In this video, physicist and theoretical neuroscience researcher, Max Tegmark, talks about his interest in asking deep and difficult questions, his appreciation of the aesthetics of elegant questions, and his broad research interests spanning multiple areas of physics, theoretical neuroscience, and computer science. He emphasizes the importance of the liberal arts in teaching us how to live, and the dangers of becoming unmoored from our cultures and histories. Tegmark also highlights the importance of considering the history and sociology of science, and using literary examples and analogies in teaching.
1. The speaker likes to ask deep, difficult, and beautiful questions.
2. They believe that the aesthetic sense of what makes a question elegant and beautiful is important.
3. The speaker works as a theorist across multiple fields of physics, theoretical neuroscience, and computer science.
4. They are interested in the laws and principles that govern the organization of systems in nature, both living and non-living.
5. The speaker has written papers on how physical and biological processes can produce complexity.
6. They believe that the liberal arts are important, as they teach us how to live.
7. The speaker uses literary examples and analogies in their teaching.
8. They believe that science cannot thrive without a healthy society to support it.