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PODCAST

The Last Theory

The Last Theory is an easy-to-follow exploration of what might be the last theory of physics. In 2020, Stephen Wolfram launched the Wolfram Physics Project to find the elusive fundamental theory that explains everything. On The Last Theory podcast, I investigate the implications of Wolfram"s ideas and dig into the details of how his universe works. Join me for fresh insights into Wolfram Physics every other week.

science physics

All Episodes

21:54

Black holes in the hypergraph with Stephen Wolfram

The Last Theory ·

2025/08/29

Electrons may be tiny black holes propagating through the hypergraph.After all, electrons and black holes have much in common: they’re carriers of pure motion, they’re all the same – from the outside, at least – and we don’t know what’s going on inside them.Just as black holes may cloak the remants of collapsed civilizations, so electrons may hold secret histories of their paths through the universe.Stephen Wolfram takes this idea further. If particles, such as electrons, are the carriers

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12:41

The causal graph is objective reality

The Last Theory ·

2025/08/08

The multiway graph shows every possible evolution of the universe.So, if we can compute every possible reality, does that mean that there’s no single objective reality?Well, the causal graph, it turns out, collapses every possible reality into a single objective reality in a way that’s so unexpected that you’ll be left wondering: how did that just happen?—References:The hypergraph video ⋅ podcast ⋅ articleThe multiway graph video ⋅ podcast ⋅ articleThe causal graph video ⋅ podcast ⋅

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18:12

Stephen Wolfram on AI, human-like minds & formal...

The Last Theory ·

2025/07/12

In this fascinating exposition, Stephen Wolfram connects two of the most important breakthroughs of our time: AI and the ruliad.I ask Stephen how he thinks about knowledge hypergraphs, which I’m exploring at Open Web Mind.He offers several important insights.Stephen draws a distinction between human-like minds and formal knowledge.Human-like minds include both our own brains and Large Language Models. Such minds, Stephen suggests, are good at making broad but shallow connections.Formal

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5:43

Multiway minds with Stephen Wolfram

The Last Theory ·

2025/06/21

Can you hold in your mind two different threads of experience?In this five-minute excerpt from my conversation with Stephen Wolfram, he introduces the strange idea of a multiway mind.Most of the time, we as observers succeed in weaving multiple different paths through the multiway graph into a single thread of experience.In some circumstances, however, we’re unable to do this. If we’re unfortunate enough to find ourselves on the surface of a black hole – at the event horizon in physical

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17:43

Do fields exist?

The Last Theory ·

2025/05/22

Fields don’t exist.I mean, a field with grass in it, that kind of field does exist.But a field in physics?A gravitational field? An electric field? A magnetic field? A quantum field?No such thing.I’m not knocking the physicists who came up with these fields.These fictions can be convenient.But sometimes, these fictions can blind us to the underlying reality.And that’s what’s happening right now in physics.Our long-time love affair with fields is blinding us to the true nature of space and

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8:51

Aggregation – how the Wolfram model weaves the future...

The Last Theory ·

2025/04/27

In the previous excerpt from my conversation with Stephen Wolfram, I asked him how I can remain a single, coherent, persistent consciousness in a branching universe.In this excerpt, we went deeper into this question. As a conscious observer, I have a single thread of experience. So if the universe branches into many timelines, why don’t I branch into many versions of me?Stephen’s answer touched on many profound aspects of the Wolfram model.He started with the failure of the Many Worlds

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12:32

Coherent consciousness in a branching universe with...

The Last Theory ·

2025/03/15

When the universe branches, we branch with it.Those branches don’t remain forever apart. They come back together.So we, as conscious observers, are rescued from splitting into an immense number ever-so-slightly different versions of ourselves.When the branches of the universe – and the versions of ourselves – come back together, we don’t worry that the many paths we took to get there are ever-so-slightly different.We equivalence all those different paths. We treat all those ever-so-slightly

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15:38

What is the causal graph in Wolfram Physics?

The Last Theory ·

2025/03/02

The causal graph is at the core of Wolfram Physics.It’s crucial to the derivations of Special Relativity, General Relativity and Quantum Mechanics.And if that’s not enough to convince you that you need to know about the causal graph, how about this:The causal graph is a reflection of the nature of causality, the nature of objectivity, the nature of reality itself.—Einstein’s train thought experimentWhat is the multiway graph? video ⋅ podcast ⋅ articleWhat precisely is causal invariance

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8:03

Is everything determined? with Stephen Wolfram

The Last Theory ·

2025/02/13

Is everything that’s ever going to happen in the universe already determined?Or does something else – maybe randomness, maybe free will – play a role?Stephen Wolfram’s answer to this question is straightforward: the ruliad is fully determined.But there’s a twist. The ruliad is determined, but how we observe the evolution of the universe depends on where we are in the ruliad.In a fascinating introduction to the role of the observer in the Wolfram model, Stephen touches on some of the deepest

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19:36

Why is space three-dimensional? with Stephen Wolfram

The Last Theory ·

2025/01/15

Hypergraphs can have any number of dimensions. They can be 2-dimensional, 3-dimensional, 4.81-dimensional or, in the limit, ∞-dimensional.So how does the three-dimensional space we observe emerge from the hypergraph-based Wolfram model?Why is space three-dimensional?Stephen Wolfram’s surprising answer to this questions goes deep into space, time, computation and, crucially, our nature as observers.—Stephen WolframStephen WolframThe Wolfram Physics ProjectWolfram InstituteWolfram Institute

