#32 - Martin Gruebele: Childlike Curiosity, Ultraracing, & the Art of Fully Living

Martin Gruebele is a professor of Chemistry, Physics, and Computational Biology at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. Outside of academia, he is known as the "Honey Badger," a force to be reckoned with in the world of endurance sports, having completed and often won Iron Mans, Ultratriathlon World Championships, the World’s Toughest Bicycle Race, and the World’s Toughest Foot Race. In this adventure, we delve deep into Dr. Gruebele's life and discover the story behind his incredible success where he shares insights on how to find your strengths, learn from mistakes, and choose what to study. What sets Dr. Gruebele apart is his ability to retain his childlike curiosity, making failure an opportunity for learning and growth. His tenacity and passion for chemistry led him to fight with his parents during his undergraduate studies, refusing to become a dentist and instead pursuing his love of chemistry. Eventually, his success and achievements proved to them that chemists can indeed survive and thrive. Dr. Gruebele's infectious curiosity doesn't stop at sports and chemistry. He learns just about anything he thinks is interesting and has published over 300 articles, books, and patents ranging from quantum computing to RNA and protein folding to zebrafish behavioral studies. He is always seeking new fields to explore and new knowledge to gain. In addition to Dr. Gruebele's impressive athletic feats and academic accomplishments, he has also become a master of Iron Mans, completing over 20 of these grueling races. Dr. Gruebele now finds them too easy, which is why he competed in the 1406-mile DECA 2022 World Championship ultratriathlon. But Dr. Gruebele's pursuit of excellence extends beyond endurance sports and academia. He has also written two books on ultra-distance cycling and ultra-triathlons. Dr. Gruebele's hunger for knowledge and adventure is palpable, and his approach to life is both inspiring and transformative. He immerses himself fully in everything he touches, emerging stronger, wiser, and transformed. Join us as we explore his simulation hypothesis, his thoughts on free will and religion, and how he generates ideas. Get ready to be captivated by Dr. Gruebele's awe-striking story to learn how to live life fully lived. Martin Gruebele is a man of exceptional talent and passion, whose pursuit of endurance sports and scientific exploration has taken him to the highest levels of achievement. His remarkable story is one of persistence, curiosity, and a relentless drive to succeed in everything he sets his mind to. This is The UIUC Talkshow. EPISODE LINKS: Martin Gruebele's UIUC Website: https://chemistry.illinois.edu/mgruebel Martin Gruebele's Research Group Website: https://gruebele-group.chemistry.illinois.edu/ Martin Gruebele's Ultra-distance Cycling Book: https://amzn.to/40cSHYO Martin Gruebele's Ultratriathlon Book: https://amzn.to/3K0ZT4y OUTLINE: 0:00 - Introduction 1:17 - Growing up in Germany, Austria, Spain, and the US 4:31 - Coding on the Apple II 8:27 - Turtle Neck 9:44 - Early Age Curiosity 14:09 - From Computer Science to Chemistry 16:35 - Great Teachers 21:29 - How to find what you're good at 28:54 - How to pick what to study 37:02 - Regrets 42:45 - How Martin Gruebele Learns 48:26 - Quantum Measurement and Zebrafish 55:29 - Quantum Biology 1:00:31 - Simulation 1:03:25 - Free Will 1:09:22 - Time perception 1:17:07 - Ideas1:22:10 - Favorite mistake 1:25:45 - What do you want to do before you die? 1:27:14 - Gruebele aka "The Honey Badger" 1:31:53 - Heartbeats and Longevity 1:36:54 - Ultraracing Lifestyle & 6000 calories 1:41:51 - How to maintain curiosity 1:43:14 - Advice for young people 1:44:09 - Religion and the Meaning of Life 🚥Overrated or Underrated Section 🚥 1:49:10 - 📚 Open Source Textbooks 1:52:26 - 🖲️ Stephen Wolfram 1:53:30 - 👩🏻‍🔬 Nancy Makri 1:56:20 - 🚵🏻‍♂️ The Iron Man 2:00:57 - Closing Words SOCIAL: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/uiuctalkshow Twitter: https://twitter.com/uiuctalkshow TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@uiuctalkshow Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/3ezoc4xJa4DrGq7N4lhqQn Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-uiuc-talkshow/id1611427075 Full episodes playlist: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL1H9UJqXvJXr3qlx9c89Rv76c6IpnwGeC Clips playlist: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL1H9UJqXvJXqdyEq7fuyUz9cmpdfqN1Rb What is the UIUC Talkshow? Our goal with this show is to introduce you to the most interesting people with the most interesting ideas from the UIUC campus. Learn more about Juan David & Aaryaman: Aaryaman LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/aaryaman-patel/ Website: https://www.aaryamanpatel.com/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/the_impact19 Juan David Website: https://www.juandavidcampolargo.com/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/jdcampolargo LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jdcampolargo Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jdcampolargo/