Running Out of Matter with Michelle Thaller
Summary
Astrophysicist Michelle Fowler joins Neil deGrasse Tyson and Chuck Nice to discuss her retirement from NASA Goddard and the impact of budget cuts on scientific talent. The trio answers listener questions on photon identity, the universe’s heat death, and gravitational wave interference. They explore how light interacts with matter, the fate of stellar formation, and the precision of LIGO’s black hole merger detections.
Topics discussed
Intro and Rosetta Stone sponsorship
Guest intro and NASA Goddard history
NASA budget cuts and brain drain
Sponsors: NOCO, DoorDash, T-Mobile, Alienware
Q&A: Photon reflection and time
Q&A: Universe heat death and solar corona
Q&A: Gravitational waves and black holes
Sponsors: Atruby and Star Trek
Q&A: Neutron stars and radio bursts
Q&A: Alien life, first stars, and science advice
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