The Stephen Wolfram Podcast

Latest Episodes:

Stephen Wolfram Q&A, Can Sci-Fi be Real: Episode 3 Sep 08, 2020

Show notes

Stephen Wolfram answers audience questions about science fiction concepts as part of an unscripted livestream series.

Questions include: What will sci-fi look like in 20 years? How does the past compare to today? - Will there be a "Golden Age" for science? - Russia and the USA are only a few miles apart at some locations, still it takes more than 10 hours of flight time. Why? - Why and how do you know all this? - Do you think that we will have brain implants that allow us to access the internet anytime soon? - Is it true that only left-handed people are in their "right" minds? - Have you given any thought to adding augmented reality features into Wolfram|Alpha for Android?

See the full Q&A video playlist: https://wolfr.am/youtube-sw-qa

Stephen Wolfram Q&A, Can Sci-Fi be Real: Episode 2 Sep 08, 2020

Show notes

Stephen Wolfram answers audience questions about science fiction concepts as part of an unscripted livestream series.

Questions include: How long before we colonize Mars? - Why isn't a Tricorder available yet? - How would teleportation work if we could make it happen? - Why don't we have flying cars yet? - Can you explain the physical difference between a 1 volt and a 2 volt battery? - Can we manipulate the weather and formation of clouds in quantum state or create new kind of quantum equipment? - Is there any merit to discussion about such questions, given that actualization of our sci-fi dreams is never literal? - What are your thoughts on starshot projects that will attempt shooting satellites to the Alpha Centauri system with lasers? - Could a technologically advanced civilization arise on a planet completely covered in water? - Can a tardigrade survive on Mars? - Why aren't prehistoric animals resurrected yet? - Can you engineer a seed to grow a house?

See the full Q&A video playlist: https://wolfr.am/youtube-sw-qa

Stephen Wolfram Q&A, Can Sci-Fi be Real: Episode 1 Sep 08, 2020

Show notes

Stephen Wolfram answers audience questions about science fiction concepts as part of an unscripted livestream series.

Questions include: Could our pets become intelligent enough to take over the world? - What would faster-than-light travel look like (visually)? - How could we make a force field? - Does your physics model allow me to build a warp drive? -
Are there any practical 'exploits' that you think may be possible as a result of your model? -
Do you think an organism living through its whole evolution in 3D space can survive entering a higher dimensional area? - How can we use dark matter to accelerate the expansion of the universe and/or stretch space like inside the TARDIS? - Is simulated consciousness the logical endpoint for humanity as a whole? - Would it be possible for an intelligent species to create the conditions of a new universe?

See the full Q&A video playlist: https://wolfr.am/youtube-sw-qa

Stephen Wolfram Q&A: How Does the Internet Work? Aug 10, 2020

Show notes

Stephen Wolfram answers audience questions about science and technology as part of an unscripted livestream series.

Questions include: How can you connect to the internet without wifi? How does 5G technology work?

See the full Q&A video playlist: https://wolfr.am/youtube-sw-qa

Stephen Wolfram Q&A: How Do Computers Work? Aug 10, 2020

Show notes

Stephen Wolfram answers audience questions about science and technology as part of an unscripted livestream series.

Questions include: Should we teach kids how computers work? How does a computer work inside?

See the full Q&A video playlist: https://wolfr.am/youtube-sw-qa

Stephen Wolfram Q&A: Can Intelligence be Quantified? Aug 07, 2020

Show notes

Stephen Wolfram answers audience questions about science and technology as part of an unscripted livestream series.

Questions include: Can intelligence be quantified? What is the correspondence between intelligence and comprehension? How effectively can we communicate with animals?

See the full Q&A video playlist: https://wolfr.am/youtube-sw-qa

Stephen Wolfram Q&A, Education & Career: Episode 2 Jul 22, 2020

Show notes

Stephen Wolfram answers audience questions about education and careers as part of an unscripted livestream series.

Questions include:
What careers would you recommend for an engineer? - What's your take on specialization vs generalization? - What physical experiments do you recommend for kids? - What role did you play in your kids' education? - Can you recommend any fun projects for a starting programmer?

See the full Q&A video playlist: https://wolfr.am/youtube-sw-qa

Stephen Wolfram Q&A, Education & Career: Episode 1 Jul 22, 2020

Show notes

Stephen Wolfram answers audience questions about education and careers as part of an unscripted livestream series.

Questions include: Does the increased use of computational languages make us forget the basics of math? - How do you recommend students with a solid calculus background to learn physics and mathematics? - Why do many old technical institutions use manual calculation rather than modern computational tools? - What book behind you has had the most impact on you and your peers? - How can one improve their mathematical and scientific thinking? - Do you have a suggestion for someone who finds math fascinating but has difficulty with homework and tests? - How can someone be good at one kind of math/programming and bad at another?

See the full Q&A video playlist: https://wolfr.am/youtube-sw-qa

Stephen Wolfram Q&A, Mathematics & Computation: Episode 2 Jul 16, 2020

Show notes

Stephen Wolfram answers audience questions about mathematics and computation as part of an unscripted livestream series.

Questions include: What is the most curious property of prime numbers? How far are we from building self-replicating Von Neumann machines? How do online advertisers know what I want?

See the full Q&A video playlist: https://wolfr.am/youtube-sw-qa

Stephen Wolfram Q&A, Mathematics & Computation: Episode 1 Jul 16, 2020

Show notes

Stephen Wolfram answers audience questions about mathematics and computation as part of an unscripted livestream series.

Questions include: Is there anything you'd add to or subtract from A New Kind of Science? How feasible is it to create a computational model of a biological organism? Why do many old technical institutions use manual calculation rather than modern computational tools? How do you prove that 1+1=2? Can we do computation not based on silicon technology? What really is computation?

See the full Q&A video playlist: https://wolfr.am/youtube-sw-qa