Cool Worlds

The Question That Keeps Me Awake At Night

Cool Worlds

Show Notes

The most fundamental question we can ever ask: Why is something rather than nothing? Not nothing as in no particles or no energy, but nothing as in no space, no time, no laws of physics at all. This is a question that has haunted me for years and today this deepest of questions.Written and presented by Prof David Kipping, edited by Jorge Casas.→ Support our research program: https://www.coolworldslab.com/support→ Get Stash here! https://teespring.com/stores/cool-worlds-store [themed T-shirt for the video is here: https://cool-worlds-store.creator-spring.com/listing/why-is-there-anything]THANK-YOU to our supporters D. Smith, M. Sloan, C. Bottaccini, D. Daughaday, A. Jones, S. Brownlee, N. Kildal, Z. Star, E. West, T. Zajonc, C. Wolfred, L. Skov, G. Benson, A. De Vaal, M. Elliott, B. Daniluk, M. Forbes, S. Vystoropskyi, S. Lee, Z. Danielson, C. Fitzgerald, C. Souter, M. Gillette, T. Jeffcoat, J. Rockett, D. Murphree, S. Hannum, T. Donkin, K. Myers, A. Schoen, K. Dabrowski, J. Black, R. Ramezankhani, J. Armstrong, K. Weber, S. Marks, L. Robinson, S. Roulier, B. Smith, G. Canterbury, J. Cassese, J. Kruger, S. Way, P. Finch, S. Applegate, L. Watson, E. Zahnle, N. Gebben, J. Bergman, E. Dessoi, J. Alexander, C. Macdonald, M. Hedlund, P. Kaup, C. Hays, W. Evans, D. Bansal, J. Curtin, J. Sturm, RAND Corp., M. Donovan, N. Corwin, M. Mangione, K. Howard, L. Deacon, G. Metts, G. Genova, R. Provost, B. Sigurjonsson, G. Fullwood, B. Walford, J. Boyd, N. De Haan, J. Gillmer, R. Williams, E. Garland, A. Leishman, A. Phan Le, R. Lovely, M. Spoto, A. Steele, M. Varenka, K. Yarbrough, A. Cornejo, D. Compos, F. Demopoulos, G. Bylinsky & J. Werner.::Music::Music licensed by SoundStripe.com (SS) [shorturl.at/ptBHI], Artlist.io, via Creative Commons (CC) Attribution License (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), or with permission from the artist► 00:00 Hill - The Great Alchemist [https://open.spotify.com/track/3PAx36jIsKiQMT9CQsRk4G?si=035fc819505445a1]► 04:28 Falls - Ripley► 08:11 Joachim Heinrich - Stjärna► 09:49 Hill - Evening Approaches [https://open.spotify.com/track/3mYMEDKgj4qwBkuwcXeb89]► 11:18 Hill - Fragmented [https://open.spotify.com/track/1z9xpNXpQmbXYd9M8dcJhE]► 13:49 Hill - A Slowly Lifting Fog [https://open.spotify.com/track/0GgkyL3y22kFslT6wUsKlt]► 16:57 Joachim Heinrich - Y::Chapters::00:00 Restless Nights02:35 Candle in the Dark09:25 Ontological Crises10:35 Why Not Nothing?13:19 A Brutal Possibility16:59 A Personal Reflection#WhyIsThereAnything #WhyNotNothing #CoolWorlds Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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Oct 23, 2026

Some startling discoveries from JWST and now Euclid and shaking up our ideas of planet formation and evolution - free floating worlds that really tax our current theories and could be just the tip of the iceberg. Join us today as we explore a "jumbo" mystery that's recently emerged in astronomy...Written & presented by Prof. David Kipping.→ Support our research: https://www.coolworldslab.com/support→ Get merch: https://teespring.com/stores/cool-worlds-store→ Check out our podcast: www.youtube.com/@CoolWorldsPodcastTHANK-YOU to T. Widdowson, D. Smith, L. Sanborn, C. Bottaccini, D. Daughaday, S. Brownlee, E. West, T. Zajonc, A. De Vaal, M. Elliott, B. Daniluk, S. Vystoropskyi, S. Lee, Z. Danielson, C. Fitzgerald, C. Souter, M. Gillette, T. Jeffcoat, J. Rockett, D. Murphree, M. Sanford, T. Donkin, A. Schoen, K. Dabrowski, R. Ramezankhani, J. Armstrong, S. Marks, B. Smith, J. Kruger, S. Applegate, E. Zahnle, N. Gebben, J. Bergman, C. Macdonald, M. Hedlund, P. Kaup, W. Evans, RAND Corp., N. Corwin, K. Howard, G. Metts, R. Provost, G. Fullwood, N. De Haan, R. Williams, E. Garland, R. Lovely, A. Cornejo, D. Compos, F. Demopoulos, G. Bylinsky, J. Werner, S. Thayer, T. Edris, F. Blood, M. O'Brien, D. Lee, J. Sargent, M. Czirr, F. Krotzer, I. Williams, J. Sattler, B. Reese, O. Shabtay, X. Yao, S. Saverys, A. Nimmerjahn, C. Seay, D. Johnson, L. Cunningham, M. Morrow, M. Campbell, B. Devermont, Y. Muheim, A. Stark, C. Caminero & P. Borisoff.REFERENCES► McCaughrean, M. J. & Pearson, S. G. 2023, "A JWST survey of the Trapezium Cluster & inner Orion Nebula. I. Observations & overview": https://arxiv.org/abs/2310.03552► Pearson, S. G. & McCaughrean, M. J. 2023, "Jupiter Mass Binary Objects in the Trapezium Cluster": https://arxiv.org/abs/2310.01231► Wang, Y., Perna, R., Zhu, Z. 2024, "Floating binary planets from ejections during close stellar encounters", https://arxiv.org/abs/2310.06016► Zwart, S. P. & Hochart, E. 2023, "The origin and evolution of wide Jupiter Mass Binary Objects in young stellar clusters": https://arxiv.org/abs/2312.04645MUSICLicensed by SoundStripe.com (SS) [shorturl.at/ptBHI], Artlist.io, via CC Attribution License (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/) or with permission from the artist.0:00 Hill - There is but One Good [https://open.spotify.com/track/1vlxAsmQaHJo1HyvYJF770]3:39 Falls - Life in Binary5:10 Hill - Circle10:13 Chris Zabriskie - The Sun is Scheduled to Come Out Tomorrow13:23 Indive - Trace CorrectionCHAPTERS0:00 Free Floating Planets3:39 YT Premium5:10 Seeking Rogue Worlds7:12 A Binary Headache13:23 Outro & Credits#Astronomy #JWST #CoolWorlds Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Oct 23, 2026

