Redefining Reality: The Intellectual Implications of Modern Science

Overview

Get a grip on reality in 36 enthralling lectures about the changing view of what’s real—in space, in matter, in society, and in your brain.

No subject is bigger than reality itself, and nothing is more challenging to understand, since what counts as reality is undergoing continual revision and has been for centuries. For example, the matter that comprises all stars, planets, and living things turns out to be just a fraction of what actually exists. Moreover, we think that we control our actions, but data analytics can predict, with astonishing accuracy, when we will wake up, what we will buy, and even whom we will marry.

The quest to pin down what’s real and what’s illusory is both philosophical and scientific, a metaphysical search for ultimate reality that goes back to the ancient Greeks. For the last 400 years, this search has been increasingly guided by scientists, who create theories and test them in order to define and redefine reality. And we have developed the power to alter our own reality in major ways—to defeat diseases, compensate for disabilities, and augment our intellect with computers. Where is that trend going?

Experience the thrill of this exciting quest in 36 wide-ranging lectures that touch on many aspects of the ceaseless search for reality. From the birth of the universe to brain science, discover that separating the real from the illusory is an exhilarating intellectual adventure.

Scientists and philosophers are not alone in grappling at an intellectual level with reality. Some of the most accessible interpretations are by painters, novelists, filmmakers, and other artists, whose works not only draw on the latest discoveries but also sometimes inspire them. Explore examples such as Alice in Wonderland; pointillism, cubism, and surrealism; and reality TV.

And since dealing with reality is an experience we all share, this course is designed for people of all backgrounds. No prior training in science or philosophy is assumed, but the thoroughness of the presentation assures that even those who have studied this problem in depth will find new connections and unexpected insights.

Course Structure

01: Metaphysics and the Nature of Science

Start with the metaphysical concept of reality and how it led to a scientific worldview. Then see how the scientific picture of reality changes as theories are refined or overthrown. Explore examples such as the germ theory of disease and philosopher Thomas Kuhn’s influential idea of paradigm shifts. (33 min)

02: Defining Reality

Take a step back to define reality as understood by the ancient Greeks. Then work your way forward through revolutionary ideas about reality proposed by Plato, Aristotle, Copernicus, Galileo, Kepler, and finally Newton, who inspired the Age of Enlightenment. Close with the Romantic backlash of the 19th century. (33 min)

03: Mathematics in Crisis

The most secure science, mathematics, hit the rocks of uncertainty in the 19th and 20th centuries. Trace the shocking discoveries of non-Euclidean geometries, Cantor’s paradoxes of infinite sets, and the incompleteness theorem of Kurt Gödel. See how Alice in Wonderland sheds intriguing light on this new view of reality. (31 min)

04: Special Relativity

Until 1905, physical reality consisted of absolute space, absolute time, and the luminiferous aether. Learn how Einstein’s special theory of relativity overthrew this deeply ingrained view and heralded an entirely new conception of reality. Examine how cultural figures such as Kurt Vonnegut drew on this legacy. (31 min)

05: General Relativity

Relativity was incomplete until Einstein formulated a general theory of relativity that incorporated gravity. See how this breakthrough demolished the age-old idea of gravity as a force, replacing it with the concept of warped spacetime, leading to strange predictions such as black holes. (27 min)

06: Big Bang Cosmology

Investigate the underlying reality that governs the universe. Is the universe eternally the same? Or is it changing and unstable? In modern times, this debate culminated in the contest between the steady state theory and the big bang model. Hear how unexpected events led to a spectacular solution. (29 min)

07: The Reality of Atoms

Atoms are the bedrock of ordinary matter, but a century ago many scientists were very reluctant to accept their existence, despite growing evidence that chemical elements come in countable units. Investigate the backstory of the atomic hypothesis, and witness its triumph and the complications that ensued. (30 min)

08: Quantum Mechanics

Delve into the paradoxical subject of quantum mechanics, which was pioneered by scientists probing atomic structure in the early 20th century. Learn about Max Planck, Niels Bohr, Werner Heisenberg, and Erwin Schrödinger. Focus on the Heisenberg uncertainty principle and the strange behavior of the Schrödinger wave function. (29 min)

