The Joy of Why

Episodes page 2 of 2

1. S4 Preview: More Big Questions and No Sasquatches

   25 Jan 2024 · 18 min · Trailer

   How did complex life evolve? Where did space-time come from? Will computers ever understand language like we do? How did geometry create modern physics? These are just a few of the big and bold questions that we’ll be…

2. Trailer: The Joy of Why Season 3

   25 Jan 2024 · 2:10 · Trailer

   Tune in to the new season of ‘The Joy of Why,’ a podcast from Quanta Magazine and PRX. This season, new co-host cosmologist Janna Levin and mathematician Steven Strogatz will be joined by guests including Terence Tao,…

3. Does Nothingness Exist?

   26 Jul 2023 · 45 min

   Even empty space bubbles with energy, according to quantum mechanics — and that fact affects almost every facet of physical reality. The theoretical physicist Isabel Garcia Garcia explains to Steven Strogatz why it’s…

4. Can Math and Physics Save an Arrhythmic Heart?

   12 Jul 2023 · 46 min

   Abnormal waves of electrical activity can cause a heart’s muscle cells to beat out of sync. In this episode, Flavio Fenton, an expert in cardiac dynamics, talks with Steve Strogatz about ways to treat heart arrhythmias…

5. What Can Jellyfish Teach Us About Fluid Dynamics?

   28 Jun 2023 · 44 min

   Jellyfish and other aquatic creatures embody solutions to diverse problems in engineering, medicine and mathematics. John Dabiri, a fluid dynamics expert, talks with Steven Strogatz about what jellyfish can teach us…

6. What Causes Giant Rogue Waves?

   14 Jun 2023 · 40 min

   Wave-science researcher Ton van den Bremer and Steven Strogatz discuss how rogue waves can form in relatively calm seas and whether their threat can be predicted. The post What Causes Giant Rogue Waves? first appeared…

7. What Is the Nature of Consciousness?

   31 May 2023 · 52 min

   Consciousness, our experience of being in the world, is one of the mind’s greatest mysteries, but as the neuroscientist Anil Seth explains to Steven Strogatz, research is making progress in understanding this elusive…

8. Are There Reasons to Believe in a Multiverse?

   17 May 2023 · 49 min

   Several areas of physics suggest reasons to think that unobservable universes with different natural laws could lie beyond ours. The theoretical physicist David Kaplan talks with Steven Strogatz about the mysteries…

9. Is Perpetual Motion Possible at the Quantum Level?

   4 May 2023 · 37 min

   A new phase of matter called a “time crystal” plays with our expectations of thermodynamics. The physicist Vedika Khemani talks with Steven Strogatz about its surprising quantum behavior. The post Is Perpetual Motion…

10. How Can Some Infinities Be Bigger Than Others?

    19 Apr 2023 · 46 min

    All infinities go on forever, so how is it possible for some infinities to be larger than others? The mathematician Justin Moore discusses the mysteries of infinity with Steven Strogatz. The post How Can Some…

11. What Has the Pandemic Taught Us About Vaccines?

    5 Apr 2023 · 43 min

    Should Covid-19 vaccines be judged by how well they prevent disease or how well they prevent death? Anna Durbin, a public health expert and vaccine researcher, talks with Steven Strogatz about the science behind…

12. Is There Math Beyond the Equal Sign?

    22 Mar 2023 · 50 min

    Can mathematics handle things that are essentially the same without being exactly equal? Category theorist Eugenia Cheng and host Steven Strogatz discuss the power and pleasures of abstraction. The post Is There Math…

13. Can We Program Our Cells?

    8 Mar 2023 · 45 min

    By genetically instructing cells to perform tasks that they wouldn't in nature, synthetic biologists can learn deep secrets about how life works. Steven Strogatz discusses the potential of this young field with…

14. How Will the Universe End?

    22 Feb 2023 · 44 min

    "The Joy of Why" is a podcast about curiosity and the pursuit of knowledge from Quanta Magazine. The acclaimed mathematician and author Steven Strogatz interviews leading researchers about the great scientific and…

15. The Joy of Asking About Infinity, Jellyfish and the End of the Universe

    9 Feb 2023 · 2:31

    As The Joy of Why podcast returns for a second season, producer Polly Stryker and host Steven Strogatz invite listeners to join them and their brilliant new guests on another voyage of discovery.