Quantum entanglement allows particles to affect one another faster than the speed of light. So does this mean we could one day build a device to exploit this and enable superluminal communication? A popular trope in sci-fi for sure, but today let's look at the science.Presented by Prof David Kipping (Columbia). Special thanks to Prof. Ehud Altman (Berkeley), Prof Tim Byrnes (NYU) & Prof. Raquel Queiroz (Columbia) for fact checking our script.→ Support our research program: https://www.coolworldslab.com/support→ Get Stash here! https://teespring.com/stores/cool-worlds-storeTHANK-YOU to our supporters D. Smith, M. Sloan, C. Bottaccini, D. Daughaday, A. Jones, S. Brownlee, N. Kildal, Z. Star, E. West, T. Zajonc, C. Wolfred, L. Skov, G. Benson, A. De Vaal, M. Elliott, B. Daniluk, M. Forbes, S. Vystoropskyi, S. Lee, Z. Danielson, C. Fitzgerald, C. Souter, M. Gillette, T. Jeffcoat, H. Jensen, J. Rockett, N. Fredrickson, D. Holland, E. Hanway, D. Murphree, S. Hannum, T. Donkin, K. Myers, A. Schoen, K. Dabrowski, J. Black, R. Ramezankhani, J. Armstrong, K. Weber, S. Marks, L. Robinson, F. Van Exter, S. Roulier, B. Smith, P. Masterson, R. Sievers, G. Canterbury, J. Kill, J. Cassese, J. Kruger, S. Way, P. Finch, S. Applegate, L. Watson, T. Wheeler, E. Zahnle, N. Gebben, J. Bergman, E. Dessoi, J. Alexander, C. Macdonald, M. Hedlund, P. Kaup, C. Hays, S. Krasner, W. Evans, D. Bansal, J. Curtin, J. Sturm, RAND Corp., I. Attard, M. Donovan, N. Corwin, M. Mangione, K. Howard, L. Deacon, G. Metts, G. Genova, R. Provost, B. Sigurjonsson, G. Fullwood, T. Mitchum, B. Walford, J. Boyd, J. Quayle, & N. De Haan.::References::► Gisin (2014), "Quantum measurement of spins and magnets, and the classical limit of PR-boxes", : https://arxiv.org/abs/1407.8122► Pawlowski et al. (2009), "Information causality as a physical principle", Nature, 461, 1101: https://arxiv.org/abs/0905.2292► Einstein et al. (1935), "Can Quantum-Mechanical Description of Physical Reality Be Considered Complete?", PhysRev, 47, 777: https://journals.aps.org/pr/abstract/10.1103/PhysRev.47.777► Salart et al. (208), "Testing spooky action at a distance", Nature, 454, 861: https://arxiv.org/abs/0808.3316::Further video resources::► "Why You Can't Use Quantum Mechanics to Communicate Faster Than Light?" by Looking Glass Universe https://youtu.be/0xI2oNEc1Sw► "The puzzling tension between faster-than-light communication and quantum mechanics" by NYU Quantum Technology Lab: https://youtu.be/5tlSkdzIi_c::Music::Music licensed by SoundStripe.com (SS) [shorturl.at/ptBHI], or via Creative Commons (CC) Attribution License (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), or with permission from the artist► Brad Hill - When Darkness is No Longer Dark (0:00) [https://open.spotify.com/track/2hU8LyGpcdB4h0HW05PMxb]► Chris Zabriskie - Cylinder Five (2:09)► Falls - Life in Binary (5:09)► Falls - Ripley (10:05)► Chris Zabriskie - Cylinder Four (13:24)► Brad Hill - There Is but One Good (16:10) [https://open.spotify.com/album/4pmiXcyRpPlFjWjb45pYLx0]► Chris Zabriskie - The Sun Is Scheduled To Come Out Again Tomorrow (22:20)► Brad Hill - At Sunrise (25:33) [https://open.spotify.com/album/3l3efyjYt1QK6dZtzGplPW]► Indive - Trace Correction (28:11)::Film/TV clips used::► Moonfall (Lionsgate)► Passengers (Sony Pictures Releasing)► Mankind: The Story of All of Us (History Channel) ► Foundation (Apple Inc.)► Interstellar (Paramount Pictures) ► Contact (Warner Bros.) ► Arrival (Paramount Pictures)► Back to the Future (Universal Pictures)► Avatar (20th Century Fox)► Mass Effect 2 (Bioware)► The Matrix (Warner Bros.)► Star Trek: The Next Generation (Paramount Television)► Star Wars: the Last Jedi (Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures)► Genius (National Geographic) ► Star Trek (Paramount Television) ► Star Trek: The Motion Picture (Paramount Pictures) ::Chapters:: Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Oct 23, 2026