09: Quantum Field Theory

See how quantum field theory led to a stunning synthesis called the standard model of particle physics, which was confirmed by the 2012 discovery of the Higgs boson. Study the startling implications of this theory for our understanding of reality. Close by examining its impact on the visual arts. (31 min)

10: Chaos Theory

Traditional attempts to understand the world assumed that it was regular, simple, periodic, and predictable. But nature surprised scientists, giving them a richer picture of reality through chaos theory, which includes fractal structures. Learn how chaos is not randomness but a previously unimagined complexity within the universe. (29 min)

11: Dark Matter and Dark Energy

What happens when the accepted picture of reality is dramatically overthrown? Watch this happen in the late 20th century, when scientists suddenly discovered two completely unexpected phenomena: dark matter and dark energy, which together dwarf the contribution of ordinary matter to the cosmos. (29 min)

12: Grand Unified Theories

Since its earliest days, science has been on a mission to unite disparate phenomena under the umbrella of more comprehensive theories. Follow the search for a grand unified theory (GUT) that unifies the workings of quantum forces, and a theory of everything (TOE) that quantizes gravity. One current TOE candidate is string theory. (31 min)

13: Quantum Consciousness

Can physics explain consciousness? Start with Descartes, who held the dualistic view that the mind and body are separate, and see how materialists countered that brain processes produce the mind. Then discover what physics has to say about free will, and probe the famous thought experiment involving Schrödinger’s cat. (31 min)

14: Defining Reality in the Life Sciences

Study one of the most complete transformations of reality in history: the new picture of life that emerged from the evolutionary theory of Charles Darwin and Alfred Russel Wallace. Close by tracing their influence on William Golding’s Lord of the Flies and on television reality shows. (30 min)

15: Genes and Identity

The mechanism that drives evolution was not discovered until long after Darwin’s death. Follow the clues that led researchers first to the cell nucleus, then to chromosomes and genes, and finally to the DNA molecule as the agent of heredity. Close by weighing the role of genetics in determining human identity. (32 min)

16: The Birth of Psychology

The quest to understand human behavior inspired researchers to study the mind. Investigate the theories of Sigmund Freud, who gave the world a new vocabulary, including concepts like ego, id, and superego. Learn how Freud’s legacy has been especially enduring in the horror film genre. (30 min)

17: Jung and the Behaviorists

Trace the different directions psychology took before World War II. Carl Jung extended Freud’s ideas to encompass a universal collective unconscious. Meanwhile, the behaviorists rejected the mind to focus on observable behavior, an approach that had profound influence on advertising and public relations. (30 min)

18: The Rediscovery of the Mind

The Holocaust raised troubling questions about the mind and its relation to authority. Examine three landmark experiments that tested the limits of human autonomy and came to shocking conclusions: Solomon Asch’s groupthink study, Stanley Milgram’s obedience study, and Philip Zimbardo’s Stanford prison study. (30 min)

19: The Caring Brain

Freudian psychology sees mothers as the wellspring of neuroses. Contrast this view with Harry Harlow’s groundbreaking studies of maternal caregiving and Carol Gilligan’s theory of differing moral development in females and males. Close with a powerful precursor to Gilligan’s ideas: Mary Shelley’s novel Frankenstein. (31 min)

20: Brain and Self

What makes us distinctly human? Analyze the contributions of genetics, environmental factors, and social interaction to our effective functioning as members of the species. See how CT, MRI, and PET imaging technologies provide windows into brain structure and activity. (28 min)

21: Evolutionary Psychology

If the human brain is the result of evolutionary processes, then many shared psychological traits must have adaptive advantages. Explore this intriguing view, known as evolutionary psychology. See how it can be illustrated by a simple logic problem, which perplexes most people until they tap into their innate skill for detecting cheaters. (32 min)

