Best Perimeter Institute Podcasts (2024)

1
Neil Turok on the simplicity of nature 1:01:47

6M ago1:01:47

1:01:47

Neil Turok is a professor at the University of Edinburgh where he holds the Higgs Chair of Theoretical Physics. He acted as the director of Perimeter Institute from 2008 to 2019 and now holds the Carlo Fidani Roger Penrose Distinguished Visiting Research Chair in Theoretical Physics at PI. In this episode of Conversations at the Perimeter, he talks…

1
Dr. Aryeh Kontorovich, Prof. of Computer Science, Ben Gurion University, Israel 1:04:36

1y ago1:04:36

1:04:36

Dr. Kontorovich is a professor of computer science at Ben Gurion University in Israel, where his research focuses on machine learning, Markov chains, probability, and statistics. Recently, he has been working with ChatGPT and has had some success in demonstrating its limitations when it comes to logic, reasoning, and humor. We discuss the future im…

1
Dr. Tabia Lee, Former Faculty Director, De Anza College 50:43

1y ago50:43

50:43

Dr. Lee was a director of the Office of Equity, Social Justice, and Multicultural Education at De Anza College...until she started asking the wrong questions. After second-guessing the DEI and "anti-racist" policies in her department, Lee found that she had a target on her back. Although De Anza hired her to rein in the excesses of wokeness in the …

1
Dr. Rob Jenkins, Prof. of English, Georgia State U - Perimeter College 53:25

1y ago53:25

53:25

Prof. Jenkins is associate professor of English at Georgia State University Perimeter College. He has served as both professor and dean at a number of different universities. As a Higher Education Fellow at the Leadership Institute's Campus Reform Online, he frequently writes about a number of problems in American schools. Further, he frequently gi…

1
John Sailer, Senior Fellow and Director of University Policy, National Association of Scholars 45:52

1+ y ago45:52

45:52

John Sailer is Senior Fellow and Director of University Policy for the National Association of Scholars (NAS), where his reporting on the implementation of DEI in university hiring has actually produced reforms in various institutions across the country. His work has been published in the Wall Street Journal, The Free Press, Unherd, and more. We di…

1
Sir Anthony Leggett on science, superfluidity, and serendipity 1:28:31

1+ y ago1:28:31

1:28:31

Sir Anthony Leggett, winner of the 2003 Nobel Prize in Physics for his foundational contributions to superfluidity, is a professor emeritus at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. Reflecting on a lifetime in science, he shares his groundbreaking work on superconductivity, superfluidity, and quantum science with Lauren and Colin, illumina…

1
Dr. Scott Yenor, Professor of Political Philosophy at Boise State, Washington Fellow at Claremont's Center for the American Way of Life 45:00

1+ y ago45:00

45:00

Prof. Yenor teaches political philosophy at Boise State University. Recently, he accepted a position as a Washington Fellow at the Claremont Institute's Center for the American Way of Life. Yenor's most recent book is entitled "The Recovery of Family Life: Exposing the Limits of Modern Ideologies." His talks at the National Conservatism conference …

1
Dr. Amy Wax, Robert Mundheim Professor of Law, University of Pennsylvania Law School 47:55

1+ y ago47:55

47:55

Prof. Wax needs no introduction. She is a medical doctor, and is currently a professor of law at the University of Pennsylvania. In the past, she worked in the Office of the Solicitor General in the U.S. Justice Department. In that capacity, she argued before the Supreme Court on over a dozen occasions. Her heterodox ideas (and her willingness to b…

1
Dr. Matthew Wielicki, Prof. of Geological Science, University of Alabama 43:36

1+ y ago43:36

43:36

Dr. Matthew Wielicki recently made news when he announced that he would be leaving his tenure-track professorship in the Geological Sciences department of the University of Alabama. I talk with Dr. Wielicki about why he made this decision and how even the sciences are being corrupted by wokeness. We also discuss the hysteria surrounding climate ala…

1
Shep Doeleman on hunting for black holes 1:13:51

1+ y ago1:13:51

1:13:51

Shep Doeleman is a senior research fellow at the Center for Astrophysics | Harvard & Smithsonian and one of the world’s leading experts on black holes. He heads the globe-spanning Event Horizon Telescope (EHT) collaboration, which in recent years unveiled humanity’s first-ever images of black holes – including the supermassive behemoth at the centr…

1
Dr. Judith Curry - Prof. Emerita in Earth Sciences, Georgia Tech - President of Climate Forecast Applications Network 58:25

1+ y ago58:25

58:25

Dr. Judith Curry has been at the forefront of the scientific debate about global climate change for decades. After serving as Chair of Georgia Tech's School of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences, she switched her status to Professor Emerita, citing an "anti-skeptic bias" in academic science. In addition to serving on NASA's Advisory Council on Earth Sc…

1
Dr. Mary Grabar - Fellow at Alexander Hamilton Institute, Author of "Debunking the 1619 Project" 43:21

1+ y ago43:21

43:21

Dr. Mary Grabar is currently a Fellow at the Alexander Hamilton Institute for the Study of Western Civilization, Executive Director at DissidentProf.com, and frequent author of public writing on politics and culture at all the best publications. Most recently, she is author of two books: "Debunking Howard Zinn: Exposing the Fake History that Turned…

1
Dr. David B. Porter - Former Prof. of Psychology, Berea College (Case Pending) 1:03:42

1+ y ago1:03:42

1:03:42

After a colleague's reputation was unfairly attacked by a Title IX complaint, Dave Porter, then a professor of psychology at Berea College, began talking to students about the value of academic freedom and whether it is in tension with the right to learn in non-hostile environments. His inquiry set off a chain of events that led to Berea's dismissa…

1
Dr. Ryan Martin, Prof. of Statistics, North Carolina State University 1:04:39

1+ y ago1:04:39

1:04:39

Ryan Martin is a professor of statistics at North Carolina State University. He is also a co-founder of the Researchers.One platform for publishing scholarly research. After discussing Prof. Martin's most recent research, we talk about the predictive applications of statistics and the assumptions that undergird the field. Finally, we consider how s…

1
Shohini Ghose on revolutions – quantum and social 59:26

1+ y ago59:26

59:26

Shohini Ghose is a professor of quantum science at Wilfrid Laurier University. She is also the founder and director of Laurier’s Centre for Women in Science (WinS) and an NSERC Chair for Women in Science and Engineering. In this episode, she takes Lauren and Colin on a journey into the subatomic realm to explore concepts like entanglement, superpos…

1
Pedro Vieira on a theory of all quantum field theories 1:14:51

1+ y ago1:14:51

1:14:51

Pedro Vieira is a faculty member at Perimeter Institute, where he holds the Clay Riddell Paul Dirac Chair in Theoretical Physics. In this episode, he tells Lauren and Colin about his work on a kind of uber-theory that encompasses all quantum field theories, as well as what separates the easy and hard problems in this field. It’s a complicated topic…

1
Ganapathy Baskaran on physics, biology, and global science 1:03:36

1+ y ago1:03:36

1:03:36

Ganapathy Baskaran is an acclaimed physicist known for his foundational contributions to condensed matter physics, strongly correlated quantum materials, and high-temperature superconductivity. He is an Emeritus Professor at the Institute of Mathematical Sciences in Chennai, India, and a Distinguished Visiting Research Chair at Perimeter. He is als…

1
Nicole Yunger Halpern on quantum steampunk 59:07

1+ y ago59:07

59:07

Nicole Yunger Halpern reenvisions 19th-century thermodynamics for the 21st century, using the mathematical toolkit of quantum information theory. She is a fellow of the Joint Center for Quantum Information and Computer Science (QuICS), a theoretical physicist at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), and an Adjunct Assistant Pro…

1
Dustin Lang on big data from a big universe 1:09:32

1+ y ago1:09:32

1:09:32

Dustin Lang is a computational scientist at Perimeter Institute who develops techniques for finding needles in the cosmic haystack. He works on several large sky survey projects, tackling the statistical data analysis required to discern meaningful insights from huge datasets gathered by telescopes. In this conversation with Lauren and Colin, he sh…

1
Savas Dimopoulos on the universe’s biggest unsolved puzzles 1:02:24

1+ y ago1:02:24

1:02:24

Savas Dimopoulos is an influential particle physicist based at Stanford University, who also holds the Coril Holdings Archimedes Visiting Chair in Theoretical Physics at Perimeter Institute. He worked at CERN during the 1990s, and was featured in Particle Fever, a 2013 documentary about the hunt for the Higgs boson at the Large Hadron Collider. In …

1
Lee Smolin on a lifetime of big questions 47:08

1+ y ago47:08

47:08

Lee Smolin is a founding faculty member at Perimeter Institute and one of the world’s best-known voices in theoretical physics. He is a co-founder of loop quantum gravity, together with Abhay Ashtekar and Carlo Rovelli. Smolin is also the author of numerous popular science books, including The Trouble with Physics, The Life of the Cosmos, and Einst…

1
Episode 15 - Dr. J.D. Haltigan - Prof. of Psychology, Univ. of Toronto 49:55

1+ y ago49:55

49:55

J.D. Haltigan is Assistant Professor of Psychology at University of Toronto, where his research focuses on developmental psychopathology -- specifically early caregiving and its effects on psychological development. The author of dozens of peer-reviewed publications, Haltigan is also the founder of a Substack publication called "The Multilevel Mail…

1
Jessie Muir on the mystery of dark energy 1:02:29

2y ago1:02:29

1:02:29

The universe is expanding faster and faster all the time, and Jessie Muir wants to understand why. Muir is a postdoctoral researcher at Perimeter Institute and a member of the international Dark Energy Survey (DES) collaboration. She co-leads the DES analysis team that seeks to understand the mysterious dark energy driving the universe's accelerati…

1
Episode 14 - Dr. Pedro Domingos - Professor Emeritus at Univ. of Washington, Expert on AI and Machine Learning 1:12:04

2y ago1:12:04

1:12:04

Prof. Pedro Domingos has been at the forefront of the revolutions in artificial intelligence and machine learning for over two decades. In addition to conducting his teaching and research at the Paul G. Allen School of Computer Science and Engineering of the University of Washington, he has worked closely with a variety of the biggest firms in the …

1
Episode 13 - Dr. Elizabeth Weiss - Prof. of Anthropology, San Jose State University 1:04:38

2y ago1:04:38

1:04:38

Dr. Elizabeth Weiss is a full professor of anthropology at San Jose State University, where her research focuses on the analysis of ancient human remains. She has published dozens of peer-reviewed research essays and a number of books. Her most recent co-authored book, "Repatriation and Erasing the Past," made her a target of the woke mob due to he…

1
Episode 12 - Dr. Adam Gussow - Prof. of English and Southern Studies, Ole Miss 1:14:47

2y ago1:14:47

1:14:47

Prof. Gussow is a scholar of literature whose work has focused on blues music, racial history, and African American art. A well-known harmonica player, he is also one half of the blues duo "Satan and Adam." His writing on current events related to race has been particularly compelling, acknowledging the continuing legacy of American racial violence…

1
Episode 11 - Dr. Alex Petkas (Ancient Life Coach), Former Prof. of Classics, Host of Cost of Glory podcast 55:41

2y ago55:41

55:41

Dr. Alex Petkas received his PhD in Classics from Princeton. His research interests include Greek literature, rhetoric, epistemology, and ethics. He recently resigned a tenure-track professorship, due in part to disenchantment with the DEI revolution in higher education. Alex has a number of scholarly publications. Known online as "Ancient Life Coa…

1
Episode 10 - Dr. J. Michael Bailey - Professor of Psychology, Northwestern University 1:16:14

2y ago1:16:14

1:16:14

Prof. Bailey of Northwestern University has long been on the cutting edge of the science of gender non-conformity, sexual orientation, and sexual arousal. His most famous book -- The Man Who Would Be Queen -- is a compassionate but unflinching look at the biological realities and cultural manifestations of gender identity. Released over a decade be…

1
Episode 9 - Stuart Reges - Teaching Professor of Computer Science and Engineering, University of Washington 50:22

2y ago50:22

50:22

In this episode, I talk to Stuart Reges, Teaching Professor of Computer Science and Engineering at the University of Washington. A veteran of campus politics, Reges talks to me about his pending lawsuit against the university for violating his First Amendment rights. After they encouraged faculty to include a "land acknowledgement statement" on the…

1
Episode 8 - Dr. Joseph Manson - (Former) Professor of Anthropology, University of California - Los Angeles 55:11

2y ago55:11

55:11

After decades in academia, Prof. Manson recently made national news when he announced via his blog that he was resigning his full professorship at UCLA. Like so many other faculty members across the country, the woke revolution had ensured that he could no longer meaningfully perform his duties as a teacher and a scholar. In this episode, we talk a…

1
Episode 7 - Nicholas Giordano - Founder of the PAS Report and Prof. of Political Science at Suffolk Community College 52:54

2y ago52:54

52:54

My guest on Episode 7 of "Whither the Looniversity?" is Prof. Nicholas Giordano, who teaches political science at Suffolk Community College. Nicholas is the founder of the PAS Report, which offers political analysis and strategies, and he hosts a regular podcast on politics. Before teaching at the college level, Prof. Giordano worked with the Depar…

1
Episode 6 - Dr. Harry Crane, Professor of Statistics (Rutgers), Co-Founder of Researchers.One 52:26

2y ago52:26

52:26

Harry Crane is a professor of statistics at Rutgers University and Co-Founder of Researchers.One, an online platform for scholarly publishing that restores the process of peer review to its proper function. We discuss the problems of the peer review process as it currently exists and how it has been infiltrated by ideological interests. In addition…

1
Episode 5 - Dr. Peter Wood, President of National Association of Scholars, former Prof. of Anthropology 1:06:45

2y ago1:06:45

1:06:45

Dr. Wood has nearly four decades working in and around academia. He has been a tenured professor, a Provost, and he has served in a variety of other administration positions within the university. He is now President of the National Association of Scholars, a group that advocates on behalf of faculty whose rights have been ignored by their institut…

1
Episode 4 - Dr. Jenna A. Robinson - President of the James G. Martin Center for Academic Renewal 45:08

2y ago45:08

45:08

Dr. Robinson holds a PhD in political science, but seeing the decay of the American academy, she opted to devote her energies to restoring a culture of excellence in our universities, rather than taking on a professorship. As President of the James G. Martin Center for Academic Renewal, she advocates for institutional and cultural reforms that will…

1
Episode 3 - Erec Smith, Prof. of Rhetoric and Writing; Co-Founder of Free Black Thought 43:21

2y ago43:21

43:21

Prof. Smith is an expert in the field of rhetoric. He also happens to be a black man. When he challenged the assumptions of self-professed “anti-racists” in a forum for academics and intellectuals in his field, the mob turned on him – calling him a racist and a proponent of white supremacy. This affair was an experience that eventually led to him h…

1
Episode 2 - John Staddon, Professor Emeritus of Psychology, Duke University 56:00

2y ago56:00

56:00

Prof. Staddon is one of the most prominent researchers in the modern history of American and British behavioral science. Never afraid to speak up to ideological chauvinists, his most recent dust-up occurred when he was removed from the message board of the American Psychological Association for challenging pseudo-scientific claims about sex and gen…

1
Episode 1 - Dr. Charles Negy, Associate Prof. of Psychology at University of Central Florida 56:55

2y ago56:55

56:55

Prof. Negy has never shied away from controversy, and in the summer of 2020 he made some posts on his personal social media account that were critical of the BLM riots. Soon thereafter, the University of Central Florida set in motion a coordinated attack on his career that would culminate in their firing of a tenured professor. Negy tells us about …

1
Raymond Laflamme on the life-changing power of curiosity 59:49

2y ago59:49

59:49

Raymond Laflamme was the founding director of the Institute for Quantum Computing at the University of Waterloo, a position he held for 16 years, and he has been an associate faculty member at Perimeter Institute for more than two decades. He is known as one of the world’s leading experts on quantum information science, and was recently appointed a…

1
Hilding Neilson on stellar stories 53:38

2y ago53:38

53:38

Hilding Neilson is an astrophysicist who works at the intersection of science, astronomy, and Indigenous knowledge. He joins co-hosts Colin and Lauren for a fascinating conversation about the ways humans make sense of the vast night sky, via telescopes, mathematics, and traditional knowledge passed through generations. Neilson – who recently starte…

1
Estelle Inack on quantum intelligence 50:12

2y ago50:12

50:12

Estelle Inack is a research scientist at Perimeter Institute, working at the intersection of quantum matter and artificial intelligence as a member of the Perimeter Institute Quantum Intelligence Lab (PIQuIL). She is also the co-founder and Chief Technology Officer of yiyaniQ, a quantum intelligence startup. Her research aims to develop quantum-ins…

1
François David on mathematical beauty 50:28

2y ago50:28

50:28

François David is a mathematical physicist and a passionate educator with an infectious zest for decoding the mysteries of the universe. As a scientist based at the Institut de Physique Théorique (IPhT), he uses mathematical techniques and tools to tackle open questions in areas ranging from quantum gravity to statistical mechanics. He is also a po…

1
Meenu Kumari on quantum chaos 50:45

2y ago50:45

50:45

A postdoctoral researcher at Perimeter Institute, Meenu Kumari is an explorer at the edge of quantum science. Her research explores open questions at the meeting points of quantum information, quantum foundations, and quantum matter. In this conversation with Lauren and Colin, she explains what it means to study the realm where quantum meets classi…

1
Lucien Hardy on quantum gravity and (apparent) paradoxes 50:18

2y ago50:18

50:18

Lucien Hardy is a theoretical physicist working at the intersection of the two pillars of modern physics – general relativity and quantum mechanics – in the quest for a single unifying theory: quantum gravity. Hardy joins co-hosts Lauren and Colin for a conversation about the puzzles that have driven him throughout his career, including the past 20…

1
Avery Broderick on a black hole breakthrough from the EHT 55:56

2y ago55:56

55:56

On May 12, 2022, the global Event Horizon Telescope (EHT) collaboration unveiled the landmark first image of the black hole at the heart of our own Milky Way galaxy, called Sagittarius A* (or Sgr A*). On this special episode of Conversations at the Perimeter, Lauren and Colin talk with astrophysicist Avery Broderick about the significance of this d…

1
Ghazal Geshnizjani and Niayesh Afshordi: Cosmologically Coupled 1:12:10

2+ y ago1:12:10

1:12:10

They often debate the workings of black holes and the big bang at Perimeter Institute’s blackboards -- and sometimes at the breakfast table too. Ghazal Geshnizjani and Niayesh Afshordi split their time between investigating the mysteries of the cosmos and raising their young family. Both are researchers at Perimeter Institute and the University of …

1
Carlo Rovelli on physics and philosophy 57:36

2+ y ago57:36

57:36

Theoretical physicist, philosopher, and international bestselling author Carlo Rovelli joins Lauren and Colin for a conversation about the quest for quantum gravity, the importance of unlearning outdated ideas, and a very unique way to get out of a speeding ticket. Rovelli is a Distinguished Visiting Research Chair at Perimeter Institute. He is als…

1
Katie Mack on the end of it all – and new beginnings 56:47

2+ y ago56:47

56:47

Katie Mack was recently appointed as Perimeter’s inaugural Hawking Chair in Cosmology and Science Communication. An adept science communicator, she is best known as @Astrokatie to her 400,000+ Twitter followers. She published her first book in 2020, The End of Everything (Astrophysically Speaking), in which she explains the various ways our univers…

1
Timothy Hsieh on the magic of quantum 45:50

2+ y ago45:50

45:50

Timothy Hsieh is a Perimeter faculty member and a co-leader of the Institute’s Clay Riddell Centre for Quantum Matter. His research explores the intersection of quantum information and condensed matter physics. The Los Angeles native is also a classically trained violinist and a new dad. During this conversation, he shares how “quantum magic” can h…

1
Introducing: Conversations at the Perimeter 4:15

2+ y ago4:15

4:15

Get to know some of the brilliant minds trying to solve nature’s deepest mysteries. Conversations at the Perimeter will introduce you to researchers working at the forefront of science, tackling challenges from dark matter and black holes to quantum computing and particle physics. The series is co-hosted by Perimeter Teaching Faculty member Lauren …

Podcasts Worth a Listen

Perimeter Institute Podcasts

Podcasts Worth a Listen

Quick Reference Guide