For the first time I saw Dr Brian Keating on Lex Fridman podcast and it was a completely remarkable and particularly mind-blowing interview. And now an interview with Brian Greene - one of the greatest theoretical physicists of our time! Couldn't be better!

[thankor]

1:30:20
Thank you Dr Keating, for bringing up the UFO question