Into the Impossible With Brian Keating

Please join my mailing list here 👉 https://briankeating.com/yt to win a meteorite 💥 From the electrifying environment of high-speed particle collisions to the challenge of sifting signals from heaps of experimental noise, you'll hear how Prof Whiteson and his team are pushing boundaries. They discuss bold new algorithms capable of spotting non-standard tracks—think wild trajectories that defy classical expectations and could reveal surprises nature has kept hidden. Practical questions about detector design, efficiency, and even the mathematics of “smooth” particle paths make for a rich, dynamic dialogue. If you’re curious about how physicists ask the universe its most challenging questions, the frustrations and breakthroughs of innovation, and the fascinating interplay between theory and experiment, this episode will take you to the front lines of discovery. Plus, hear how machine learning might help us find not just the next weird particle, but perhaps the next Nobel-worthy revelation. Get ready for a fascinating journey into the impossible! Daniel Whiteson is a physicist whose research spans a wide range of topics at UC Irvine. By day, he works on the ATLAS experiment, one of the major physics collaborations at the Large Hadron Collider, where he contributes to Higgs boson precision measurements and develops advanced techniques in machine learning, data acquisition, and trigger systems. His research group is known for applying machine learning innovations to physics problems, including projects beyond ATLAS—like using approximate symmetries or jet pattern matching. Recently, his team has been focused on machine learning projects to identify unusual particle tracks, always pushing the frontier between physics and data science. Timestamps: 00:00 Revisiting Discovery with New Tools 04:43 Particle Tracking Constraints Explained 06:56 Challenges in Non-Helical Track Detection 10:29 Non-Helical Tracks and Dark QCD 14:38 "Track Reconstruction and Efficiency" 18:43 Quirk Detection and Reconstruction" 23:27 Testing Generalization Beyond Memorization 25:23 Quirk Tracks and Overlap Analysis 30:36 "Smooth Paths and Signal Control" 31:17 "Training Pipeline on Weird Tracks" 35:55 Filtering Standard Model Tracks 38:24 "Challenges in Parameter Optimization" 43:15 "Neural Networks Learn Complex Mappings" 44:38 "Machine Learning for Track Detection" - Join this channel to get access to perks like monthly Office Hours: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCmXH_moPhfkqCk6S3b9RWuw/join 📚 Get my books: Think Like a Nobel Prize Winner, with productivity tips from 9 Nobel Prize winners: https://a.co/d/03ezQFu Focus Like a Nobel Prize Winner, with life-changing interviews with 9 Nobel Prizewinners: https://a.co/d/hi50U9U My tell-all cosmic memoir Losing the Nobel Prize: http://amzn.to/2sa5UpA The first-ever audiobook from Galileo: Dialogue Concerning the Two Chief World Systems: Ptolemaic and Copernican https://a.co/d/iZPi9Un Follow me to ask questions of my guests: 🏄‍♂️ Twitter: https://twitter.com/DrBrianKeating 🔔 Subscribe https://www.youtube.com/DrBrianKeating?sub_confirmation=1 📝 Join my mailing list; just click here http://briankeating.com/list ✍️ Detailed Blog posts here: https://briankeating.com/blog 🎙️ Listen on audio-only platforms: https://briankeating.com/podcast #universe #podcast #briankeating #intotheimpossible #science #astronomy #cosmology #cosmicmicrowavebackground #intotheimpossible #briankeating Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Brian Keating sits down with Matt Gray for a wide-ranging, thoughtful, and entertaining conversation that explores the intersection of cosmology, philosophy, and mysticism. Together, they tackle some of the universe’s biggest mysteries—from the origins of the cosmos and the mechanics of the Big Bang, to the challenges and philosophy behind scientific discovery. Timestamps: 00:00 "Science, Nobel Near-Miss, and Humor" 07:26 "Passion for Science and Sharing" 12:00 "Chasing a Nobel-Worthy Discovery" 20:42 Limits of Scientific Falsifiability 22:18 "Origins and Concepts of Cosmology" 32:28 "Galileo, Einstein, and Scientific Progress" 34:16 "Nobel Prizes and Collaboration Challenges" 38:58 "Galactic Dust and Panspermia" 48:15 Agnostic vs. Atheist Questioning 51:44 John Lennox: Faith, Science, and Scripture 58:35 Equations, God, and Belief Dynamics 01:03:12 Belief Nuances and Perspectives 01:06:07 Maxwell's Ether and Light Waves - Join this channel to get access to perks like monthly Office