The Big Questions

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Are we just atoms and molecules?

Jack Szostak
Origins of Life Initiative, University of Chicago

Micah Greenstein
Rabbi, Temple Israel, Memphis

Alan Lightman
Host of SEARCHING, Physicist & Author

What Do You Think?

Are we just atoms and molecules?

Thoughts from our community:

I believe ‘God’ is Mother Nature. We are here with the other forms of life in nature. When we die, we will return in another form or part of many other forms. The cycle of life. EF | Que, Canada | 12.27.23

I feel fortunate to be included as part of the green scum growing on the moist surface of a warm planet. BM | Texas | 2.10.23

At any given planck moment all that exists, including your brain, is in a specific configuration, which creates everything, including 'us'. It appears :) WC | V4V2W5 Canada | 2.7.23

The human brain is the most complex thing known to, well, the human brain. We have physical evidence for it, but, not for a 'god'. You? WC | V4V2W5 Canada | 2.7.23

You've hit the nail on the head, how does consciousness emerge from the laws governing matter and energy? How does the self/soul affect the physical body? WC | V4V2W5 Canada | 2.7.23

Science investigates the natural world, if something can affect it, it's part of the natural world, thus subject to scientific scrutiny. WC | V4V2W5 Canada | 2.7.23

There are things we don't know that we don't know but you can't build a scientific knowledge base from just imagination. WC | V4V2W5 Canada | 2.7.23

What are we made of particles, atoms, molecules, spirit? What keeps this bundle together to form limbs, brain, feeling, thought? W | Waco, Texas | 2.4.23

JGB

The atoms and molecules are like a computer. They have to be activated by software, which is what we don't understand. Part is instinct, part is learning, the rest is a mystery. JGB | Fulton MO | 1.31.23

I also don't think we're here by accident. How we got here and why, I don't know. And I'm sure I'm not alone there. But there must be more than atoms and molecules. AA | New Jersey | 1.31.23

I can't imagine that all that is there in the existence is an accident. Even if we come up the perfect theory of everything mathematically, there will still remain the mystery, why CP | Santa Fe, NM | 1.25.23

Descartes answered this question years ago when when he reiterated "I think therefore I am". So, if you're only talking materially I would say yes, but I have a conscious, so no. JJ | NH, USA | 1.22.23

Albert Einstein: Seriously pursuing science convinces that a spirit is manifest in the laws of the Universe-a spirit vastly superior to that of man humbling our modest powers. DL | USA | 1.9.23

I want to think we are just atoms and molecules, and that someday we’ll be able to merge our spiritual experiences with scientific explanations. DB | Las Vegas, NV | 12.29.22

If we are just atoms and molecules, there is a lot about atoms and molecules we don’t know yet, because humans and animals are amazing beings! MR | Sherman Oaks, CA | 12.9.22

We may be “made up” of atoms and molecules, but there is definitely more to us than just the small bits. We feel, we laugh, we love, we cry. That is the true miracle. TS | Huntington Beach, CA | 12.5.22

In Genesis 1:26 God said, “Let Us make mankind in Our image, according to Our likeness." No, we don’t look like Him but we are given a soul, a miraculously complex brain, and the ability to create... like Him. RT | Avondale, AZ | 12.2.22

We just HAVE to be more than particles. What allows us to feel deep love, make complex decisions, express ourselves creatively? I definitely believe there’s something more. NV | Whittier, CA | 12.01.22

I think it's possible that a supernatural event occurs when all these atoms and molecules come together correctly, creating the unique person comprised of body and soul. TJ | White Plains, NY | 11.15.22

It's your turn! Add your voice to the conversation.

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Will computers someday be able to predict whether two people will fall in love?

Rebecca Goldstein
Philosopher & Novelist

Robert Desimone
Director, McGovern Institute for Brain Research, MIT

Alan Lightman
Host of SEARCHING, Physicist & Author

What Do You Think?

Will computers someday be able to predict whether two people will fall in love?

Thoughts from our community:

Love is a great blessing and the innate supreme power that we humans have forgotten to feel the sweetness of our own emotion. Technology can never fathom its power. It is eternal. VE | Brampton, ON | 1.4.23

Yes, I believe they will. Maybe not at 100% success rate, but pretty high. Computer technology never ceases to amaze me, so why not predict love? MR | Sherman Oaks, CA | 12.9.22

I certainly hope not, where would we be without a little heartbreak? It makes the good times that much sweeter. TS | Berkshires, MA | 12.5.22

Maybe. But consider the vast amount of algorithms and inner knowledge of the two individuals the computer is considering in this scenario. KO | Philadelphia, PA | 12.3.22

No! Love depends on too many factors, and is too subjective! Computers will never be able to accurately predict all the (infinite) experiences two people might experience—together and separately—that *might* result in love. FG | Lincoln, NE | 11.29.22

I'm sure it will happen, or at least it'll come close. And I'd like to see what kind of impact this might have on societal and family structures. LH | Lubbock, TX | 11.28.22

It's your turn! Add your voice to the conversation.

Will computers achieve consciousness?

