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Into the Impossible With Brian Keating

Big Bang Productions Inc.

Think like a physicist. Wonder like a human. Into the Impossibleis where Cosmic Conversations happen — uniting Nobel Prize winners, iconoclasts, authors, and technologists to explore reality’s deepest questions. From AI to aliens, from biophysics to the brain, from the cosmos to the multiverse, Brian Keating, Chancellor’s Distinguished Professor of Physics at UC San Diego covers it all. If you’ve ever askedWhat’s out there?orWhat’s next?, this is where curiosity meets clarity. Learn to think like

science natural sciences

All Episodes

37:55

The Quantum Secret Einstein Tried to Warn Us About

Into the Impossible With Brian Keating ·

2025/08/16

Please join my mailing list here 👉 https://briankeating.com/list to win a meteorite 💥What if the most successful theory in science… doesn't actually explain anything? In this episode of Into the Impossible, I talk with physicist and author Adam Becker, who wrote What Is Real?, a stunning exploration of quantum mechanics, its messy philosophical roots, and the long-ignored questions about what the theory really says about reality. We dig deep into a paradox at the heart of modern physics:

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78:40

Do We Have Free Will and Will AI Have It Too? (ft....

Into the Impossible With Brian Keating ·

2025/08/14

Please join my mailing list here 👉 https://briankeating.com/yt to win a meteorite 💥 Does free will exist? It's a question that's haunted philosophers for centuries. But physicist Sabine Hossenfelder has a provocative answer that might just disturb you. She says free will doesn't exist. Everything is determined by the laws of physics. But here's the paradox that's fascinated me. I've talked to Sam Harris, Dan Dennett, Robert Sapolsky, all brilliant minds who agree that free will is an illusion

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77:42

Are Humans Smart Enough to Understand the Universe?...

Into the Impossible With Brian Keating ·

2025/08/06

Please join my mailing list here 👉 https://briankeating.com/yt to win a meteorite 💥Why aren't whales building rockets? They have bigger brains than we do after all. In this episode with Stephen Wolfram, we talk about why more brainpower doesn't always mean more understanding, and how neural architecture faces physical constraints. Stephen Wolfram says even super intelligent AIs may hit hard computational limits. In our conversation today, we explore why intelligence has a ceiling, and how

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110:59

Exploring the Edge of the Universe: Brian Keating on...

Into the Impossible With Brian Keating ·

2025/08/01

Please join my mailing list here 👉 https://briankeating.com/yt to win a meteorite 💥In this captivating conversation, we dive deep into the cosmos with renowned cosmologist, podcaster, and UC San Diego professor Dr. Brian Keating. Joined by Mike Misha and Xinghui, Brian takes us on a journey from the childhood wonder inspired by the Moon to the high-altitude peaks of Chile and the frigid expanse of the South Pole, where he's helped pioneer the development of cutting-edge telescopes aimed at

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61:58

Is There A WAR On Science? Lawrence Krauss

Into the Impossible With Brian Keating ·

2025/07/30

Please join my mailing list here 👉 https://briankeating.com/list to win a meteorite 💥In a sweeping conversation sparked by his new book The War on Science, Lawrence Krauss charts how well-intentioned campus DEI bureaucracies, politicized funding mandates, and “language-as-violence” taboos are eroding the core scientific virtues of open inquiry and empirical scepticism, while drawing historical parallels from Lysenkoism to today’s hiring rubrics and challenging listeners to defend freedom of

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59:54

Our Universe Almost Didn’t Exist (ft. Fred Adams)

Into the Impossible With Brian Keating ·

2025/07/25

Please join my mailing list here 👉 https://briankeating.com/list to win a meteorite 💥Is the universe fine-tuned for life, or is it just a lucky accident? Could the multiverse explain why our universe is so perfectly suited for life? And how much can the fundamental constants change before life becomes impossible? Today, I’m joined by Fred Adams, a theoretical physicist from the University of Michigan. Fred works in the general area of theoretical astrophysics with a focus on the study of

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56:25

We MUST Save Earth Because We Can’t Live on Mars (ft....

