#485 – David Kirtley: Nuclear Fusion, Plasma Physics, and the Future of Energy

Paul Conti is a psychiatrist. Please support this podcast by checking out our sponsors: - NetSuite: http://netsuite.com/lex to get free product tour - Indeed: https://indeed.com/lex to get $75 credit - InsideTracker: https://insidetracker.com/lex to get 20% off EPISODE LINKS: Paul's Website: https://drpaulconti.com Trauma (book): https://amzn.to/40vCVJa Paul's LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/in/dr-paul-m-conti-845074216 PODCAST INFO: Podcast website: https://lexfridman.com/podcast Apple Podcasts: https://apple.co/2lwqZIr Spotify: https://spoti.fi/2nEwCF8 RSS: https://lexfridman.com/feed/podcast/ YouTube Full Episodes: https://youtube.com/lexfridman YouTube Clips: https://youtube.com/lexclips SUPPORT & CONNECT: - Check out the sponsors above, it's the best way to support this podcast - Support on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/lexfridman - Twitter: https://twitter.com/lexfridman - Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lexfridman - LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lexfridman - Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/lexfridman - Medium: https://medium.com/@lexfridman OUTLINE: Here's the timestamps for the episode. On some podcast players you should be able to click the timestamp to jump to that time. (00:00) - Introduction (06:28) - Human Mind (24:08) - Evil (30:22) - Envy (53:25) - Narcissism (1:21:59) - Pride (1:39:12) - Death (1:54:02) - Trauma (2:19:06) - Therapy (2:33:17) - Subconscious mind (2:39:13) - Conversation (2:51:59) - Emotion (3:15:11) - Advice for young people

7 Feb 20233h 22min

Tim Dodd is host of the Everyday Astronaut YouTube channel, where he teaches about rocket engines and all things space travel. Please support this podcast by checking out our sponsors: - BetterHelp: https://betterhelp.com/lex to get 10% off - MasterClass: https://masterclass.com/lex to get 15% off - Shopify: https://shopify.com/lex to get free trial - ExpressVPN: https://expressvpn.com/lexpod to get 3 months free EPISODE LINKS: Tim's YouTube: https://youtube.com/@EverydayAstronaut Tim's Twitter: https://twitter.com/Erdayastronaut Tim's Instagram: https://instagram.com/everydayastronaut Tim's Website: https://everydayastronaut.com PODCAST INFO: Podcast website: https://lexfridman.com/podcast Apple Podcasts: https://apple.co/2lwqZIr Spotify: https://spoti.fi/2nEwCF8 RSS: https://lexfridman.com/feed/podcast/ YouTube Full Episodes: https://youtube.com/lexfridman YouTube Clips: https://youtube.com/lexclips SUPPORT & CONNECT: - Check out the sponsors above, it's the best way to support this podcast - Support on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/lexfridman - Twitter: https://twitter.com/lexfridman - Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lexfridman - LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lexfridman - Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/lexfridman - Medium: https://medium.com/@lexfridman OUTLINE: Here's the timestamps for the episode. On some podcast players you should be able to click the timestamp to jump to that time. (00:00) - Introduction (06:18) - SpaceX rockets (26:56) - Falcon 9 (31:08) - Starship (35:27) - SpaceX rocket engines (43:05) - Elon Musk (58:41) - Twitter (1:04:46) - How rocket engines work (1:09:37) - Rocket fuel (1:13:03) - Rocket engine cycles (1:25:27) - Rocket cooling (1:40:24) - Multistage rockets (1:43:57) - Single-stage-to-orbit (1:49:33) - Aerospike engine (1:57:18) - Greatest car engine of all time (2:02:27) - Starship (2:05:19) - Wet dress rehearsal (2:11:29) - Landing (2:25:47) - Seeing starship in person (2:34:54) - Starship orbital test (2:41:32) - Gwynne Shotwell (2:46:43) - dearMoon project (3:05:46) - Fear of death (3:14:12) - Everyday Astronaut origin story (3:40:04) - Soviet Rocket Engine History (3:58:51) - Russia, China, USA (4:13:20) - Starlink (4:21:06) - First human on Mars (4:24:04) - Moon landing (4:30:11) - Nuclear propulsion (4:37:51) - Bob Lazar (4:44:54) - Aliens (4:48:42) - Sci-fi books (4:52:00) - Long-term space travel (4:58:47) - SpaceX competitors (5:10:07) - Kerbal Space Program (5:16:33) - Advice for young people

