Physics for Everyone, Lecture 5: The Unification that Changed the World
7/7/20261 hr 55 min
I began this lecture by saying I was daunted by what I was about to talk about. There are several reasons for this.
First, I will lead you through the development of what was certainly most important theoretical development in the 19th century, and what could easily be considered the most important mathematical framework in all of physics. Second, this development affected our modern picture of the universe more than almost any other. Next, this development made our modern technological society possible. And finally, it allowed a calculation that ultimately unveiled the true nature of light. A calculation we will perform together during this lecture
I am going to take you through what is often taught in a whole semester course in physics. So hold onto your hats. Take it step by step. I think the reward of understanding will be worth the effort. I hope at the end of this lecture you agree with me.
This month I will be traveling with the Origins Project and a group of 27 intrepid travelers to Cyprus and Greece. So the next Origins podcast will not air until August. I hope your July is enjoyable.
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Transcript preview
First 90 secondsLawrence M. Krauss· Host0:00
[intro music] Well, hello, and welcome to the Origins Podcast, our fifth lecture in our 12-part series on physics for everyone. I'm really excited but also daunted by today's lecture because I'm going to talk about basically the fundamental basis of modern physics, the origin of modern physics, and perhaps the single most important result that determined the course of the 20th and 21st centuries. That may sound like hyperbole, but I don't think it is. And, um, uh, you know, I, I don't do things hierarchically, but I think this is perhaps one of the most important results in physics. And what I love about it, and I loved as an undergraduate in physics, I wanna walk you through, I wanna lead you up to what is perhaps the most important calculation that was done in the 19th century, and maybe ever, that changed the world. And so that's where I'm gonna lead you, and we're gonna, we're gonna talk about electricity and magnetism. What I wanna talk about it in ter- in term-- not just in terms of the sort of bland history and, and discussion of electricity and magnetism. I wanna talk about it because they changed the way we think about the universe in profound ways.