Into the Impossible With Brian Keating ·

2025/07/18

Please join my mailing list here 👉 https://briankeating.com/list to win a meteorite 💥What if the future tech billionaires keep promising us isn’t the answer, but part of the problem? In this episode of Into the Impossible, I talk with Adam Becker, author of More Everything Forever, about the big dreams coming out of Silicon Valley—especially when it comes to AI and the future of humanity. We take a hard look at the idea that AI is going to fix everything, launch us into space, and solve

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90:13

Another Alien Asteroid | Avi Loeb

Into the Impossible With Brian Keating ·

2025/07/17

In this episode, I sit down with Harvard astrophysicist Avi Loeb to explore his provocative new article analyzing the interstellar object 3I/ATLAS — a visitor from beyond our solar system that might not be natural. 🛰️ We dive into his recent article on Medium https://avi-loeb.medium.com/is-the-interstellar-object-3i-atlas-alien-technology-b59ccc17b2e3 and get into: • The strange anomalies in 3I/ATLAS’s orbit, size, and speed 🌌 • How the Dark Forest Hypothesis could change the search for

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79:50

Celebrating 500 Episodes!

Into the Impossible With Brian Keating ·

2025/07/14

Please join my mailing list here 👉 https://briankeating.com/list to win a meteorite 💥What drives someone to keep exploring the universe after a lifelong career in cosmology and 500 podcast episodes? In this milestone episode, I finally take the mic solo to answer that and other questions—from the origin of the podcast during the pandemic to why I'm still obsessed with cosmology, teaching, and yes, even faculty meetings (sometimes). I open up about the childlike curiosity that fuels my work

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28:15

The Scientists Ep. 7: Galileo Founded The First Tech...

Into the Impossible With Brian Keating ·

2025/07/13

Please join my mailing list here 👉 https://briankeating.com/list to win a meteorite 💥 In this episode, we’re diving into the untold story of one of science’s greatest icons: Galileo Galilei. You might know him as the father of modern astronomy—the man with the telescope who challenged the universe. But forget the dusty textbook legend. This episode peels back the curtain to reveal Galileo as a cunning innovator, unapologetic monopolist, and the original scientific entrepreneur. Settle in for a

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58:57

Did She Just Prove the Multiverse Is Real? (Ft Laura...

Into the Impossible With Brian Keating ·

2025/07/09

What if the Big Bang wasn’t the beginning? What if our universe is just one in a vast cosmic ocean of universes, and we have the evidence to prove it?In this episode of Into the Impossible, I’m joined by theoretical physicist Laura Mersini-Houghton to explore one of the most provocative ideas in modern cosmology: the multiverse is not only real—it’s testable. Mersini, author of Before the Big Bang, walks us through her bold predictions about the structure of the cosmos, including the mysterious

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75:47

Timescapes Make Dark Energy Irrelevant! (ft. David...

Into the Impossible With Brian Keating ·

2025/06/30

What if everything we know about the universe’s expansion is wrong?David Wiltshire offers a radical perspective on cosmic acceleration and dark energy, proposing that both might be illusions created by the varying passage of time in different regions of the universe. Wiltshire challenges the foundations of modern cosmology with his innovative Timescape model. We discuss the foundations of Einstein's theory of relativity, examining how time behaves differently in regions of high and low matter

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27:11

The Scientists Ep. 6: The Life of Hedy Lamarr

Into the Impossible With Brian Keating ·

2025/06/25

Please join my mailing list here 👉 https://briankeating.com/list to win a meteorite 💥This episode, hosted by Brian Keating—Chancellor’s Distinguished Professor of Physics at UC San Diego—delves into one of the most fascinating and underappreciated stories at the intersection of beauty, brilliance, and invention. Today, we step away from pure physics and astronomy to explore the remarkable life of Hedy Lamarr, an iconic Hollywood actress whose real genius lay not just on the silver screen, but at

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52:25

First Data from Vera Rubin Observatory Rewrites...