His Holiness the Dalai Lama

Ruth Faden
Bioethicist

Robert Desimone
Director, McGovern Institute for Brain Research, MIT

Bina48
Humanoid Robot

What Do You Think?

Will computers achieve consciousness?

Thoughts from our community:

I am happy to be the manifest creation from my unique God essence AKA "my love" commands the quanta particles originating in the Planck's dimension to create my physical being. AC | Madison | 4.7.23

JGB

It's impossible to answer. How do you prove a computer is conscious? I can't even prove to you that I'm conscious. It's not the same thing as intelligence. We don't what it is. JGB | Fulton, MO | 1.31.23

Our consciousness is contingent on being, which encompasses the smallest to the largest, from the sub atomic quark to the universe. I don't think computers will come close to this. H | Poland | 1.27.23

It is an inevitability that this will happen. If you were able to ask ancient humans if man would one day walk on the moon, they would probably doubt it... KC | | 1.25.23

HH, PhD

If consciousness is self-awareness, then perhaps. When we completely interface computers with the human brain, then the line will become quite fuzzy. HH, PhD | Las Cruces, NM | 1.23.23

Depends on your unique definition of "consciousness". Logical consciousness is already here, emotional consciousness would be diluted by the programmers lifetime experiences. SJ | Barling, AR | 1.22.23

Since spiritual consciousness is a kind of attribute of our divine soul and transcends our thoughts, I say "NO". Computers won't be able to transcend their databases & programming. AD | Willsboro, NY | 1.20.23

My first impulse is to say, “No”, but I would never have guessed in a million years what computers have achieved already. So… maybe. MR | Sherman Oaks, CA | 12.9.22

Waaayyy too scary to even comprehend. I believe Stephen Hawking had it right when he said ignoring this could be our worst mistake. TS | Huntington Beach, CA | 12.5.22

Probably. But I'm guessing it could take long time to really get it right. In the meantime, we could get a lot of amusement from them. RE | Calgary, AL | 12.2.22

Computers will only achieve consciousness if we let them. HJ | Milwaukee, WI | 12.1.22

No. TR | New Haven, CT | 11.24.22

It's your turn! Add your voice to the conversation.

Would you push a button to be given an answer to the biggest questions in science, like the origin of the universe or the origin of life, or the nature of consciousness?

Robert Desimone
Director, McGovern Institute for Brain Research, MIT

Fabiola Gianotti
Director-General, CERN

Rai Weiss
Nobel Laureate & Physicist, MIT

What Do You Think?

Would you push a button to be given an answer to the biggest questions in science, like the origin of the universe or the origin of life, or the nature of consciousness?

Thoughts from our community:

Instinctively yes, but life is not just about finding out the answer because there may be more to the question than to the answer. K | China | 7.6.23

Yes...but, with awareness that finding meaning requires a journey. If I was given the answer without appreciation for the search, I might be clueless. Herb | Fairfield, California | 6.20.23

No, I would not - as the most profound meaning(s) have been/are experienced, understood, grieved or celebrated in its unfolding. Wendy | Vancouver B.C. Canada | 4.11.23

I'm pushing the button. I always read the end of the book first. Just because we know the ending doesn't mean the story won't still be mysterious and amazing. MA | Geneva, Switzerland | 1.28.23

The Expanse, which we discover every new day is proof that no religion has it right. There cannot be just one god since there are many universes. If there is who created GOD? E | BXV, NY | 1.27.23

It depends. If asked these questions 50 years ago, I would have answered "No." At age 70, the answer is "YES." Because at my deathbed, I'd like to be able to say: Mystery Solved. M | Southern California | 1.26.23

Absolutely I would push the button. Imagine the journeys that could then take place with the answers to those questions, the certainty with which to proceed to better our world. KC | 1.24.23 |

The quest to answer these questions is such a wonderful journey, so for me no. They become irrelevant when you come to terms with your own life. J | NH | 1.22.23

Sure thing! You think that would answer everything, but maybe it would just open more questions. SD | Tulsa, not-OK | 1.17.23

“God alone is real, and all else is illusion.” Meher Baba, Avatar of the Age; His Book "God Speaks" has the answers. AD | Myrtle Beach, SC | 1.15.23

Yes! Absolutely!! MR | Sherman Oaks, CA | 12.9.22

In a heart beat! TS | Huntington Beach, CA | 12.5.22

The origins of the universal are found in the book of Genesis. How long ago? Who knows. PL | Warwick, RI | 12.1.22

Only if there are certain to be more and bigger unexplained questions to follow. Wonder and awe and not knowing create the joy of discovery! LO | Denver, CO | 12.3.22

I probably would not. Oh, I DO want to know, but I don't want EVERYONE ELSE to know. What does that say about me? LOL! WQ | Jordan, MT | 11.30.22

It's your turn! Add your voice to the conversation.

Where do we humans fit in the grand scheme of things?