22: The Birth of Sociology

Culture imprints itself on our brains through the process of socialization. Investigate the insights that sociology provides—from the 19th-century founder of the discipline, Auguste Comte, to Herbert Spencer, Karl Marx, and Emile Durkheim, who suggested that crime has an unappreciated positive role in society. (29 min)

23: Competition and Cooperation

In the early 20th century, one of the most popular words in book titles was “crisis,” reflecting a widespread anxiety about a rapidly changing world. Study contrasting assessments of the stability of society from sociologists Max Weber, Pyotr Kropotkin, and Ferdinand Tönnies, as well as the influential analysis by industrialist Andrew Carnegie. (30 min)

24: Race and Reality

What differences between groups are real, and what differences are as arbitrary as a political boundary? Address this question regarding race, which less than a century ago was considered firmly rooted in biological reality. Trace the evidence that led this view to be conclusively overthrown. (33 min)

25: Social Progress

Continue your investigation of social reality by looking at the concept of progress. Social optimists and pessimists alike believe that society is progressing, but they see different causes. Evaluate their theories, and explore the idea that Western culture is doomed to collapse under its own weight. (31 min)

26: The Reality of Money

For all of its abstractness, money is a powerfully real phenomenon. Delve into the intricate events that unfold as money, goods, and services are exchanged in the economy. Examine how the ideas of John Maynard Keynes and the results of modern psychological research challenge the two primary assumptions of classical economic theory. (30 min)

27: The Origin of Life

Apply the reality-analyzing tools you’ve learned in the course to the problem of life. Consider the close connection between life and sunlight. Then look at the startling exception to this rule: the fauna that flourish around volcanic vents in the dark ocean depths. What does this tell us about life’s origins? (29 min)

28: Exoplanets and Extraterrestrial Life

Fiction writers have led the way in exploring the prospects of life beyond Earth. See how scientists are catching up, looking for extraterrestrial organisms using a variety of ingenious techniques. Learn how they are narrowing the search and which tantalizing clues have already turned up. (27 min)

29: Technology and Death

Reality for the individual ends at death. But medical technology is making that endpoint increasingly hard to define. Consider what it means to die and the complications that would ensue if we developed brain transplants or found the secret of immortality. (31 min)

30: Cloning and Identity

Modern technology has transformed procreation, birth, and parenting. Given the different donor and surrogate options, it’s perfectly possible to have a child with five biologically contributing parents. What are the implications of this revolution, especially if human cloning becomes the next new option? (29 min)

31: Genetic Engineering

Explore the history of genetic engineering, which has roots in the imaginary hybrid creatures of ancient myth. Learn how real hybrids can be made by splicing genes for desired traits into the genome of an organism. Then discover how this brave new technology is being used. (30 min)

32: Medically Enhanced Humans

With the availability of cosmetic surgery, psychoactive chemicals, performance-enhancing drugs, and other treatments, people are now free to redefine themselves in order to overcome their limitations. Probe a trend that is rapidly transforming what it means to be human. (32 min)

33: Transhumans: Making Living Gods

Prosthetics, eyeglasses, and other aids were once seen as less-than-ideal substitutes for normal human abilities. But now technology can enhance us well beyond what’s considered normal. Examine the superhuman traits currently available and those on the drawing board. Has the era of the cyborg arrived? (29 min)

34: Artificial Intelligence

Trace the evolution of artificial intelligence (AI) from simple calculating machines to computers that can vanquish chess masters. Learn the distinction between weak AI, such as a chess-playing machine, and strong AI, which is a machine that has a truly human-like mind. Question whether strong AI is even possible. (30 min)

35: The Internet and Virtual Reality

For all of their ubiquity, personal computers, email, and the Internet represent a major departure in the evolution of computer technology. Witness the exciting and improbable birth of personal computing in the 1970s, and explore the nature of the virtual world where more and more people now reside. (29 min)

36: Data Analytics

Today’s networked culture is a dream come true for researchers in fields from marketing to sociology to epidemiology. Learn how big data puts potentially everyone and everything under the microscope of analysis, creating a comprehensive view of the intricate reality in which we are all mere atoms. (34 min)