2 Feb 20235h 21min

David Kipping is an astronomer at Columbia University, director of the Cool Worlds Lab, and host of the Cool Worlds YouTube channel. Please support this podcast by checking out our sponsors: - SimpliSafe: https://simplisafe.com/lex - Shopify: https://shopify.com/lex to get free trial - ExpressVPN: https://expressvpn.com/lexpod to get 3 months free EPISODE LINKS: David's Twitter: https://twitter.com/david_kipping David's YouTube: https://youtube.com/@CoolWorldsLab Cool Worlds Lab: https://coolworldslab.com/ PODCAST INFO: Podcast website: https://lexfridman.com/podcast Apple Podcasts: https://apple.co/2lwqZIr Spotify: https://spoti.fi/2nEwCF8 RSS: https://lexfridman.com/feed/podcast/ YouTube Full Episodes: https://youtube.com/lexfridman YouTube Clips: https://youtube.com/lexclips SUPPORT & CONNECT: - Check out the sponsors above, it's the best way to support this podcast - Support on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/lexfridman - Twitter: https://twitter.com/lexfridman - Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lexfridman - LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lexfridman - Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/lexfridman - Medium: https://medium.com/@lexfridman OUTLINE: Here's the timestamps for the episode. On some podcast players you should be able to click the timestamp to jump to that time. (00:00) - Introduction (05:10) - Habitable exoplanets (15:30) - Alien life in our Solar System (27:20) - Starship (31:28) - James Webb Space Telescope (44:47) - Binary planets (55:04) - Exomoons and Kepler-1625b (1:08:34) - Discoveries of alien life (1:22:15) - Aliens (2:08:43) - Oort clouds (2:19:30) - Future of astronomy (2:32:45) - Alpha Centauri (2:45:03) - Kardashev scale (2:56:41) - AI and space exploration (3:13:37) - Great Filter (3:24:51) - Colonization of Mars (3:31:35) - Simulation hypothesis (3:43:48) - Advice for young people (3:48:06) - Meaning of life

28 Jan 20233h 50min

Jeremi Suri is a historian at UT Austin. Please support this podcast by checking out our sponsors: - Eight Sleep: https://www.eightsleep.com/lex to get special savings - BetterHelp: https://betterhelp.com/lex to get 10% off - InsideTracker: https://insidetracker.com/lex to get 20% off - Athletic Greens: https://athleticgreens.com/lex to get 1 month of fish oil EPISODE LINKS: Jeremi's Twitter: https://twitter.com/jeremisuri This is Democracy podcast: https://podcasts.la.utexas.edu/this-is-democracy Jeremi's Website: https://jeremisuri.net Jeremi's Books: 1. Civil War by Other Means: https://amzn.to/3hRa3cT 2. The Impossible Presidency: https://amzn.to/3hTn5X8 3. Henry Kissinger: https://amzn.to/3WqkBOY PODCAST INFO: Podcast website: https://lexfridman.com/podcast Apple Podcasts: https://apple.co/2lwqZIr Spotify: https://spoti.fi/2nEwCF8 RSS: https://lexfridman.com/feed/podcast/ YouTube Full Episodes: https://youtube.com/lexfridman YouTube Clips: https://youtube.com/lexclips SUPPORT & CONNECT: - Check out the sponsors above, it's the best way to support this podcast - Support on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/lexfridman - Twitter: https://twitter.com/lexfridman - Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lexfridman - LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lexfridman - Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/lexfridman - Medium: https://medium.com/@lexfridman OUTLINE: Here's the timestamps for the episode. On some podcast players you should be able to click the timestamp to jump to that time. (00:00) - Introduction (06:45) - Revolutions and governments (24:23) - American Civil War (33:35) - Lincoln and election of 1860 (37:25) - Slavery (50:35) - Freedom of speech (1:02:17) - Death toll of the Civil War (1:05:36) - Ulysses S. Grant (1:07:45) - Ku Klux Klan (1:19:27) - Robert E. Lee (1:27:11) - Abraham Lincoln (1:42:18) - If the south won (1:50:54) - Hypocrisy of the Founders (1:56:56) - John Wilkes Booth (2:00:11) - White supremacy (2:05:34) - Disputed elections (2:15:56) - Politics (2:24:20) - Donald Trump and Joe Biden (2:37:06) - January 6th (3:02:04) - Hope for the future