It's time to take a break for a few weeks but before we do, here's a look ahead at what research we'll be getting up to in 2017! Many of us are heading to the American Astronomical Meeting in Grapevine, TX, so be sure to say hello if you'll be there. Thanks to everyone for tuning in and supporting our channel in 2016!::More about this Video::► 229th Meeting of the American Astronomical Society: https://aas.org/meetings/aas229► Proxima b Transit Results video: https://youtu.be/fLPZiCZtr_k► Machines Predict Exoplanets video: https://youtu.be/6xxt9ke8uYo► Outro music by Taylor Davis: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dl9kI1yQKZk::Playlists For Channel::Latest Cool Worlds Videos ► http://bit.ly/NewCoolWorldsCool Worlds Research ► http://bit.ly/CoolWorldsResearchGuest Videos ► http://bit.ly/CoolWorldsGuestsQ&A Videos ► http://bit.ly/CoolWorldsQAScience of TV/Film ► http://bit.ly/ScienceMovies::Follow us::SUBSCRIBE to the channel http://bit.ly/CoolWorldsSubscribeCool Worlds Lab http://coolworlds.astro.columbia.eduTwitter https://twitter.com/david_kippingInstagram https://www.instagram.com/cool.worldsTHANKS FOR WATCHING!! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Oct 23, 2026

Get ready! On August 21st 2017, Americans will be treated to a rare total Solar eclipse. From coast to coast, everyone in the US should be able to see at least a partial eclipse and be within a day's drive of catching the total eclipse. Here's a quick rundown of what to expect, where to go and how to plan your trip.::More about this Video::► The web app you can use to plan your trip (as shown in the video) is available at www.GreatAmericanEclipse.com► NASA's page on the upcoming eclipse: http://eclipse.gsfc.nasa.gov/SEgoogle/SEgoogle2001/SE2017Aug21Tgoogle.html► Where to buy your glasses from: https://www.greatamericaneclipse.com/store/ and http://www.eclipse2017.org/glasses_order.htm► Outro music by Taylor Davis: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dl9kI1yQKZk::Playlists For Channel::Latest Cool Worlds Videos ► http://bit.ly/NewCoolWorldsCool Worlds Research ► http://bit.ly/CoolWorldsResearchGuest Videos ► http://bit.ly/CoolWorldsGuestsQ&A Videos ► http://bit.ly/CoolWorldsQAScience of TV/Film ► http://bit.ly/ScienceMovies::Follow us::SUBSCRIBE to the channel http://bit.ly/CoolWorldsSubscribeCool Worlds Lab http://coolworlds.astro.columbia.eduTwitter https://twitter.com/david_kippingInstagram https://www.instagram.com/cool.worldsTHANKS FOR WATCHING!! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Oct 23, 2026

NYU Professor of Physics, David Grier, dropped in to tell us about his team's amazing work building the world's first real life tractor beam. Just like Star Trek, he explains how their light beam pulls things toward it, how it works and how it could soon be used by NASA.::More about this Video::► Prof David Grier's homepage: http://physics.nyu.edu/grierlab/► "Building Star Trek", Smithsonian Channel: http://www.smithsonianchannel.com/shows/building-star-trek/0/3436402► Outro music by Taylor Davis: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dl9kI1yQKZk::Playlists For Channel::Latest Cool Worlds Videos ► http://bit.ly/NewCoolWorldsCool Worlds Research ► http://bit.ly/CoolWorldsResearchGuest Videos ► http://bit.ly/CoolWorldsGuestsQ&A Videos ► http://bit.ly/CoolWorldsQAScience of TV/Film ► http://bit.ly/ScienceMovies::Follow us::SUBSCRIBE to the channel http://bit.ly/CoolWorldsSubscribeCool Worlds Lab http://coolworlds.astro.columbia.eduTwitter https://twitter.com/david_kippingInstagram https://www.instagram.com/cool.worldsTHANKS FOR WATCHING!! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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