PODCAST

632nm

Misha Shalaginov, Michael Dubrovsky, Xinghui Yin

Technical interviews with the greatest scientists in the world.

science natural sciences

All Episodes

154:48

Quantum Matter, Super-conductors, and Black Holes |...

632nm ·

2025/12/23

What makes high-temperature superconductors and “strange metals” some of the most perplexing systems in modern physics?In this episode, we speak with Dr. Subir Sachdev: Harvard physicist and one of the leading architects of today’s understanding of quantum matter. Sachdev explains why strange metals refuse to behave like ordinary conductors, how quantum entanglement reshapes the landscape of many-body physics, and why the quest to understand cuprate superconductors continues to push both

110:14

How to Build Fault-Tolerant Quantum Computers |...

632nm ·

2025/12/09

Would we get a quantum computer sooner if everything was open source?In this episode, we speak with Austin Fowler, one of the architects of quantum error correction and a pioneer of the surface code used in today’s leading quantum computers. Fowler helped lay the groundwork for scalable, fault-tolerant computation at Google Quantum AI, before leaving to advocate for a more open and collaborative model of research.He explains why building a useful quantum computer will require millions of

124:26

Why Syncing Atomic Clocks is Virtually Impossible |...

632nm ·

2025/11/26

Why is syncing atomic clocks still one of the hardest problems in physics and engineering?In this episode, we speak with Judah Levine—legendary NIST physicist and one of the key architects of modern timekeeping—about the invisible systems that hold the digital world together. Levine explains why synchronizing atomic clocks across the planet is far more complex than the clocks themselves, and why seemingly simple ideas like “round-trip delay” break down in real-world media such as fiber

78:29

Can We Predict History Like the Weather? | Peter...

632nm ·

2025/11/04

Why do civilizations rise, prosper, and then collapse? Here's what the math tells us.In this episode, we sit down with Peter Turchin, complexity scientist and founder of the field of cliodynamics, which uses data and mathematical models to study the long-term cycles of history. Turchin explains his theory of elite overproduction, how societies generate too many ambitious, educated elites competing for too few positions, and why this dynamic reliably leads to polarization, inequality, and

60:47

Why Do Quantum Computers Make So Many Mistakes? |...

632nm ·

2025/10/21

You can’t copy a qubit. So how do quantum computers remember anything?In this episode, we sit down with Mikhail Lukin, Harvard physicist and co-director of the Harvard Quantum Initiative, whose lab is building quantum computers from arrays of individually trapped atoms. Lukin explains the paradox of quantum error correction—how you can safeguard quantum information even though it can’t be copied or measured directly—and why this breakthrough may be the key to making large-scale quantum

65:36

We Interviewed the Winners of the Ig Nobel Prize | Ig...

632nm ·

2025/10/09

The scientific stories behind this year's research that made people LAUGH, then THINK.Watch the 2025 Ig Nobel Ceremony here: https://youtu.be/z1cP4xKd_L4In this episode, we bring together three of this year’s Ig Nobel winners whose research spans psychology, food science and human biology. You’ll hear how a team of psychologists devised a counter-intuitive way to boost a narcissist’s self-confidence; how two physicists uncovered the “mozzarella phase” of pecorino cheese while perfecting

101:22

What Science can Learn from Startups | Adam...

632nm ·

2025/10/07

Science has stalled. And Adam Marblestone thinks he knows why.Check out the Research Gap Map here: https://www.gap-map.org/?sort=rankIn this episode, we sit down with Adam Marblestone, neuroscientist, nanotechnologist, and founder of Convergent Research, to explore how new “Focused Research Organizations” (FROs) could reignite scientific progress. From DNA “ticker-tape” neural recording to optical connectomics and Neuralink, Marblestone explains how emerging neurotechnologies reveal both

30:40

The Perfect Pasta Sauce According to Italian...

632nm ·

2025/09/27

Cheese is serious stuff. The physics behind cacio e pepe.Watch the 2025 Ig Nobel Ceremony here: https://youtu.be/z1cP4xKd_L4In this episode, we sit down with Daniel Busiello and Ivan Di Terlizzi, physicists whose playful kitchen experiments on the classic Roman pasta dish cacio e pepe just earned them the 2025 Ig Nobel Prize. What started as a Friday-night cooking ritual turned into a full-blown study of the “mozzarella phase” of pecorino cheese — revealing how heat, proteins, and

14:53

Babies Love When Mom’s Milk Tastes Like Garlic | Ig...

632nm ·

2025/09/26

Your milk tastes like garlic. And babies love it.Watch the 2025 Ig Nobel Ceremony here: https://youtu.be/z1cP4xKd_L4In this episode, we sit down with Julie Mennella and Gary Beauchamp, winners of the 2025 Ig Nobel Prize and longtime researchers at the Monell Chemical Senses Center, whose experiments revealed that the flavors mothers eat—from garlic and carrots to alcohol—can pass into amniotic fluid and breast milk, shaping babies’ earliest taste experiences. Their work overturns decades of

21:24

How to Boost a Narcissist’s Self-Confidence | Ig...

632nm ·

2025/09/25

What happens to our sense of self when someone tells us we’re smart—or not so smart?Watch the 2025 Ig Nobel Ceremony here: https://youtu.be/z1cP4xKd_L4In this episode, we sit down with Marcin Zajenkowski, professor of psychology at the University of Warsaw and co-winner of the 2025 Ig Nobel Prize in Psychology, for his study on how intelligence feedback affects temporary narcissism. Along with his collaborator Gilles Gignac of the University of Western Australia, Zajenkowski showed that

112:35

What Optical Atomic Clocks Tell Us About Space-Time |...