25 Jan 20230s

Dennis Whyte is a nuclear scientist at MIT and the director of the MIT Plasma Science and Fusion Center. Please support this podcast by checking out our sponsors: - Rocket Money: https://rocketmoney.com/lex - MasterClass: https://masterclass.com/lex to get 15% off - InsideTracker: https://insidetracker.com/lex to get 20% off EPISODE LINKS: Dennis's Twitter: https://twitter.com/MIT_Fusion Dennis's LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/in/dennis-whyte-33474a54 Dennis's Website: https://www.psfc.mit.edu/whyte SPARC: https://www.psfc.mit.edu/sparc MIT Plasma Science and Fusion Center: https://www.psfc.mit.edu MIT Plasma Science and Fusion Center's YouTube: https://youtube.com/@mitplasmascienceandfusionc6211 Commonwealth Fusion Systems: https://cfs.energy Commonwealth Fusion Systems YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@CommonwealthFusionSystems PODCAST INFO: Podcast website: https://lexfridman.com/podcast Apple Podcasts: https://apple.co/2lwqZIr Spotify: https://spoti.fi/2nEwCF8 RSS: https://lexfridman.com/feed/podcast/ YouTube Full Episodes: https://youtube.com/lexfridman YouTube Clips: https://youtube.com/lexclips SUPPORT & CONNECT: - Check out the sponsors above, it's the best way to support this podcast - Support on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/lexfridman - Twitter: https://twitter.com/lexfridman - Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lexfridman - LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lexfridman - Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/lexfridman - Medium: https://medium.com/@lexfridman OUTLINE: Here's the timestamps for the episode. On some podcast players you should be able to click the timestamp to jump to that time. (00:00) - Introduction (05:54) - Nuclear fusion (23:53) - e=mc^2 (38:20) - Fission vs fusion (43:32) - Nuclear weapons (47:19) - Plasma (54:29) - Nuclear fusion reactor (1:09:50) - 2022 nuclear fusion breakthrough explained (1:30:27) - Magnetic confinement (1:49:36) - ITER (1:54:23) - SPARC (2:08:23) - Future of fusion power (2:16:55) - Engineering challenges (2:35:36) - Nuclear disasters (2:40:21) - Cold fusion (2:54:36) - Kardashev scale (3:04:00) - Advice for young people

21 Jan 20233h 13min

Imam Omar Suleiman is the Founder and President of the Yaqeen Institute for Islamic Research and a professor of Islamic Studies at Southern Methodist University. Please support this podcast by checking out our sponsors: - NetSuite: http://netsuite.com/lex to get free product tour - House of Macadamias: https://houseofmacadamias.com/lex and use code LEX to get 20% off your first order - ExpressVPN: https://expressvpn.com/lexpod to get 3 months free EPISODE LINKS: Omar's Instagram: https://instagram.com/imamomarsuleiman Omar's Twitter: https://twitter.com/omarsuleiman504 Omar's Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/imamomarsuleiman Yaqeen Institute's YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@yaqeeninstituteofficial Yaqeen Institute's Website: https://yaqeeninstitute.org PODCAST INFO: Podcast website: https://lexfridman.com/podcast Apple Podcasts: https://apple.co/2lwqZIr Spotify: https://spoti.fi/2nEwCF8 RSS: https://lexfridman.com/feed/podcast/ YouTube Full Episodes: https://youtube.com/lexfridman YouTube Clips: https://youtube.com/lexclips SUPPORT & CONNECT: - Check out the sponsors above, it's the best way to support this podcast - Support on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/lexfridman - Twitter: https://twitter.com/lexfridman - Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lexfridman - LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lexfridman - Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/lexfridman - Medium: https://medium.com/@lexfridman OUTLINE: Here's the timestamps for the episode. On some podcast players you should be able to click the timestamp to jump to that time. (00:00) - Introduction (08:39) - God (16:25) - Loss (25:14) - Life after death (26:53) - Why God allows suffering (40:18) - Seeking the truth (47:58) - Islamophobia (1:12:55) - Muslim ban (1:20:24) - Meaning of prayer (1:34:01) - Mecca (1:39:12) - Malcolm X (1:42:23) - Muhammad Ali (1:47:09) - Khabib Nurmagomedov (1:53:19) - Prophets (1:59:31) - Quran (2:05:17) - Ramadan (2:12:21) - Future of Islam (2:15:30) - Colleyville synagogue hostage crisis (2:23:37) - War and religion (2:33:29) - Israel and Palestine (2:59:13) - Hope for the future (3:03:56) - Prayer

