Deep Dive with Brian Greene on Creativity episode artwork

EPISODE · Jan 20, 2026 · 51 MIN

Deep Dive with Brian Greene on Creativity

from Kelly Corrigan Wonders · host Kelly Corrigan

Kelly sits down with theoretical physicist Brian Greene—who might seem like an unusual choice for a conversation about creativity until you learn he's turned the general theory of relativity into theater that makes people cry. They explore what it means to translate the mysteries of the universe into stories that move us, why Brian doesn't believe in free will, and how collections of particles governed by physical law can paint masterpieces and feel transcendent joy. Brian reflects on going from a laser-focused college student who only wanted equations to someone teaching a course called "Origins and Meaning" with no equations at all, and why his father pushed him away from music even though he was a composer. It's about cosmic communion, auditory "cheesecake", and what happens when science gets stitched into the fabric of culture. This is the third episode in our Super Traits series. This episode was made possible by a grant from the John Templeton Foundation. To learn more, please visit: templeton.org Thank you to our friends at the Aspen Ideas Festival where this episode was recorded. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Kelly sits down with theoretical physicist Brian Greene—who might seem like an unusual choice for a conversation about creativity until you learn he's turned the general theory of relativity into theater that makes people cry. They explore what it means to translate the mysteries of the universe into stories that move us, why Brian doesn't believe in free will, and how collections of particles governed by physical law can paint masterpieces and feel transcendent joy. Brian reflects on going from a laser-focused college student who only wanted equations to someone teaching a course called "Origins and Meaning" with no equations at all, and why his father pushed him away from music even though he was a composer. It's about cosmic communion, auditory "cheesecake", and what happens when science gets stitched into the fabric of culture. This is the third episode in our Super Traits series. This episode was made possible by a grant from the John Templeton Foundation. To learn more, please visit: templeton.org Thank you to our friends at the Aspen Ideas Festival where this episode was recorded. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

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Deep Dive with Brian Greene on Creativity

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This episode was published on January 20, 2026.

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Kelly sits down with theoretical physicist Brian Greene—who might seem like an unusual choice for a conversation about creativity until you learn he's turned the general theory of relativity into theater that makes people cry. They explore what it...

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