16. Why and How Do We Dream?

    24 Aug 2022 · 45 min

    Dreams are subjective and fleeting, but laboratories have developed ways of getting into the minds of people while they are dreaming. In this episode, Steven Strogatz speaks with sleep researcher Antonio Zadra about…

17. What Is Quantum Field Theory and Why Is It Incomplete?

    10 Aug 2022 · 42 min

    Quantum field theory may be the most successful scientific theory of all time, but there's reason to think it's missing something. Steven Strogatz speaks with theoretical physicist David Tong about this enigmatic theory.

18. Why Do We Get Old, and Can Aging Be Reversed?

    27 Jul 2022 · 38 min

    Everybody gets older, but not everyone ages in the same way. In this episode, Steven Strogatz speaks with Judith Campisi and Dena Dubal, two biomedical researchers who study the causes and outcomes of aging, to…

19. How Do Mathematicians Know Their Proofs Are Correct?

    13 Jul 2022 · 28 min

    Just as scientists test hypotheses, mathematicians prove or disprove conjectures. But what makes a proof stronger than a guess? What does evidence look like in the world of mathematics? Hear Melanie Matchett Wood,…

20. Can Computers Be Mathematicians?

    29 Jun 2022 · 33 min

    Artificial intelligence has bested humans at problem-solving tasks including games like chess and Go. Is mathematics research next? Steven Strogatz speaks with Kevin Buzzard, professor of pure mathematics at Imperial…

21. What Is Life?

    15 Jun 2022 · 42 min

    Without a good definition of life, how do we look for it on alien planets? Steven Strogatz speaks with Robert Hazen, a mineralogist and astrobiologist, and Sheref Mansy, a chemist, to learn more.

22. How Could Life Evolve From Cyanide?

    1 Jun 2022 · 39 min

    How did life arise on Earth? It's one of the greatest and most ancient mysteries in all of science - and the clues to solving it are all around us. Steven Strogatz speaks with Jack Szostak, a Nobel Prize-winning…

23. Will the James Webb Space Telescope Reveal Another Earth?

    18 May 2022 · 50 min

    With the December 2021 launch of the James Webb Space Telescope, one of the most expensive and ambitious scientific initiatives ever attempted commenced operations. Now that the telescope has been successfully deployed…

24. Where Do Space, Time and Gravity Come From?

    4 May 2022 · 42 min

    Einstein's description of gravity as a curvature in space-time doesn't easily mesh with a universe made up of quantum wavefunctions. Theoretical physicist Sean Carroll (of the "Mindscape" podcast) tells Steven Strogatz…

25. Why Is Inflammation a Dangerous Necessity?

    20 Apr 2022 · 40 min

    We've heard a lot about the immune system during the COVID-19 pandemic, but of course our immune system fights off much more than the coronavirus. And while the immune system protects us brilliantly from countless…

26. Untangling Why Knots Are Important

    6 Apr 2022 · 44 min

    Everyone knows what a knot is. But they have special significance in math and science because their properties can help unlock hidden secrets like the biochemistry of DNA or the geometry of three-dimensional spaces. In…

27. Why Do We Die Without Sleep?

    23 Mar 2022 · 44 min

    Why do we need sleep? In the search for answers, scientists have uncovered more thought-provoking mysteries central to what sleep is, how it evolved and the benefits that it provides. In this episode, the mathematician…

28. Trailer: The Joy of Why

    17 Mar 2022 · 2:42

    An introduction to the new Quanta Magazine podcast The Joy of Why, in which noted mathematician and author Steven Strogatz talks with experts about some of the greatest scientific questions of all time.