17 Jan 20233h 7min

MrBeast is a legendary YouTube creator. Please support this podcast by checking out our sponsors: - House of Macadamias: https://houseofmacadamias.com/lex and use code LEX to get 20% off your first order - Eight Sleep: https://www.eightsleep.com/lex to get special savings - BetterHelp: https://betterhelp.com/lex to get 10% off EPISODE LINKS: MrBeast Main Channel: https://youtube.com/@MrBeast MrBeast Reacts: https://youtube.com/@BeastReacts MrBeast Gaming: https://youtube.com/@MrBeastGaming MrBeast Philanthropy: https://youtube.com/@BeastPhilanthropy MrBeast's TikTok: https://tiktok.com/@mrbeast MrBeast's Twitter: https://twitter.com/MrBeast MrBeast's Instagram: https://instagram.com/mrbeast Feastable's Website: https://feastables.com MrBeast Burger's Website: https://mrbeastburger.com MrBeast's Merch: https://shopmrbeast.com PODCAST INFO: Podcast website: https://lexfridman.com/podcast Apple Podcasts: https://apple.co/2lwqZIr Spotify: https://spoti.fi/2nEwCF8 RSS: https://lexfridman.com/feed/podcast/ YouTube Full Episodes: https://youtube.com/lexfridman YouTube Clips: https://youtube.com/lexclips SUPPORT & CONNECT: - Check out the sponsors above, it's the best way to support this podcast - Support on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/lexfridman - Twitter: https://twitter.com/lexfridman - Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lexfridman - LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lexfridman - Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/lexfridman - Medium: https://medium.com/@lexfridman OUTLINE: Here's the timestamps for the episode. On some podcast players you should be able to click the timestamp to jump to that time. (00:00) - Introduction (06:55) - 1 billion views and 1 billion subscribers (12:41) - Mortality (20:04) - Improving YouTube (22:26) - Twitter (27:14) - Brand deals (30:24) - Audience retention (35:03) - Hiring (42:41) - Talking to the camera (47:42) - Brainstorming (1:00:03) - TikTok (1:09:07) - Advice for beginners (1:13:23) - How to grow on YouTube (1:21:07) - Elon Musk and Twitter (1:22:32) - 10 million dollars vs 10 million subscribers (1:29:50) - Going to Antarctica (1:31:35) - Process of making a video (1:36:11) - Overcoming depression (1:47:15) - Building a business (1:55:10) - MrBeast Burger and Feastables (1:59:15) - Creating video games (2:03:24) - Making billions of dollars (2:05:58) - Money vs Happiness (2:12:46) - Mental health (2:19:24) - Love (2:21:32) - Legacy

11 Jan 20232h 24min

Betül Kaçar is an astrobiologist at University of Wisconsin. Please support this podcast by checking out our sponsors: - House of Macadamias: https://houseofmacadamias.com/lex and use code LEX to get 20% off your first order - Mizzen+Main: https://mizzenandmain.com and use code LEX to get $35 off - Eight Sleep: https://www.eightsleep.com/lex to get special savings - ExpressVPN: https://expressvpn.com/lexpod to get 3 months free - GiveDirectly: https://givedirectly.org/lex to get gift matched up to $1000 - Blinkist: https://blinkist.com/lex to get 25% off premium EPISODE LINKS: Betül's Twitter: https://twitter.com/betulland Betül's Instagram: https://instagram.com/betul.kacar.astro/ Kacar Lab: https://kacarlab.org/ Betül's TED Talk: https://go.ted.com/betulkacar PODCAST INFO: Podcast website: https://lexfridman.com/podcast Apple Podcasts: https://apple.co/2lwqZIr Spotify: https://spoti.fi/2nEwCF8 RSS: https://lexfridman.com/feed/podcast/ YouTube Full Episodes: https://youtube.com/lexfridman YouTube Clips: https://youtube.com/lexclips SUPPORT & CONNECT: - Check out the sponsors above, it's the best way to support this podcast - Support on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/lexfridman - Twitter: https://twitter.com/lexfridman - Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lexfridman - LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lexfridman - Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/lexfridman - Medium: https://medium.com/@lexfridman OUTLINE: Here's the timestamps for the episode. On some podcast players you should be able to click the timestamp to jump to that time. (00:00) - Introduction (08:20) - History of life on Earth (16:25) - Origin of life (39:11) - Genetic language of life (52:08) - Life and energy (1:02:50) - Ancient DNA (1:21:48) - Evolution (1:33:19) - Alien life (2:01:19) - Panspermia (2:07:41) - Restarting life on Earth (2:20:23) - Where ideas come from (2:27:54) - Science and language (2:36:31) - Love (2:37:55) - Advice to young people (2:42:29) - Meaning of life

29 Dec 20222h 47min