Abhay Ashtekar: Loop Quantum Cosmology Replaces the Big Bang

I personally subscribe to The Economist. TOE listeners get 35% off the annual subscription. No other podcast has this! https://economist.com/TOE Abhay Ashtekar examines Gödel universes, time travel paradoxes, and loop quantum cosmology's latest advances They explore how consciousness, philosophy and physics intersect and debate the prospects of a quantum bounce replacing the Big Bang.

0:00 Introduction
0:00 Inner World vs Outer World
5:35 Buddha's Poison Arrow
11:05 Merging philosophy and physics
13:33 Buddha not wrong
19:30 Studying enlightenment scientifically
23:29 Psychedelics caution
25:17 Loop Quantum Gravity overview
36:39 Wheeler‑DeWitt equation
44:48 Self‑dual and anti‑self‑dual
48:16 Hodge dual and metric
52:06 Linearized gravity
55:32 Quantum gravity
1:03:22 Einstein vs Schrödinger
1:09:24 Quantizing geometry details
1:13:41 Yang‑Mills theory intro
1:20:52 Tetrads and vierbeins
1:24:26 Penrose’s twistor theory
1:26:44 Einstein’s hole argument
1:40:48 Mach’s principle
1:49:04 Singularities and black holes
2:12:18 Quantum bounce (Ashtekar bounce)
2:23:07 Pure and mixed quantum states
2:26:38 Black holes and horizons
2:42:09 ADM decomposition
2:43:55 Gödel universe, time travel, CTCs
2:52:38 Superforce question
2:56:13 Universe before the Big Bang
3:01:44 String theory vs LQG
3:17:31 Ed Witten critiques LQG
3:21:14 Duality between string theory and LQG
3:25:20 Philosopher and monk discussion

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Theories of Everything with Curt Jaimungal features long-form, technically detailed interviews with leading researchers in physics, mathematics, consciousness, and philosophy, exploring topics at the level of active research. For academics, graduate students, and anyone seeking depth beyond popular science.

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