This book is based on an in-depth filmed conversation between Howard Burton and Paul Steinhardt, the Albert Einstein Professor of Science and Director of the Center for Theoretical Science at Princeton University. He is one of the originators of the theory of cosmic inflation and has become one of its fiercest critics. This fascinating conversation covers topics such as Paul Steinhardt’s scientific development, his formative experiences at Caltech including his encounters with Richard Feynman, his development and later scepticism of the theory of cosmic inflation, the response of the scientific community to the failure of this theory, his theory of cosmology, The Ekpyrotic Universe, and more.. This carefully-edited book includes an introduction, Not Even Wrong, and questions for discussion at the end of each chapter: I. Scientific Beginnings - Marie Curie, Richard Feynman, and finding one’s path II. Inflationary Excitement - A captivating talk and subsequent insights III. Progress, Tuned Appropriately - The Nuffield Workshop and its aftermath IV. Two Major Issues - The initial value problem and eternal inflation V. Cosmological Denial - Resolutely clinging to a good story VI. Bouncing Back? - Considering a key change About Ideas Roadshow Conversations Series: This book is part of an expanding series of 100+ Ideas Roadshow conversations, each one presenting a wealth of candid insights from a leading expert through a focused yet informal setting to give non-specialists a uniquely accessible window into frontline research and scholarship that wouldn't otherwise be encountered through standard lectures and textbooks. For other books in this series visit our website (https://ideas-on-film.com/ideasroadshow/).

This book is based on an in-depth filmed conversation between Howard Burton and Rocky Kolb, the Arthur Holly Compton Distinguished Service Professor of Astronomy and Astrophysics at the University of Chicago. After an inspiring story of how Rocky Kolb became interested in science, this wide-ranging conversation covers topics such as the development of and his work on inflationary cosmology, the Standard Model of particle physics, dark matter, dark energy, Modified Newtonian Dynamics (MOND), the Large Hadron Collider, advice for high-school teachers to ignite a passion for learning in students, and more. This carefully-edited book includes an introduction, The Passion Principle, and questions for discussion at the end of each chapter: I. Cool Beginnings - From the local library to Caltech II. Cosmic Inflation - Alan Guth causes a stir III. Dark Matter - Finally recognized ignorance IV. Dark Energy - Particularly hard to swallow V. Motivational Insights - The importance of passion About Ideas Roadshow Conversations Series: This book is part of an expanding series of 100+ Ideas Roadshow conversations, each one presenting a wealth of candid insights from a leading expert through a focused yet informal setting to give non-specialists a uniquely accessible window into frontline research and scholarship that wouldn't otherwise be encountered through standard lectures and textbooks. For other books in this series visit our website (https://ideas-on-film.com/ideasroadshow/).

In the last twenty years, cosmology has unexpectedly emerged as one of the most exciting and dynamic fields of modern science. From astoundingly precise measurements of the cosmic microwave background to the ongoing mysteries of dark energy and dark matter, modern cosmology is unquestionably in the midst of its Golden Age. And yet, one of the most eminent mathematical physicists of our age, Roger Penrose is convinced that there is one fundamental problem that is consistently being overlooked: why did our universe begin in such a particular state of extremely low entropy? His Conformal Cyclic Cosmology (CCC) is an attempt to directly address that question. This extensive conversation between Howard Burton and Roger Penrose, co-recipient of the 2020 Nobel Prize in Physics and Emeritus Rouse Ball Professor of Mathematics at the Mathematical Institute at the University of Oxford, explores his motivation to come up with this theory in the first place and provides detailed insights into his groundbreaking research. This carefully-edited book includes an introduction, A Hidden Audience, and questions for discussion at the end of each chapter: I. Inadvertent Success - An inside look at a mysterious publishing phenomenon II. Considering Entropy - Minimum, maximum and both at the same time III. Mysteries and False Explanations - Dark issues and inflationary hyperbole IV. Conformal Geometry - Reinterpreting the end and the beginning V. CCC: The Basic Idea - Matching beginnings and ends, conformally VI. Light Cones - Photons vs. massive particles VII. Massive Headaches - And how we might make them disappear VIII. Necessary Conditions - Dark energy, dark matter and information loss in black holes IX. Cosmic Imprints? - Searching for evidence of past aeons X. Battling Onwards - Challenges of an irrepressibly independent thinker About Ideas Roadshow Conversations Series: This book is part of an expanding series of 100+ Ideas Roadshow conversations, each one presenting a wealth of candid insights from a leading expert through a focused yet informal setting to give non-specialists a uniquely accessible window into frontline research and scholarship that wouldn't otherwise be encountered through standard lectures and textbooks.

This book is based on an in-depth filmed conversation between Howard Burton and Nick Lane, Professor of Evolutionary Biochemistry at University College London and bestselling author. After an inspiring story of Nick Lane’s career path, this wide-ranging conversation covers his bioenergetic view of early, evolutionary history, the origin of life and how all complex life is composed of a very particular cell type that we all share, and more. This carefully-edited book includes an introduction, The Big Picture, and questions for discussion at the end of each chapter: I. A Long and Winding Road - Nick goes round the houses II. Structuring Energy - Cells, membranes and a counterintuitive mechanism III. Hydrothermal Vents - More than just chemistry IV. Simulational Challenges - Making your own hydrothermal vent V. Synoptic Justifications - Philosophers wanted VI. Becoming Complex - From prokaryotes to eukaryotes VII. Marvellous Mitochondria - Insights from a metabolic worldview VIII. Open Questions - From the origin of life to consciousness About Ideas Roadshow Conversations Series: This book is part of an expanding series of 100+ Ideas Roadshow conversations, each one presenting a wealth of candid insights from a leading expert through a focused yet informal setting to give non-specialists a uniquely accessible window into frontline research and scholarship that wouldn't otherwise be encountered through standard lectures and textbooks.

This book is based on an in-depth filmed conversation between Howard Burton and Lee Smolin who is a faculty member of Perimeter Institute for Theoretical Physics. The basis of this wide-ranging conversation are Lee Smolin’s books Life of the Cosmos and Time Reborn. This detailed discussion offers an investigation of time, both what it is and how the true nature of it impacts our world and future and provides behind-the scenes insights into the development of Lee Smolin’s groundbreaking theory on the nature of time. This carefully-edited book includes an introduction, Full Circle, and questions for discussion at the end of each chapter: I. Physics via Architecture - The power of Einstein II. Justifying the Laws - Two possibilities III. Collaboration - Physics meets politics IV. Rolling Up Our Sleeves - Towards overcoming tautologies V. Cosmological Natural Selection - Evolutionary details VI. The Meta-law Dilemma - Harder and harder VII. Scientific Impact - Implications, applications and responses VIII. Making A Difference - The heart of the matter About Ideas Roadshow Conversations: This book is part of an expanding series of 100+ Ideas Roadshow conversations, each one presenting a wealth of candid insights from a leading expert through a focused yet informal setting to give non-specialists a uniquely accessible window into frontline research and scholarship that wouldn't otherwise be encountered through standard lectures and textbooks.

Conversations About Astrophysics & Cosmology include the following 5 carefully-edited Ideas Roadshow conversations featuring world-leading physicists with a detailed preface highlighting the connections between the different books: I. Cosmological Conundrums - A conversation with Justin Khoury, Professor of Physics at the University of Pennsylvania. II. Astrophysical Wonders - A conversation with Scott Tremaine, Professor Emeritus of Astrophysics at the Institute for Advanced Study. III. A Universe Of Particles: Cosmological Reflections - A conversation with Rocky Kolb, the Arthur Holly Compton Distinguished Service Professor of Astronomy and Astrophysics at the University of Chicago. IV. Inflated Expectations: A Cosmological Tale - A conversation with Paul Steinhardt, the Albert Einstein Professor of Science and Director of the Center for Theoretical Science at Princeton University. V. The Cyclic Universe - A conversation with Roger Penrose, co-recipient of the 2020 Nobel Prize in Physics and Emeritus Rouse Ball Professor of Mathematics at the Mathematical Institute at the University of Oxford. Ideas Roadshow award-winning conversations present a wealth of candid insights from some of the world's leading experts, generated through a focused yet informal setting. Combining accessibility, substance and spontaneity, they are explicitly designed to give non-specialists a unique window into frontline research and scholarship that wouldn't otherwise be experienced through standard lectures and textbooks.

Conversations About Physics, Volume 1, includes the following 5 carefully-edited Ideas Roadshow Conversations featuring leading physicists. This collection includes a detailed preface highlighting the connections between the different books. Each book is broken into chapters with a detailed introduction and questions for discussion at the end of each chapter: 1.The Power of Principles: Physics Revealed - A Conversation with Nima Arkani-Hamed, faculty member at the renowned Institute for Advanced Study in Princeton. Prof. Arkani-Hamed is one of today’s leading particle physicists. This extensive Ideas Roadshow conversation explores how we discover the laws of nature, the “scientific method”, the relation between theory and experiment and how we can push our understanding well beyond where experiments can currently reach. 2.Cryptoreality - A Conversation with Artur Ekert, Professor of Quantum Physics at the Mathematical Institute at the University of Oxford and Director of the Centre for Quantum Technologies and Lee Kong Chian Centennial Professor at the National University of Singapore. Artur Ekert is one of the pioneers of quantum cryptography. This wide-ranging conversation provides detailed insights into his research and covers many fascinating topics such as mathematical and physical intuition, a detailed history of cryptography from antiquity to the present day and how it works in practice, the development of quantum information science, the nature of reality, and more. 3.The Problems of Physics, Reconsidered - A Conversation with Physics Nobel Laureate Tony Leggett, University of Illinois. The basis of this conversation is Tony Leggett’s book The Problems of Physics and further explores the insightful plain-speaking itemization that he developed of the physics landscape according to four basic categories—the very small (particle physics), the very large (cosmology), the very complex (condensed matter physics) and the very unclear (foundations of quantum theory)—while providing a thoughtful follow-up analysis from a contemporary perspective to assess how much progress we’ve made and which mysteries remain or have come on the scene since the book was published. 4.The Physics of Banjos - A Conversation with David Politzer, 2004 Nobel Laureate and the Richard Chace Tolman Professor of Theoretical Physics at Caltech. This extensive conversation examines many of the intriguing aspects associated with the physics of banjos, including the ocarina effect, string-stretching, the subtleties of how we hear pitch, transient growth, and the mysterious ringing sound of banjos; while also touching briefly on contemporary issues in black holes and particle physics. 5. Indiana Steinhardt and the Quest for Quasicrystals - A Conversation with Paul Steinhardt, the Albert Einstein Professor of Science and Director of the Center for Theoretical Science at Princeton University. This extensive conversation provides a comprehensive account of a marvellous scientific adventure story in the quest for a natural quasicrystal. The reader will be taken on a fascinating ride through the physics of materials, from theory, to the laboratory, to the discovery of a new state of matter, that culminated in Paul Steinhardt’s dramatic Siberian expedition. Paul Steinhardt talks about his encounters with mineral smugglers, secret diaries and quasi-mythical characters during his “Indiana Jones” expedition from Florence to Israel, Amsterdam to California, Princeton to Kamchatka which led him to find quasicrystals that are quite literally out of this world… Howard Burton is the founder and host of all Ideas Roadshow Conversations and was the Founding Executive Director of Perimeter Institute for Theoretical Physics. He holds a PhD in theoretical physics and an MA in philosophy.