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8:52

The first wow for Stephen Wolfram

The Last Theory ·

2025/01/09

Stephen Wolfram reveals that his first major wow along the path towards a fundamental theory of physics was his realization that General Relativity and Quantum Mechanics are the same theory, played out in different kinds of space.Many other dominos have fallen along the way, from the derivation of Einstein’s equations to applications of the ruliad beyond physics.But the aspect of Wolfram Physics that Stephen Wolfram himself finds maybe the most compelling is this mirroring of the two

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6:37

5 reasons to take Wolfram Physics seriously

The Last Theory ·

2024/12/23

It feels like everyone has their pet Theory of Everything these days.So why should you take my preferred Theory of Everything seriously?Well, give me 5 minutes, and I’ll give you 5 reasons why I find Wolfram Physics more compelling than anything else that’s happened in physics in my lifetime......and maybe you’ll want to take it seriously too.—The Last Theory is hosted by Mark Jeffery, founder of Open Web MindI release The Last Theory as a video too! Watch here.The full article is

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16:58

Why does the universe exist?

The Last Theory ·

2024/10/30

Here’s a question.Why does the universe exist?Why is there something rather than nothing?One of Stephen Wolfram’s boldest claims is that he has the answer.Let me know whether you’re convinced by his argument!—Ideas:Wolfram PhysicsMathematical PlatonismOccam’s RazorThe Last TheoryPeople:Stephen WolframJonathan Gorard—The Last Theory is hosted by Mark Jeffery, founder of Open Web MindI release The Last Theory as a video too! Watch here.The full article is here.Kootenay Village Ventures Inc.

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18:21

Causality ain't what you think it is

The Last Theory ·

2024/09/15

Do you know what causality is?If you do, let me know, because I’m not sure.I’ve never come across a conception of causality that makes sense to me.After all, our universe seems to follow simple equations like Einstein’s equations, and there’s no mention of causality in these equations.It makes me think that there’s no such thing as causality.Unless...Well, here’s the thing.I’m no longer sure that our universe does follow these continuous equations.I’m beginning to think that at the smallest

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15:10

What precisely is causal invariance?

The Last Theory ·

2024/07/28

Causal invariance is a crucial concept in Wolfram Physics.It’s how we get special relativity from the Wolfram model.It’s how we get quantum mechanics from the Wolfram model.So what precisely is causal invariance?This question will take us deep into the multiway graph, to an even deeper question: what is causality?—What is the multiway graph? video ⋅ podcast ⋅ article—The Last Theory is hosted by Mark Jeffery, founder of Open Web MindI release The Last Theory as a video too! Watch here.The

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168:59

Jonathan Gorard: the complete first interview

The Last Theory ·

2024/06/01

I’ve heard from many of you that you’d like the whole of my conversation with Jonathan Gorard in a single podcast.So here it is, the complete first interview.These three hours are a brilliant exposition of Wolfram Physics from a figure whose contributions to the project are second to none.—Jonathan GorardJonathan Gorard at The Wolfram Physics ProjectJonathan Gorard on TwitterThe Centre for Applied CompositionalityThe Wolfram Physics ProjectJonathan’s seminal papersSome Relativistic and

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16:44

In defence of Stephen Wolfram

The Last Theory ·

2024/04/09

You like Stephen Wolfram, right?I mean, if he’s to be believed, he has reinvented physics, not to mention philosophy.How could you not like such a thinker?Well... it turns out that there are plenty of people who don’t like Stephen Wolfram... or his physics... or his philosophy.Here are four criticisms of Stephen Wolfram I regularly hear......and here’s why these criticisms, though they hint at uncomfortable truths, nonetheless miss the mark.—Stephen Wolfram:Stephen WolframStephen Wolfram’s

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13:30

Beyond physics: applying the Wolfram model in...

The Last Theory ·

2024/03/09

In this final excerpt from our conversation in October 2022, Jonathan Gorard explains how ideas from Wolfram Physics can be applied in fields beyond physics, including biology, chemistry and mathematics.He describes the concept of compositionality, and digs deeper into why the hypergraph is able to model so much of our universe.—Jonathan GorardJonathan Gorard at The Wolfram Physics ProjectJonathan Gorard on TwitterThe Centre for Applied CompositionalityThe Wolfram Physics ProjectConcepts

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9:36

Who is Stephen Wolfram?

The Last Theory ·

2024/02/11

You know who Stephen Wolfram is, right?Whether you love him or, you know, don’t love him, there’s no denying that Stephen Wolfram has founded a host of fascinating projects... most of them named Wolfram-something-or-other.What are all these Wolfram-branded projects?Who is Stephen Wolfram?—Some of the things Stephen Wolfram created:1987 Wolfram Research1988 Mathematica2009 Wolfram Alpha2014 Wolfram Language2020 Wolfram Physicsnot to mention:Wolfram CloudWolfram OneWolfram NotebooksWolfram

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14:32

Where's the evidence for Wolfram Physics? with...

The Last Theory ·

2024/01/19

I asked Jonathan Gorard the question I’m asked the most: can the Wolfram model make testable predictions about reality, predictions that differ from those of general relativity and quantum mechanics, predictions that might prove that Wolfram Physics is right?Jonathan showed how the Wolfram model might shed light on some of the most mysterious phenomena of our universe, from black hole inspirals to quantum entanglement.He focused on four areas where the class of theories encompassed by the

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