Ep258 - Nicole Yunger Halpern | Quantum Steampunk: The Physics of Yesterday's Tomorrow

Theoretical physicist Dr. Nicole Yunger Halpern visits Google to discuss her book "Quantum Steampunk: The Physics of Yesterday's Tomorrow." Victorian era steam engines and particle physics may seem worlds apart, yet a new branch of science, quantum thermodynamics, re-envisions the scientific underpinnings of the Industrial Revolution through the lens of today's quantum information revolution. Classical thermodynamics, understood as the study of engines, energy, and efficiency, needs reimagining to take advantage of quantum mechanics, the basic framework that explores the nature of reality by peering at minute matter, down to the momentum of a single particle. In her new book, intrepid Harvard-trained physicist Dr. Nicole Yunger Halpern introduces these concepts to the uninitiated with what she calls "quantum steampunk," after the fantastical genre that pairs futuristic technologies with Victorian sensibilities. While readers follow the adventures of a rag-tag steampunk crew on trains, dirigibles, and automobiles, they explore questions such as, "Can quantum physics revolutionize engines?" and "What deeper secrets can quantum information reveal about the trajectory of time?" Yunger Halpern also describes her own adventures in the quantum universe and provides an insider's look at the work of the scientists obsessed with its technological promise. Moving from fundamental physics to cutting-edge experimental applications, "Quantum Steampunk" explores the field's aesthetic, shares its whimsy, and gazes into the potential of a quantum future. Visit YouTube.com/TalksatGoogle to watch the video.