Into the Impossible With Brian Keating ·

2025/06/23

In this exclusive interview, Professor Mario Jurić reveals how the Vera Rubin Observatory accidentally discovered 2,000 asteroids in just 10 hours while testing its capabilities on the distant Virgo Cluster—transforming humanity's asteroid discovery rate from 20,000 per year globally to potentially over one million annually with a single telescope. Jurić explains how VRO's revolutionary multi-messenger astronomy capabilities will detect dark matter's effects and light simultaneously, automatically

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55:02

NEW Dark Energy Data Surprises Scientists (ft. Kyle...

Into the Impossible With Brian Keating ·

2025/06/18

Is everything we thought we knew about the universe… wrong? Lambda-CDM model nearing its breaking point? Could dark energy actually be evolving?In this episode of Into the Impossible, I’m joined by Kyle Dawson and Daniel Green to discuss the latest data from the DESI experiment. These new results are making headlines, and rightfully so, as they hold the potential to transform our understanding of the universe completely. Kyle Dawson, a key figure in the DESI project and professor at the

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83:45

The Scientists Ep. 5: Steven Weinberg’s Legacy,...

Into the Impossible With Brian Keating ·

2025/06/15

Please join my mailing list here 👉 https://briankeating.com/list to win a meteorite 💥 Brian Keating reflects on the life and legacy of Nobel laureate Steven Weinberg, the legendary physicist and writer whose influence shaped generations of scientists and thinkers. Driven by the regret of never having hosted Weinberg on the show before his passing, Brian takes listeners on a deeply personal journey—from his formative college years, inspired by Weinberg’s groundbreaking book "The First Three

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149:10

Eric Weinstein's Theory of Everything Confirmed?

Into the Impossible With Brian Keating ·

2025/06/12

How are recent DESI experimental results challenging the traditional view of dark energy as a fixed cosmological constant? Are foundational assumptions in Einstein’s general relativity limiting progress in theoretical physics? And how do tensions in cosmological measurements, like the Hubble constant discrepancy, reflect deeper issues in physics?In this episode, we’ll explore these fundamental questions with none other than Eric Weinstein! Eric is one of the most revered thinkers of our

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27:33

The Scientists Ep. 4: Carl Sagan's Five Principles

Into the Impossible With Brian Keating ·

2025/06/08

Please join my mailing list here 👉 https://briankeating.com/list to win a meteorite 💥Brian Keating deep dives into the remarkable life and legacy of Carl Sagan—one of history’s greatest science communicators. In this special episode of "The Scientist," Brian explores how a kid from Brooklyn rose to become the voice of science for a generation, making the universe both vast and intimately personal for millions. This episode blends firsthand accounts, critical biographies, and personal

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50:01

Answering Your Cosmic Questions: The Multiverse, the...

Into the Impossible With Brian Keating ·

2025/06/05

Please join my mailing list here 👉 ⁠https://briankeating.com/list⁠ to win a meteorite 💥 In this electrifying episode, recorded live at UC San Diego, Brian pulls back the cosmic curtain to explore some of the deepest mysteries in science—and what they might mean for our understanding of everything. You'll learn how scientists use the mysterious property of light called polarization to uncover secrets from the dawn of the universe, chase evidence for the Big Bang, and even perform your own

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67:19

Should Creationism Be Taught Alongside Evolution?

Into the Impossible With Brian Keating ·

2025/06/04

In a world increasingly shaped by science and technology, how do we determine what constitutes truth? What role does society play in shaping scientific knowledge consensus? And what are the implications for the future of research and innovation? In this episode, I sit down with Steve Fuller, a renowned sociologist of science from the University of Warwick in the UK, for a thought-provoking conversation. Steve and I explore the deep connections between science and sociology, discussing how science

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Into the Impossible With Brian Keating

Big Bang Productions Inc.