logo
episode-header-image
Feb 2021
41m 18s

The Fundamentals of Reality

Bbc Radio 4
About this episode

The Fundamentals of Reality

Brian Cox and Robin Ince are joined by Nobel prize-winning physicist Frank Wilczek, cosmologist Janna Levin, and comedians Eric Idle and Sara Pascoe to look at what physics has revealed about the reality of our universe. From Einstein's equations more than 100 years ago through to the amazing discoveries we've made in the last few years about black holes and gravitational waves, the universe we think we see is not necessarily the true fundamental reality that physics has uncovered. What is real and what is not? All will be revealed.

Producer: Alexandra Feachem

Up next
Aug 20
Illuminating Light - Jess Wade, Russell Foster and Bridget Christie
What is light? How has it shaped our understanding of the universe, our biology, and even our culture? In this illuminating episode Brian Cox and Robin Ince shine a spotlight on the fascinating science and history of light. From sun and circadian rhythms to the dazzling complexit ... Show More
42m 23s
Aug 13
Moths v Butterflies - Katy Brand, Jane Hill and Chris Jiggins
What really separates a moth from a butterfly? Is it just a matter of day and night, or is there more to this fluttering feud than meets the eye? Professor Brian Cox and Robin Ince flap into the fabulous world of Lepidoptera with Professor Jane Hill, Professor Chris Jiggins, and ... Show More
42m 8s
Aug 6
Technofossils - Sarah Gabbott, Mark Miodownik and Aurie Styla
Brian Cox and Robin Ince dig deep into the strata of an imagined human history to unearth the curious concept of technofossils. Joined by paleobiologist Sarah Gabbott, material scientist Mark Miodownik and comedian and tech enthusiast Aurie Styla the panel unearth how the everyda ... Show More
42m 26s
Recommended Episodes
Jul 2023
Does Nothingness Exist?
Aristotle argued almost 2,400 years ago that a perfect vacuum could never exist. Today, the concept of nothingness figures at least implicitly into almost every theory of modern physics. In this episode closing out season 2 of “The Joy of Why,” the theoretical physicist Isabel Ga ... Show More
44m 59s
Oct 2022
What is energy anyway?
Physics, while absolutely fascinating, can be impenetrable. And it isn't just cutting-edge ideas that can melt our brains, often we accept basic principles and ideas without really knowing how they work or even what they are. This week, Jonathan is joined by Sean Carroll, physici ... Show More
48m 31s
Oct 2000
Laws of Nature
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the Laws of Nature. Since ancient times philosophers and physicists have tried to discover simple underlying principles that control the Universe: In the 6th Century BC Thales declared “Everything is water”, centuries later Aristotle claimed that a ... Show More
28m 5s
Oct 2000
Laws of Nature
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the Laws of Nature. Since ancient times philosophers and physicists have tried to discover simple underlying principles that control the Universe: In the 6th Century BC Thales declared “Everything is water”, centuries later Aristotle claimed that a ... Show More
28m 5s
Nov 2020
The end of everything
Everyone knows about the Big Bang being the beginning of the universe and time - but when and how is it going to end? ask brothers Raffie and Xe from Rome. For this series, with lockdown learning in mind, Drs Rutherford and Fry are investigating scientific mysteries for students ... Show More
27m 19s
Jul 2023
#238 — How to Build a Universe
Sam Harris speaks with Frank Wilczek about the fundamental nature of reality. They discuss the difference between science and non-science, the role of intuition in science, the nature of time, the prospect that possibility is an illusion, the current limits of quantum mechanics, ... Show More
36m 4s
Nov 2023
504: DEEP DIVE: Simulation Theory - Evidence is Everywhere
PROOF THAT EVERYTHING - IS A SIMULATION (Including God) Is this reality? Well, we're experiencing ... something right now so maybe the better question is: what is reality? Could everything we see, everything we experience, everything that exists in our entire universe -- be artif ... Show More
43m 28s
Dec 2022
Evidence of the Multiverse
For most of us, the word “multiverse” probably conjures up some sort of fun sci-fi episode like the universe in which we all have hot dogs for fingers in Oscar contender ‘Everything Everywhere All at Once’ or the parallel universe in Star Trek where there’s an evil you with a mou ... Show More
30m 56s
Feb 2000
Grand Unified Theory
Melvyn Bragg examines 20th century physics’ quest for the ultimate theory of everything. Einstein left us with his theory of General Relativity, which explained how gravity works on the scale of stars, galaxies, and the universe itself and Schroedinger left us with the equation t ... Show More
28m 13s
Listen to millions of songs and podcasts on Anghami