Hours: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCmXH_moPhfkqCk6S3b9RWuw/join 📚 Get my books: Think Like a Nobel Prize Winner, with productivity tips from 9 Nobel Prize winners: https://a.co/d/03ezQFu Focus Like a Nobel Prize Winner, with life-changing interviews with 9 Nobel Prizewinners: https://a.co/d/hi50U9U My tell-all cosmic memoir Losing the Nobel Prize: http://amzn.to/2sa5UpA The first-ever audiobook from Galileo: Dialogue Concerning the Two Chief World Systems: Ptolemaic and Copernican https://a.co/d/iZPi9Un Follow me to ask questions of my guests: 🏄‍♂️ Twitter: https://twitter.com/DrBrianKeating 🔔 Subscribe https://www.youtube.com/DrBrianKeating?sub_confirmation=1 📝 Join my mailing list; just click here http://briankeating.com/list ✍️ Detailed Blog posts here: https://briankeating.com/blog 🎙️ Listen on audio-only platforms: https://briankeating.com/podcast #universe #podcast #briankeating #intotheimpossible #science #astronomy #cosmology #cosmicmicrowavebackground #intotheimpossible #briankeating Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Please join my mailing list to get FREE notes and resources from this show, plus your chance to win a real meteorite: http://briankeating.com/yt Join us LIVE with Harvard astrophysicist Avi Loeb for the final verdict on the interstellar object 3I/ATLAS, the third confirmed visitor from beyond our solar system. We examine the newly proposed 14th anomaly: the remarkably rare alignment of 3I/ATLAS’s rotation axis within about 8 degrees of the sunward direction at distances greater than 5 AU, a configuration with a probability of less than about 0.5 percent if random. This alignment has major implications for how we interpret the object’s anti-tail jet geometry, rotational dynamics, and overall physical behavior, adding to a growing list of anomalies that strain standard cometary explanations. Whether you are interested in jets, rotation periods, anti-tail physics, or what these observations imply about natural versus technological origins, this livestream offers a rigorous, evidence-driven deep dive. We will lay out the data, compare competing interpretations, and ask the central question: is 3I/ATLAS simply an unusual comet, or something fundamentally different? - Run of Show 00:00 – 02:00 Intro and context: Discovery of 3I/ATLAS, orbital properties, and why it has drawn intense attention. 02:00 – 05:00 What is an interstellar object: Comparison with 1I/Oumuamua and 2I/Borisov. 05:00 – 10:00 Anomalies 1 through 5: Brief recap of the earliest reported oddities, including trajectory and activity. 10:00 – 15:00 Anti-tail observations and physics: Explanation of the sunward anti-tail and why it is unusual. 15:00 – 20:00 Rotation period and periodic behavior: Discussion of the roughly 15.5 to 16.2 hour signal and its interpretation. 20:00 – 25:00 Recap of the first 13 anomalies: How they are ranked by likelihood and what they suggest. 25:00 – 30:00 The 14th anomaly: rotation-axis alignment: Geometry, probability estimates, and why this feature stands out. 30:00 – 35:00 Possible mechanisms for axis alignment: Assessment of natural processes versus alternative explanations. 35:00 – 40:00 Jet collimation and structure: Why the sunward jet remains narrow and persistent. 40:00 – 45:00 Implications for outgassing models: Where standard cometary physics succeeds or fails. 45:00 – 50:00 Natural versus non-natural scenarios: Clear comparison of competing hypotheses. 50:00 – 55:00 Future observations and missions: What additional data could resolve the debate. 55:00 – 60:00 Audience Q and A: Live questions with Avi Loeb. 60:00 – 65:00 Wrap-up and final thoughts: Synthesis of the evidence and implications for future research. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Please join my mailing list here 👉 https://briankeating.com/yt to win a meteorite 💥 Pilgrimage mode: kilt on, chapeau secured, and I’m standing outside 14 India Street, Edinburgh — the birthplace of the physicist I’d nominate as the quiet GOAT: James Clerk Maxwell. In this solo vlog, I walk the neighbourhood where Maxwell grew up, try (and fail) to get into the small museum without a reservation, and connect the dots from Maxwell’s equations to the modern world: Wi-Fi, GPS, power grids, and yes… a Tesla charging across the street from his childhood home. CHAPTERS 00:00 Kilted pilgrimage begins 00:32 Maxwell’s Edinburgh origin story (and my museum plea) 01:27 Tesla charging across from Maxwell’s house 02:24 The prodigy years + Cambridge arc 03:00 Maxwell as “natural philosopher” + why he matters now 04:33 “Let there be