Cosmic Queries – Quantum Queries with Hakeem Oluseyi

About This Episode

Do we really know the age of the universe? On this episode, Neil deGrasse Tyson and comic co-host Paul Mecurio answer astrophysics questions about the big bang, gravitational waves, and the speed of light with astrophysicist Hakeem Oluseyi. 

We dive into Hakeem’s research into the atmosphere of the sun. What’s going on in there? Is there a secret to the solar cycle where the poles reverse? What is solar dynamo? Next, does the universe end with another big bang? We discuss whether the universe will recollapse on itself, Ibn al-Haytham’s views on observation, and the evolution of the scientific method. How will JWST help us fill in gaps in our knowledge? 

Could we use gravitational waves like radio waves? Could we one day be able to detect gravitational ripples of everything? How do we get the Internet out to rural areas? We give our takes on Starlink and what the Kessler effect means for all these satellites. Is there a  limit to how many things we can put into orbit? 

We explore the ingenuity in Ebonics and how language becomes more efficient. We get into why the speed of light is what it is and the nature of mechanical waves. How do we have stars that are supposedly older than the universe? You’ll learn about uncertainty and error bars but also the great conundrum facing cosmology today. How did we arrive at two different ages for the universe? Is one of the methods wrong? All that, and find out which age of the universe we think could be the right one. 

Thanks to our Patrons Samuel Case, Daniel, Nicole Hensley, Larry Nixon, NaOnak Apophis, Erik Maynard, Carrie Beougher, Michael Aguilar, Shakhan, and Alexander Newhouse for supporting us this week.

NOTE: StarTalk+ Patrons can watch or listen to this entire episode commercial-free.