The universe began with the Big Bang, right? But how did this chaotic, random event lead to an ordered, balanced universe? Recognizing this problem, in the 1980's, cosmologists developed a new theory called the inflationary Big Bang. This new model called for the early universe to inflate at super-warp speed in the blink of an eye; if this occurred, cosmologists said, it would be possible for the Big Bang to have produced the universe we live in without needing finely-tuned initial conditions. So the inflationary Big Bang made its way into college textbooks, television documentaries, and popular science books. Professor Paul Steinhardt, of Princeton University, is one of the leading theorists who developed the inflationary model into the form it appears today. In a recent Scientific American article, however, Professor Steinhardt raises serious doubts over the inflationary model, showing that it actually requires more fine-tuning than the original Big Bang theory. So where does cosmology go from here? On this show, Professor Steinhardt, along with host Philip Mereton, traces the development of the Big Bang theory and discusses what lies ahead for cosmology.
Scientific American article -- Link to: http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=the-inflation-summer (http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=the-inflation-summer)

Doomsayers have been predicting the end of the world since the beginning of time. Fortunately, all of them have been wrong. On December 21, 2012, the world, according to some accounts, is scheduled to end again as that day concludes the calendar for the ancient Mayan civilization (http://www.adishakti.org/mayan_end_times_prophecy_12-21-2012.htm). If that isn't enough doom, millions of people remain fascinated by a variety of other end-of-the-world scenarios ranging from the Rapture (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rapture)to global warming. Join host Philip Mereton, as he tries to make sense of it all with guest Justin Deering, author of the new book, The End-of-the-World Delusion: How Doomsayers Endanger Society (http://www.amazon.com/End-World-Delusion-Doomsayers-Endanger/dp/1475913540).

A cult is “a system of religious veneration and devotion directed toward a particular figure or object.” Members of a cult commonly do not question the cult leader, but view him as a figure of high authority. Scientisim is "excessive belief in the power of scientific knowledge and techniques." Some observers, such as this week’s guest, David Conn (http://www.truthsleuth.com), a leading expert on cults and author of the new book, The Specific Density of Scientists: and Their Secret Fears (http://www.amazon.com/SPECIFIC-DENSITY-SCIENTISTS-Their-Secret/dp/1477207724), believe that today’s scientists too often roam beyond the field of science (the physical world) and intrude upon the field of religion, which they typically find wanting of scientific evidence. On this show, host Philip Mereton and David Conn debate the question of whether scientists must learn to separate the scientific enterprise from the spiritual search for God. When scientists start opining upon the spiritual world, Conn argues, they begin to adopt the practices of a cult: veneration of authority figures and the failure to question them.

Modern science, and in particular, medical science, treats the body as a machine composed of parts called genes. These genes, just like any other machine-parts, are presumed to control the workings of the human body. If you're born with "good genes" you're lucky; if not, you always have an excuse because you can blame it on your genes. But modern research, pioneered by this week's guest Dr. Bruce Lipton (http://www.brucelipton.com), the author of the award-winning book, The Biology (http://www.amazon.com/Biology-Belief-Unleashing-Consciousness-Miracles/dp/1401923127#reader_1401923127) of Belief, shows that the environment changes the physical development of genes. This field, epigenetics (http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/body/epigenetics.html), is part of the growing new biology. Taking the findings of epigenetics one step further, Dr. Lipton, with host Philip Mereton, discusses how our beliefs and attitudes ultimately determine the make-up of our genetic "blueprint" and thus who we can become.

New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg is leading efforts to reduce consumption of sugary drinks (http://www.nytimes.com/2012/09/14/nyregion/health-board-approves-bloombergs-soda-ban.html?_r=0)in New York City. Michele Obama is focused on fighting childhood obesity (http://www.letsmove.gov/). But there may be more to fighting obesity than these ideas; consciousness may have a role here as well. As this week's guest, Shannon McKeown, author of the new book, Food Consciousness (http://www.mindurfood.com), puts it, "consciousness is how we feed our minds. Food is how we feed our bodies. The two must come together to manifest our spiritual nature here on earth." On this show, host Philip Mereton talks with Shannon about how a greater focus on inner spirituality may be the key to the elusive sustainable eating plan.

