Dr. Brian Keating: Charting the Architecture of the Universe & Human Life

Huberman Lab

Scicomm Media

Science, Health & Fitness, Life Sciences

4.8 • 26.2K Ratings

🗓️ 20 January 2025

⏱️ 188 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

In this episode, my guest is Dr. Brian Keating, Ph.D., a cosmologist and professor of physics at the University of California, San Diego. We discuss the origins of the universe and how humans have used light and optics to understand where and how life on Earth emerged. We explore how early humans charted the stars, sun, moon, and other celestial events to measure time and track seasons, as well as how stargazing continues to connect us to a shared ancient experience. Additionally, we examine the scientific process, the practical and ethical challenges of pursuing groundbreaking discoveries, and the emotional toll of striving for recognition in one’s profession. Finally, we discuss whether astrology has any scientific validity and consider the possibility of life beyond Earth. Read the full episode show notes at hubermanlab.com. Thank you to our sponsors AG1: https://drinkag1.com/huberman LMNT: https://drinklmnt.com/huberman BetterHelp: https://betterhelp.com/huberman Function: https://functionhealth.com/huberman Helix Sleep: https://helixsleep.com/huberman ROKA: https://roka.com/huberman Timestamps 00:00:00 Dr. Brian Keating 00:02:07 Cosmology, Origin of Universe 00:05:41 Sponsors: LMNT & BetterHelp 00:08:33 Stars, Planets, Early Humans, Time 00:14:53 Astrology, Ophiuchus Constellation 00:19:58 Pineal Gland, Time-Keeping & Stars, Seasons & Offspring 00:29:19 Humans, Time Perception, Astronomy 00:36:08 Sponsor: AG1 00:37:47 Brain & Prediction; Moonset, Syzygy; Telescope, Galileo 00:46:36 Light Refraction; Telescope, Eyeglasses 00:51:36 Earth Rotation & Sun 00:53:43 Glass, Microscope, Telescopes & Discovery 01:02:53 Science as Safe Space; Jupiter, Galileo, Discovery, Time 01:10:48 Early Humans, Stonehenge, Pyramids, Measurement Standards 01:15:54 Giants of Astronomy 01:20:04 Sponsors: Function & Helix Sleep 01:23:10 Origin of Life, Scientific Method & P-Hacking; Nobel Prize, Big Bang, Inflation 01:30:20 Cosmic Microwave Background Radiation, BICEP 01:37:58 Father & Son Relationship, Science & Rewards 01:44:06 Loss, Mentor 01:49:55 Antarctica, South Pole 01:56:49 Light & Heat Pollution, South Pole 02:01:09 Prize Pursuit, First Discovery; Star Collapse, Micrometeorites, Polarization 02:08:26 Sponsor: ROKA 02:10:08 Moon, Size & Horizon; Visual Acuity; Rainbow or Moon Bigger? 02:15:21 Sunset, Green Flash, Color Opponency 02:23:05 Menstrual & Lunar Cycles; Moon Movement 02:26:36 Northern Hemisphere & Stargazing, Dark Sky Communities, Telescope 02:29:51 Constellations, Asterism; Halley's & Hale-Bopp Comets 02:32:13 Navigation, Columbus 02:36:29 Adaptive Optics, Scintillation, Artificial Stars 02:48:28 Life Outside Earth? 02:57:50 Gut Microbiome; Building Planet 03:05:00 Zero-Cost Support, Spotify & Apple Follow & Reviews, Sponsors, YouTube Feedback, Social Media, Protocols Book, Neural Network Newsletter Disclaimer & Disclosures

Transcript

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0:00.0	Welcome to the Huberman Lab podcast, where we discuss science and science-based tools for everyday life.
0:08.8	I'm Andrew Huberman, and I'm a professor of neurobiology and ophthalmology at Stanford School of Medicine.
0:15.6	My guest today is Dr. Brian Keating. Dr. Brian Keating is a professor of cosmology
0:21.0	at the University of California, San Diego.
0:24.3	Today's discussion is perhaps the most zoomed-out discussion
0:27.5	that we've ever had on this podcast.
0:29.5	What I mean by that is today we talk about the origins of the universe.
0:33.6	We talk about the Earth's relationship to the sun
0:36.0	and to the other planets.
0:37.6	We talk a lot about optics, so not just the neuroscience of vision
0:42.6	and our ability to see things up close and far away,
0:45.5	but to see things very, very far away
0:48.0	or very, very close up using telescopes or microscopes, respectively.
0:53.9	So today's discussion is a far-reaching one,
0:56.6	literally and figuratively, and one that I know everyone will appreciate because it really will
1:01.8	teach you how the scientific process is carried out. It will also help you understand that
1:06.1	science is indeed a human endeavor and that much of what we understand about ourselves and about the world
1:11.5	around us and indeed the entire universe is filtered through that humanness. But I want to be
1:16.6	very clear that today's discussion is not abstract. You're going to learn a lot of concrete facts
1:21.3	about the universe, about humanity, and about the process of discovery. In fact, much of what
1:27.1	we talk about today is about the process of discovery. In fact, much of what we talk about today is about
1:29.0	the process of humans discovering things about themselves and about the world. Dr. Keating has an
	...

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