light” (and what the equations really changed) 06:25 Ether, gears, and the bridge to modern physics Video & Edited by Sheikh Media Website: sheikh.media LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ahmadisapro/ This video contains commentary and criticism under Fair Use (17 U.S.C. §107). All third-party clips, articles, and documents are used for educational and critical purposes. Sources & Credits YouTube Clips: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iFZpkB3igC8&t=58s https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MNPwfQDrK5Q&t=42s https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sghTX3Zc1sE https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jh3EfcNzKjI&t=9s https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FWCN_uI5ygY&t=1s https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k6gd3bQLiFc https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H-vS2nVRGc8&t=46s https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k5Dh35gejuc&t=548s Articles & Documents: https://www.asa3.org/ASA/PSCF/2004/PSCF9-04McNatt.pdf https://www.bem.fi/library/1865-001.pdf https://www.fourmilab.ch/etexts/einstein/specrel/specrel.pdf Google Images and Wikipedia were used for general reference. AI Tools Used: VEO, Flow, Hygen, Seedance, Nano Bnana, and others for audio and visuals. Stock Footage & Media: All stock footage, audio, and images used from premium licensed accounts: Wondershare Filmora, Shutterstock, Epidemic Sounds, Canva, and Pexels. - Join this channel to get access to perks like monthly Office Hours: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCmXH_moPhfkqCk6S3b9RWuw/join 📚 Get my books: Think Like a Nobel Prize Winner, with productivity tips from 9 Nobel Prize winners: https://a.co/d/03ezQFu Focus Like a Nobel Prize Winner, with life-changing interviews with 9 Nobel Prizewinners: https://a.co/d/hi50U9U My tell-all cosmic memoir Losing the Nobel Prize: http://amzn.to/2sa5UpA The first-ever audiobook from Galileo: Dialogue Concerning the Two Chief World Systems: Ptolemaic and Copernican https://a.co/d/iZPi9Un Follow me to ask questions of my guests: 🏄‍♂️ Twitter: https://twitter.com/DrBrianKeating 🔔 Subscribe https://www.youtube.com/DrBrianKeating?sub_confirmation=1 📝 Join my mailing list; just click here http://briankeating.com/list ✍️ Detailed Blog posts here: https://briankeating.com/blog 🎙️ Listen on audio-only platforms: https://briankeating.com/podcast #universe #podcast #briankeating #intotheimpossible #science #astronomy #cosmology #cosmicmicrowavebackground #intotheimpossible #briankeating Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Please join my mailing list here 👉 https://briankeating.com/list to win a meteorite 💥 Sixty-six million years ago, a single asteroid ended the reign of the dinosaurs—and Govert Schilling says the next one could be headed for us. In this episode, we uncover the science of cosmic threats, extinction risks, and whether humanity stands a chance when the sky turns deadly. Key Takeaways: 00:00 Intro  00:33 Is Earth particularly sensitive to impacts? 03:24 The role of cosmic impacts in human existence  07:59 The closest Earth has come to total destruction  10:23 Asteroids vs. comets  18:28 Recent near misses 21:12 Could we stop an asteroid?  24:42 Panspermia  28:44 Was the extinction of dinosaurs inevitable? 35:18 How to protect the Earth from impacts  38:09 Existential risks and human responsibility  44:46 What Govert wishes for when he sees a shooting star  46:16 Outro Additional resources:  📚 Target Earth by Govert Schilling: https://a.co/5uCEmZi  ➡️ My new book: 📖 Into the Impossible Volume 2: Focus Like a Nobel Prize Winner: Lessons from Laureates to Concentrate Your Creativity and Ignite Your Career: ⁠⁠⁠https://a.co/d/hi50U9U⁠⁠⁠  ➡️ Follow me on your fav platforms: ✖️ Twitter:⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://twitter.com/DrBrianKeating⁠⁠⁠  🔔 YouTube:⁠⁠⁠ https://www.youtube.com/DrBrianKeating?sub_confirmation=1⁠⁠⁠  📝 Join my mailing list:⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://briankeating.com/list⁠⁠⁠  ✍️ Check out my blog:⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://briankeating.com/cosmic-musings/⁠⁠⁠  🎙️ Follow my podcast:⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://briankeating.com/podcast⁠⁠⁠  — Into the Impossible with Brian Keating is a podcast dedicated to all those who want to explore the universe within and beyond the known. Make sure to follow/subscribe so you never miss an episode! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices