#211 - Jim Al-Khalili - Reality Is An Illusion: Quantum Entanglement, Time & Dark Energy

Prof. Jim Al-Khalili is a theoretical physicist, author, and public broadcaster who holds a chair in physics at the University of Surrey. Known for his BBC documentaries and popular science books, including On Time and The World According to Physics, his work spans quantum mechanics, nuclear reaction theory, and the fundamental nature of space-time.  Jim and I discuss the divide between psychological "manifest time" and the laws of physics. Jim explains general relativity, gravitational time dilation, and the astrophysics behind Interstellar, before tackling the mathematical conflict between general relativity and quantum mechanics. Jim breaks down quantum entanglement, Bell’s Inequality, and competing models of reality-from the Copenhagen view to the Many-Worlds interpretation. Finally, we discuss how AI systems are formalizing complex mathematical theorems and processing deep-space data to decode dark matter and dark energy.- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -TIMESTAMPS:00:00:00 - Where Physics Breaks Down00:01:10 - I'm 47 And Thinking About Time00:03:45 - Is Time An Illusion?00:06:44 - Why Your Phone Proves Einstein Right00:07:47 - The Fifth Dimension In Interstellar00:09:46 - Carl Sagan And The Invention Of Wormholes00:12:36 - Is There A White Hole?00:15:07 - Was The Big Bang A White Hole?00:18:35 - Nobody Understands String Theory00:19:18 - Gravity Is Not A Force00:22:58 - Spooky Action At A Distance00:25:39 - They Proved Einstein Wrong00:27:56 - Nothing Exists Until You Measure It00:30:58 - Schrödinger's Cat00:36:40 - What I Want To Know Before I Die00:43:12 - Fermat's Last Theorem00:47:41 - What If You Pointed AI At Physics?00:54:23 - Borrowing Energy From The Vacuum00:57:07 - Dark Matter Is A Bad Name01:06:10 - Is There An Edge To The Universe?- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -CONTACT PETE› Website – http://petermccormack.com› Feedback – https://www.petermccormack.com/contact› Email – me@petermccormack.com› Instagram – https://www.instagram.com/mccormack555/› X/Twitter – https://x.com/petermccormack/CONNECT WITH JIM AL-KHALILI› Website – https://jimal-khalili.com/› The Life Scientific – https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b015sqc7› Sunfall – https://www.penguin.co.uk/books/307996/sunfall-by-al-khalili-jim/9780857503527› X/Twitter – https://x.com/jimalkhaliliSPONSORS› IREN – https://www.iren.com/› Ledn – https://www.ledn.io/peter- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -LISTEN / SUBSCRIBE› Apple Podcasts: https://apple.co/40ruY9K› Spotify: https://spoti.fi/3Wc94Vu› Fountain: https://bit.ly/FountainPM› YouTube: https://bit.ly/YouTube_PM› Rumble: https://bit.ly/RumblePMFILMED BY CURTIS TAYLOR› https://www.curttaylor.co.uk/› https://x.com/curttayloruk/EDITED BY CONOR MCCORMACK› https://x.com/ConorM04