WEBVTT - Is the Meaning of Life '137'?

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<v Speaker 1>Welcome to brain Stuff from How Stuff Works. Hey, brain Stuff,

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<v Speaker 1>Lauren vog Obam. Here, what's the key to unlocking the

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<v Speaker 1>mysteries of the universe? If you're expecting an incantation in

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<v Speaker 1>some ancient language originally divined by a holy quester sitting

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<v Speaker 1>cross legged on a mountaintop, this answer may disappoint you.

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<v Speaker 1>It might just be a number and not the number

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<v Speaker 1>forty two. Douglas Adams really was just joking about that,

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<v Speaker 1>but it could be the number A hundred and thirty seven.

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<v Speaker 1>Those three digits, as it turns out, have long been

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<v Speaker 1>the rare object of fascination that bridges the gulf between

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<v Speaker 1>science and mysticism, igniting the imaginations of folks from fringe

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<v Speaker 1>theorists and occultists to scientists and researchers to physicists. A

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<v Speaker 1>hundred and thirty seven is the approximate denominator of the

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<v Speaker 1>fine structure constant, which is the measure of the strength

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<v Speaker 1>of the electromagnetic force the controls how charged elementary particles

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<v Speaker 1>such as the electron and the muon interact with photons

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<v Speaker 1>of light. And we say approximate because it actually goes

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<v Speaker 1>on for a few decimal points. The exact value of

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<v Speaker 1>the fine structure constant is one over a hundred and

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<v Speaker 1>thirty seven point zero three five nine nine three. The

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<v Speaker 1>fine structure constant is one of the key physical constants

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<v Speaker 1>of the universe. Writing about it in a recent New

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<v Speaker 1>Scientist article, author Michael Brooks explained this immutable number determines

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<v Speaker 1>how stars burn, how chemistry happens, and even whether atoms

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<v Speaker 1>exist at all. Let's unpack all of that a little bit.

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<v Speaker 1>We spoke via email with Paul Davies, Regents Professor physics

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<v Speaker 1>at Arizona State University. He explained that the fine structure

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<v Speaker 1>constant quote characterizes the strength with which matter couples to light.

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<v Speaker 1>That is, the probability that an excited atom will decay

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<v Speaker 1>in a certain time. He said that if the constant

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<v Speaker 1>was bigger quote, Adams would decay faster. It is significant too,

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<v Speaker 1>because it is a pure number, he said, a ratio

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<v Speaker 1>of quantities with equal units, unlike say, the speed of light,

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<v Speaker 1>which is either a hundred and eighty six thousand miles

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<v Speaker 1>per second or three thousand kilometers per second, depending on

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<v Speaker 1>which units you prefer. British physicist Lawrence Eaves once explained

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<v Speaker 1>it this way. If the fine structure constant was a

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<v Speaker 1>different value quote, physics, chemistry and biochemistry would be totally

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<v Speaker 1>different and we might not be around to talk about it.

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<v Speaker 1>But practically, from the time of its discovery in nineteen

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<v Speaker 1>fifteen by German physicist Arnold Summerfeld, the fine structure constant

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<v Speaker 1>seemed to signify some larger metaphysical truth as well. We

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<v Speaker 1>spoke with Arthur I. Miller, and emeritus Professor of History

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<v Speaker 1>and Philosophy of Science at University College London. He said

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<v Speaker 1>that the fine structure constant quote, determines the distance between

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<v Speaker 1>an atom's spectral lines, which are the Adam's DNA, and

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<v Speaker 1>so it's one of those numbers that is at the

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<v Speaker 1>root of the universe. If it were any other value

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<v Speaker 1>than the structure of matter would be very different, and

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<v Speaker 1>so us too. People began referring to it as a

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<v Speaker 1>mystical number. He continued the language of the spectra, the

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<v Speaker 1>spectral lines, where Somemrfeld found it is a true music

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<v Speaker 1>of the spheres within the atom. People asked why it

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<v Speaker 1>has this particular value. Physicists could only conclude that it

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<v Speaker 1>cannot have this value by accident. It is out there

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<v Speaker 1>independent of the structure of our minds. But in nineteen

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<v Speaker 1>twenty nine, English astrophysicist Arthur Eddington, who played a key

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<v Speaker 1>role in establishing the validity of Albert Einstein's general theory

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<v Speaker 1>of relativity and was an early advocate of the Big

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<v Speaker 1>Bang theory, among other things, began expressing the fine structure

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<v Speaker 1>constant as one over a hundred and thirty seven. He

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<v Speaker 1>also saw it as having larger spiritual implications. Miller said,

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<v Speaker 1>Arthur Eddington saw a new mysticism which would emerge from

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<v Speaker 1>the natural sciences. Perhaps he thought the clue lay in numbers,

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<v Speaker 1>particularly the number one thirty seven. Eddington's reputation as one

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<v Speaker 1>of the great astrophysicists of his day put a great

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<v Speaker 1>deal of weight on this approach. Physicist Richard Feynman predicted

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<v Speaker 1>that the periodic table would end at one thirty seven

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<v Speaker 1>based on the rules of relativity, and Austrian born quantum

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<v Speaker 1>physics pioneer Wolfgang Paully became fascinated with the number as well,

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<v Speaker 1>since it figured in the mysterious intersection of relativity and

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<v Speaker 1>quantum theory that he explored with the help of his

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<v Speaker 1>friend psychoanalyst Carl Young. The scientific fixation on the fine

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<v Speaker 1>structured constant was such that in nineteen thirty six, Nature

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<v Speaker 1>published an article titled the Mysterious Number one seven. But

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<v Speaker 1>as Polly learned in the nineteen fifties from a religious scholar,

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<v Speaker 1>A hundred and thirty seven has another significance. It was

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<v Speaker 1>the number associated with the Kabbalah, an esoteric form of

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<v Speaker 1>Jewish mysticism, what Miller calls quote an extraordinary link between

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<v Speaker 1>mysticism and physics. The number A hundred thirty seven also

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<v Speaker 1>appears frequently in the Torah. It's the lifespan in years

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<v Speaker 1>of figures such as Ishmael and Levy, for example, as

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<v Speaker 1>well as the age of Abraham when he bound his

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<v Speaker 1>son Isaac to an altar in preparation to sacrifice him.

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<v Speaker 1>Author Billy Phillips, writing for kabbala student dot com, explained

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<v Speaker 1>that beyond that, the relationship of the fine structure constant

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<v Speaker 1>to light in physics parallels the combolists concept of connecting

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<v Speaker 1>with light or becoming enlightened by shedding the ego. Phillips

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<v Speaker 1>put it this way, the missing puzzle piece for physics

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<v Speaker 1>is consciousness. Today's episode was written by Patrick J. Tiger

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<v Speaker 1>and produced by Tyler clang. To learn more about the

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<v Speaker 1>number A hundred thirty seven, check out Miller's book seven

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<v Speaker 1>Young Polly and the Pursuit of a Scientific Observation, and

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<v Speaker 1>of course, for more on this and lots of other

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<v Speaker 1>articles that attempt to explain life, the universe, and everything,

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<v Speaker 1>visit our home planet, how Stuff Works dot com.