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The History of Physics Podcast
The History of Physics Podcast episodes
- Pythagoras and the Hidden Mathematics of Music
This episode dives into Pythagoras’ discovery that halving a string’s length doubles its pitch, tracing how this simple observation seeded harmonic analysis, Fourier series, Kepler’s planetary ratios, and even modern quantum field theory. We’ll explore the monochord, ancient debates over numbers versus mysticism, and the lasting influence of musical intervals on physics.
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18 min - Einstein vs. Bohr: The Quantum Reality Debate
Explore the famous clash between Albert Einstein and Niels Bohr over whether reality exists independently of observation, how their arguments shaped quantum theory, and the lasting impact on modern physics.
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17 min - Mohist Camera Obscura: The Ancient Pinhole That Illuminated Modern Optics
From the dusty archives of 5th‑century BCE China to today’s smartphone lenses, the Mohist pinhole experiment shows how a simple observation sparked centuries of optical theory. This episode traces the journey from Mozi’s curious observations through Greek and Islamic refinements to Maxwellian electromagnetism and contemporary imaging.
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17 min - Planck's Desperate Quantization: The Spark That Started Quantum Physics
Max Planck’s 1900 solution to the ultraviolet catastrophe—quantizing energy in a desperate mathematical move—laid the groundwork for quantum mechanics. This episode traces how that single tweak challenged classical physics, reshaped theory, and set the stage for Einstein, Bohr, and the modern quantum era.
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20 min - Mercury’s Precession: How a Tiny Planet Proved Curved Space
From Kepler’s ellipses to the anomalous advance of Mercury’s perihelion, this episode traces how astronomers’ meticulous measurements exposed a flaw in Newtonian gravity and pushed Albert Einstein to craft his theory of general relativity. We follow the chain of observations, calculations, and debates that turned a planetary wobble into one of physics’ most celebrated triumphs.
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18 min - Oxford Calculators: The Medieval Quest for Free Fall
The episode follows the Oxford Calculators of the 1330s as they wrestle with Aristotle’s claim that heavier objects fall faster. Through geometric reasoning, crude experiments, and cross‑cultural exchanges with Arabic science, they lay the mathematical groundwork that would eventually inspire Galileo and the universal law of free fall.
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19 min - Calculus Wars: Newton, Leibniz, and the Battle That Shaped Modern Physics
From Newton’s fluxions to Leibniz’s d's, this episode traces the birth of modern calculus, the heated priority dispute, and how the choice of notation set the stage for physics—from Maxwell’s equations to Einstein’s relativity.
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22 min - Halley's Comet Prediction & Rumford’s Experiment: How 18th‑Century Observations Sparked Modern Physics
We trace how Edmond Halley’s orbital forecast, confirmed by Johann Palitzsch in 1758, turned astronomy from descriptive to predictive, and how Benjamin Thompson’s hot barrel experiment laid the groundwork for thermodynamics. From comets to caloric debate, see how a few daring observations reshaped physics.
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14 min - Franklin's Kite Experiment and the Dawn of Electrical Science
Benjamin Franklin’s 1752 kite experiment proved lightning was electricity, sparking a chain from Coulomb’s torsion balance to Maxwell’s field equations. This episode traces that pivotal moment, its experimental rigor, and its lasting influence on modern electrical technology.
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17 min - Planck's Quantum Leap: The Desperate Fix that Sparked Modern Physics
In the late 19th century, Max Planck introduced a bold hypothesis to solve the ultraviolet catastrophe of black‑body radiation. His introduction of the energy quantum hν—originally just a fitting parameter—laid the groundwork for quantum theory, Einstein’s photoelectric effect, and the entire edifice of modern physics.
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16 min
About The History of Physics Podcast
From the publisher's feed
Explore the extraordinary history of physics, from the earliest attempts to explain motion, matter, light, and the heavens to the discoveries that transformed our understanding of space, time, energy, atoms, and the universe. The History of Physics Podcast follows the thinkers, experiments, equations, instruments, institutions, and scientific revolutions that built modern physics across thousands of years.
Episodes trace ideas from ancient Greek natural philosophy, astronomy, and mechanics through the Scientific Revolution, Galileo, Kepler, Newton, thermodynamics, electromagnetism, optics, statistical mechanics, relativity, quantum theory, nuclear physics, particle physics, cosmology, and the search for deeper laws of nature. The show also explores famous experiments, rivalries between scientists, failed theories, technological breakthroughs, major laboratories, mathematical innovations, and the historical circumstances that changed the direction of scientific thought.
Whether you are interested in Newton and Einstein, quantum mechanics, black holes, electricity, atomic theory, space exploration, or the people behind the equations, the podcast tells the human story of how physics developed and why its discoveries changed civilization. The History of Physics Podcast is hosted by Josh Linsk.