Cosmic Queries – The Fractal Universe with Charles Liu

About This Episode

Do the fractal nature of the universe and the human brain have anything to do with each other? Neil deGrasse Tyson and co-hosts Chuck Nice and Gary O’Reilly welcome back Geek-In-Chief Charles Liu, for a grab bag covering deep space travel, fractal mathematics, multiverse theory, and what we might never know about the universe.

Is space exploration just a massive energy problem and would infinite energy even solve it? We discuss the bottlenecks of deep space travel and whether having something like Iron Man’s arc reactor would help. We discuss making generational spaceships, robotic exploration, and a daisy-chain network of probes to send signals back to Earth. We explore the Fermi Paradox and if infinite energy makes interstellar travel possible, why haven’t we seen evidence of civilizations that figured it out? Are they hiding their tracks, following something like the Prime Directive, or exploring somewhere we’re not looking?

The cosmic web and the brain’s neural network share similarities but does that mean they are actually connected? Charles explains how both structures are fractal without being the same fractal, and what that says about the universality of mathematics. Is there something fundamental about how complexity emerges from simple rules in nature? Could this fractal commonality offer a bridge between relativity and quantum mechanics? Do fractals being common in nature support simulation theory?

Could the multiverse be a product of apophenia, humans seeing patterns where none exist? Charles unpacks the many-worlds interpretation of quantum mechanics, why the equations are open-ended rather than pattern-suggestive, and what the Planck length represents as the ultimate perimeter of scientific ignorance. How fast can a pulsar spin before the laws of physics intervene? Could aliens have seeded life across an expanding universe? How do we know galaxies are embedded in stretching spacetime rather than just moving through it? Plus, could civilizations born too late in cosmic history might develop a fundamentally wrong picture of the universe?

Thanks to our Patrons Mike Allen, Hailey Thorn, Daniel, Kyle Jones, Halloween Jack, Chris McDermott, AmberDawn, Jesabi Lornkapi, John Olsson, 🔭reality smacks!, Sam Paterson, Calder DeFord, Heerat Singh, Dylan Ledford, Xander Soren, Victoria S, Christoffer R Hansen, Montreaux Rodgers, Chris from VA, Scott Stroud, H, Prince, Samuel, Heidi Jim, Benjamin Ruso, Jason Sturgeon, Lonny Trestrail, Susan Levaque, Willy Croezen, Luke Stancs, Clare Bear, Alan Davis, Anthony Ware, Alejandro Pedraza, Monday Olives, Hal Garland, Ralts, Vaughan Hall, Cynthia, Darrel Wallace, Bryan Marks, Tsveta Bahchevanska, Steven Webber, North.T, Tyler O’Brien, Bob, Larry Prosser, Sean Mueller, LilBopper, Bender, n1ck_knack, Hisui Hyena, and Lou Taylor for supporting us this week.

NOTE: StarTalk+ Patrons can listen to this entire episode commercial-free.