StarTalk Podcast

How Common Knowledge Shapes the World, with Steven Pinker
Steven Pinker explains how 'common knowledge'—the shared awareness that everyone knows something, and knows that everyone else knows it—is the invisible force behind everything from the value of money and government power to personal relationships and societal polarization.

The Complex Universe, with Sean Carroll
Cosmologist Sean Carroll joins Neil deGrasse Tyson to unravel the universe's biggest mysteries, from the arrow of time and black holes to the reality of dark matter and the multiverse.

Alcubierre Drives, Antimatter Multiverses & More! | Cosmic Queries #103
Neil deGrasse Tyson and Chuck Nice tackle listener questions ranging from the feasibility of reviving the sun with nukes to the physics of black holes, warp drives, and the multiverse.

Your Brain is a Time Machine, with Dean Buonomano
Neuroscientist Dean Buonomano explains how the human brain functions as a 'time machine,' distinguishing its dynamic, non-oscillatory timekeeping from man-made clocks and exploring its role in mental time travel, consciousness, and the perception of reality.

An Interview with the Winner of the 2025 Nobel Prize in Physics, John Martinis
Nobel laureate John Martinis unpacks the profound implications of macroscopic quantum tunneling, revealing how his work enables quantum computers to perform parallel computations exceeding the number of atoms in the universe, and challenging long-held beliefs about quantum tunneling's instantaneous nature.

Confronting Neil with Our Burning Questions… Yet Again!
Neil deGrasse Tyson tackles fundamental physics questions, from the true nature of gravity to the emergent property of free will and the practical implications of cosmic rays on modern technology.
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