Cosmic Queries – The Deep Part II

About This Episode

On this episode of StarTalk Radio, Neil deGrasse Tyson and comic co-host Chuck Nice are back exploring the depths of the cosmos in a follow-up to Cosmic Queries – The Deep. In this second part, we get even deeper and go even further into the mysteries of the universe. 

We start with the age-old question: which came first, the chicken or the egg? Neil gives us the definitive answer. But then we expand the question even further. Which came first: space itself or the Big Bang? This inspires Chuck to come up with a word to describe “something that is nothing”. You’ll hear about the history of the multiverse theory. Neil tells us why Einstein’s general theory of relativity and quantum mechanics don’t “get along”. 

We explore the rules of quantum mechanics. Find out if light itself can get spaghettified at the event horizon of a black hole. We discuss a simulation universe. And, if we are in a simulation universe, how would you explain the weather? Discover why everything in the universe is sphere-shaped and curvy. We ponder if the Big Bang created life itself. Neil explains why we shouldn’t look for life near stars and on planets that were around towards the beginning of the universe. 

We discuss dark matter. Neil gives us his thoughts on why it should be renamed to dark gravity. You’ll also hear why dark matter is still the longest unsolved mystery in modern astrophysics. We explore the nature of sunlight and how it travels to the Earth, the Moon, and how it interacts with both. All that, plus, find out why time stops at the speed of light. 

Thanks to this week’s Patrons for supporting us: Ryan MacNeil, Mark Medina, Dan Wuduku Mayn Kennedy, Keelia Silvis, Shane A McDaniel.

NOTE: StarTalk+ Patrons and All-Access subscribers can watch or listen to this entire episode commercial-free.