#246 – Peter Woit: Theories of Everything and Why String Theory is Not Even Wrong

Peter Woit is a theoretical physicist, mathematician, critic of string theory, and author of the popular science blog Not Even Wrong. Please support this podcast by checking out our sponsors: – The Prisoner Wine Company : https://theprisonerwine.com/lex to get 20% off & free shipping – Linode : https://linode.com/lex to get $100 free credit – Sunbasket : https://sunbasket.com/lex and use code LEX to get $35 off – BetterHelp : https://betterhelp.com/lex to get 10% off – SimpliSafe : https://simplisafe.com/lex and use code LEX to get a free security camera EPISODE LINKS: Peter’s website: http://www.math.columbia.edu/~woit/ Peter’s blog: https://bit.ly/3xCwm9F Not Even Wrong (book): https://amzn.to/3peDzZs Quantum Theory, Groups, and Representations (book): https://amzn.to/316iAjf Love and Math (book): https://amzn.to/3If7B8m The Second Creation (book): https://amzn.to/3rlWzIu PODCAST INFO: Podcast website: https://lexfridman.com/podcast Apple Podcasts: https://apple.co/2lwqZIr Spotify: https://spoti.fi/2nEwCF8 RSS: https://lexfridman.com/feed/podcast/ YouTube Full Episodes: https://youtube.com/lexfridman YouTube Clips: https://youtube.com/lexclips SUPPORT & CONNECT: – Check out the sponsors above, it’s the best way to support this podcast – Support on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/lexfridman – Twitter: https://twitter.com/lexfridman – Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lexfridman – LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lexfridman – Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/lexfridman – Medium: https://medium.com/@lexfridman OUTLINE: Here’s the timestamps for the episode. On some podcast players you should be able to click the timestamp to jump to that time. (00:00) – Introduction (07:22) – Physics vs mathematics (21:51) – Beauty of mathematics (43:42) – String theory (1:12:15) – Theory of everything (1:32:23) – Twistor theory and spinors (1:48:50) – Nobel Prize likelihood for theory of everything (1:52:36) – Simulating physics (1:56:07) – Sci-Fi, aliens and space (2:05:19) – Responsibility of scientists