Emotions tend to run faster than thought; we feel before we think. Mastering the emotions is the key to the HeartMath (http://www.heartmath.org) system, which focuses on putting the emotion of the heart in harmony with the physical body. With this as a starting point, the thinking is that we can improve not only our attitude but our health and well-being by mastering the intelligence of the heart.. Taking the next step, the Global Coherence Initiative (http://www.glcoherence.com)is setting up a worldwide scientific experiment to test the hypthosis of whether emotions can change the world. Host Philip Mereton explores these intriguing ideas and more with this week's guest, Howard Martin, one of the founders of both HeartMath and the Global Coherence Initiative, and co-author of The HeartMath Solution (http://www.amazon.com/HeartMath-Solution-HeartMaths-Revolutionary-Intelligence/dp/006251606X/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1350526823&sr=1-1&keywords=heartmath+solution).

According to modern scientific theory, the Higgs Field permeates all space and gives particles mass. According to Eastern philosophy, a Karmic field pervades life and influences our future actions. Karma is the "unerring law which adjusts effect to cause, on the physical, mental and spiritual planes of being." The Biblical phrase "as ye sow so shall ye reap," the Golden Rule, and many other moral teachings express Karma in different words and at different times. On this show, host Philip Mereton, and Emanuel Kuntzelman (http://www.emanuelkkuntzelman.com), founder and president of the Center for Cultural Interchang (http://www.cci-exchange.com/)e and organizer of the November 18th Chicago conference, Envisioning a World Transformed (http://www.greenhearttransforms.org), discuss how the findings of science are beginning to support the existence of a Karmic field that may accompany, if not shadow, the quantum fields of science. Emanuel discusses how the Karmic field is not set in stone but can be adjusted by focusing not on what may have caused a current unpleasant predicament but on how creating favorable effects -- such as emanating good feelings -- can positively influence Karma and transform the field into the future.

This week's guest, Henry Stapp (http://noetic.org/directory/person/henry-stapp/), "one of the foremost minds of our generaton," worked with Wolfgang Pauli and Werner Heisenberg (http://www.nobelprize.org/nobel_prizes/physics/laureates/1932/heisenberg-bio.html), two of the founders of modern quantum theory. This theory, which toppled the classical mechanical worldview, is still slowly permeating modern thought, a century after its formulation. Dr. Stapp, in his many books, including The Mindful Universe (http://www.amazon.com/Mindful-Universe-Mechanics-Participating-Collection/dp/3540724133)and the upcoming The Mindlike Reality, takes a conservative, mathematical approach to interpretting quantum theory but reaches the bold conclusion that we dwell in a mind-centered reality. Listen in as host Philip Mereton engages Dr. Stapp in a discussion of how he came to his conclusions and why modern science is still resisting the unavoidable connection between mind and reality.

Quantum theory, first formulated in the early 20th century by Max Planck, Albert Einstein, Niels Bohr and many other luminaries of science, says that at the base of the world are not tiny particles but wave equations, probability functions, and something we can’t quite put our finger on. At a famous physics conference in Solvay in the 1920's, Einstein and Bohr began a debate over what quantum theory tells us about the nature of reality. Einstein wanted to perserve a reality independent of the observer; Bohr held there was no reality without an observation. This debate did not end at Solvay but continues to the present and is the topic of this week’s show where world-renowned physicist, author, and thought-leader Fred Alan Wolf (http://www.fredalanwolf.com/)joins guest co-host Dianne Collins (http://www.diannecollins.com)(creator of QuantumThink, and author of Do you QuantumThink? New Thinking that Will Rock your World (http://www.amazon.com/Do-You-QuantumThink-Thinking-World/dp/159079074X)), and host Philip Mereton in an original and penetrating discussion that brings the Einstein-Bohr debate to the forefront of our lives.

On this show, Gregg Braden (http://www.greggbraden.com), New York Times best-selling author of Deep Truth: Igniting the Memory of Our Origin, History, Destiny and Fate (http://www.amazon.com/Deep-Truth-Igniting-History-Destiny/dp/1401929192/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1348448855&sr=1-1&keywords=deep+truth+igniting+the+memory+of+our+origin), and many other books joins host Philip Mereton in a mind-opening discussion of how the false assumptions of the current scientific paradigm have given us a distorted image of ourselves and the world we live in. Modern textbooks teach that Darwin's theory of natural selection accounts for human evolution, but the findings of science show this to be untrue. Cooperation, not the survival of the strongest, is nature's way. These same textbooks make no mention of the role consciousness plays in the make-up of the world, though modern physics shows consciousness is integral to experiencing the world. Other textbooks suggest war is a basic human tendency, while evidence from lost civilizations reveal war may be a bad habit, but is not an innate feature of humankind. Meanwhile, multiple environmental, political, economic, and social crises are converging to a point never before seen, all suggesting that a paradigm shift may be necessary not only to explain the world we live in, but also for our survival.