632nm ·

2025/09/23

Times have changed. And cesium clocks can't keep up.In this episode, we sit down with Jun Ye, Joint Institute for Laboratory Astrophysics (JILA) Fellow and pioneer of optical lattice clocks, whose work has pushed timekeeping far beyond traditional cesium atomic clocks. Ye explains how combining ultra-stable lasers, frequency combs, and ultra-cold atoms produces clocks more than 100× more precise than today’s standards: so sensitive they can detect gravitational time dilation across the

144:10

Laser Cooling and Quantum Timekeeping | Bill Phillips

632nm ·

2025/09/09

How did cooling atoms with lasers revolutionize our understanding of time?In this episode, we speak with Bill Phillips, Nobel Laureate in Physics, about his groundbreaking work on laser cooling and trapping of atoms: research that not only won him the Nobel Prize but also transformed modern timekeeping and technology. Phillips explains why breaking the Doppler cooling limit changed physics forever and what it means that today’s clocks can measure time differences caused by moving a device

158:02

Inside the Battle for Psychedelic Therapy | Rick Doblin

632nm ·

2025/08/26

What does it take to turn a banned psychedelic into an FDA-approved medicine?Visit MAPS to read about the latest progress is psychedelic research: https://maps.org/In this episode, we speak with Rick Doblin, founder of the Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies (MAPS), about the decades-long mission to make MDMA-assisted therapy a legal treatment for PTSD and other mental health conditions. Rick received his PhD from Harvard's Kennedy School of Government in public policy

91:04

Biology's Biggest Chicken and Egg Problem | Jacob Fine

632nm ·

2025/08/12

Life’s First Blueprint Wasn’t DNA; it was RNA.Read Jacob Fine’s latest publication here: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0022283625001901Today we spoke with Jacob Fine, graduate student researcher in Computational Biology from the University of Toronto. We explore the physics of replication, the role of entropy and information theory, and how modern biology is reconnecting with theory to understand the most fundamental question in science. Our conversation takes place in

135:37

The Final Interview with MIT Physicist Keith Johnson

632nm ·

2025/08/05

One of Keith Johnson’s final interviews: a brilliant mind on dark matter, water, and fusion.Read about Keith’s legacy here: https://news.mit.edu/2025/keith-johnson-materials-scientist-independent-filmmaker-dies-0723This episode is one of the final recorded conversations with MIT physicist Keith Johnson, who passed away just weeks after our interview. In this conversation, he unpacks his early research on the quantum structure of matter, his cold fusion theories, and how it all led to a

103:30

How We Build Telescopes to Explore the Early Cosmos |...

632nm ·

2025/07/29

Did the Big Bang really happen? Telescopes, dark matter & cosmic origins explored.Join cosmologist Brian Keating as we explore the mysteries of the universe, from building telescopes at the South Pole to measuring the polarization of the cosmic microwave background and chasing signs of gravitational waves. We discuss Galileo’s influence, cosmic inflation, and how the Nobel Prize could be changed to better reflect the way we do science. Follow us for more technical interviews with the

121:49

Quantum Complexity: Scott Aaronson on P vs NP and the...

632nm ·

2025/07/15

In this episode of the 632nm podcast, Scott Aaronson shares his early fascination with calculus at age 11 and how “rediscovering” old mathematics led him toward groundbreaking work in complexity theory. He gives a lucid explanation of P vs NP, revealing how seemingly trivial questions about verifying solutions speak to some of the deepest unsolved problems in all of computing.Aaronson also explores the frontiers of quantum computing, from the nuances of quantum supremacy experiments to the

93:09

Science Memes, Epigenetic Inheritance, and Rethinking...

632nm ·

2025/06/24

In this episode of the 632nm podcast, we explore cutting-edge ideas in epigenetics and academic publishing. Oded Rechavi reveals how C. elegans worms defy conventional genetics by passing on traits through small RNAs, and discusses how these mechanisms might reshape our understanding of heredity. We also hear about a remarkable experiment hijacking Toxoplasma gondii—the so-called “cat parasite”—to deliver proteins into the brain, opening possible routes for new therapies.Beyond the lab, we

141:20

Quantum Diamond Sensing: The Surprising Power of NV...

632nm ·

2025/06/06

In this episode of the 632nm podcast, we explore how diamond-based nitrogen vacancy (NV) centers went from being a curiosity in gemstone physics to a transformative tool for precision magnetometry. You’ll hear how these tiny defects enable room-temperature quantum sensing, providing ultra-high spatial resolution and remarkable resilience in extreme conditions—from planetary research unlocking secrets of our solar system’s earliest days to potential biomedical diagnostics. Our guest recounts

139:27

Origin of Life, Thermodynamics, and God: Jeremy England

632nm ·

2025/05/19

In this episode, Jeremy England reframes the origin of life debate by applying non-equilibrium physics, challenging the notion that life’s emergence must be purely biological or chemical. He describes how matter can “learn” from its environment, drawing on examples from spin glasses, protein folding, and resonating mechanical systems.England also shares how his deep engagement with religious texts—and his unexpected cameo as “the next Darwin” in popular media—shaped his understanding of

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