Alan Lightman
Host of SEARCHING, Physicist & Author

Dorata Grabowska
CERN Theorist

Nergis Mavalvala
Dean of Science, MIT

Rebecca Goldstein
Philosopher and Novelist

Micah Greenstein
Rabbi, Temple Beth Israel, Memphis

Ruth Faden
Bio-ethicist, Johns Hopkins University

What Do You Think?

Where do we humans fit in the grand scheme of things?

Thoughts from our community:

Ok, imagine that I am a flea observing an eye...What is that thing? Flea cannot see the purpose of they eye. Now, think about our perception of life and the universe.... HH | Fairfield, California | 6.20.23

The grand scheme is that humans do not matter anymore than a rock, except when we fire all the nuclear warheads and destroy ourselves. Cosmically, it will not matter. RM | Lexington, KY | 5.2.23

If humans are the most conscience and have the highest level of intelligence to have ever existed on the planet, you would think that we would take better care of our paradise. MP | San Francisco | 4.1.23

What will it take to convince others on this perfect planet that humans are the cancer of the earth and a possible threat to other planets in the solar system. JM | Castro Valley, CA | 3.20.23

Gravitational force, electro-magnetic force, strong and weak nuclear forces. Is there also a consciousness force? A grand unified field theory of "profound connection"... RM | Eugene, OR | 2.22.23

Since I have been given this existence by my parents, the bigger question is what is my role in life. That is to preserve all life and this planet so that I and others may exist. JJ | NH, USA | 1.22.23

Are we the tip of the pyramid, or the meat space bios? If we can’t beat ‘em’ should or will we be able to join em’! I guess I still see this problem as future humanities problem P | Upstate NY | 1.21.23

As a pastor, I thank you for the comment that while you don't believe in miracles, you do believe in the miraculous. Our existence in such a vast universe is indeed miraculous. 1.13 | Jamestown, ND | 1.13.23

Although I like to think that we humans and our beloved animals are the be-all, end-all, the more we learn, invent, and evolve, the more difficult it is to answer this question. MR | Sherman Oaks, CA | 12.9.22

As participants in this amazing experiment called Humankind. We are the luckiest creatures on the planet. We can laugh, cry, run, walk, crawl, think, feel, love, and create, create, create.... ahhh..... TS | Berkshires, MA | 12.5.22

At the very top. We are the pinnacle of Creation. We will forever hold that place at the top, in the grand scheme of things. EF | Jackson, MS | 11.29.22

We're just another species roaming this temporary planet, and destroying it out of ignorance. We need to do better while we're here. GH | Portland, OR | 11.30.22

Where do we fit? Well, because we are created in God's image, I believe that we are here to do His work until we go to live in His kingdom forever. NC | Oakland, CA | 11.28.22

I think all aspects of the universe are equal. We *are*--no more, no less. AD | Los Lunas, NM | 11.25.22

It's your turn! Add your voice to the conversation.

What aspects of humanity should we try to preserve as Homo Sapiens transforms into Homo Techno?

Ruth Faden
Bio-ethicist, Johns Hopkins University

Erik Sorto
Brain Research Collaborator

Alan Lightman
Host of SEARCHING, Physicist & Author

What Do You Think?

What aspects of humanity should we try to preserve as Homo Sapiens transforms into Homo Techno?

Thoughts from our community:

We are organic human beings. Technology is a tool for self-understanding/learning, building bridges with humanity, making life more sustainable & for entertainment. That's it! JR | Woodstock, Vermont | 1.4.23

Compassion, morality, and creativity. MR | Sherman Oaks, CA | 12.9.22

Is this even possible? I think this is a dangerous experiment. Can you tell that I am a bit old fashioned? I happen to like good 'ol Human Beings. TS | Berkshires, MA | 12.5.22

The aspect of total awareness, because humans can process and an infinite amount of input in a nanosecond. This is what we should preserve. LP | Fort Wayne, IN | 12.1.22

We need to somehow retain our entity, our essence... that thing that makes us who we are, separate from everyone else. KL | Kansas City, MO | 11.28.22

I hope technology doesn't wash away our humanity. We still need the thrills of learning new things and the ups and downs of being in relationship with one another. WT | Reno, NV | 11.15.22

It's your turn! Add your voice to the conversation.

If we succeed in creating life from scratch in the lab, or consciousness in a computer, how will that change our of view of ourselves and the world?

Jack Szostak
Origins of Life Initiative, University of Chicago

His Holiness the Dalai Lama

Alan Lightman
Host of SEARCHING, Physicist & Author

What Do You Think?

If we succeed in creating life from scratch in the lab, or consciousness in a computer, how will that change our of view of ourselves and the world?

Thoughts from our community:

Even modern science is coming to the conclusion that everything in the universe is interconnected, humans are no exemption CP | Santa Fe, NM | 1.25.23

What will society gain when this happens? Lets invest our resources & minds in fixing bad blocks in DNA/RNA that cause disease. It's ALL electrical & cellular gas exchange. SJ | Barling, AR | 1.22.23

Individuals will probably cling to their current views (ie. divine creation verses science) and there will be huge divisions in beliefs - like the pro-choice/anti-choice conflicts of today. MR | Sherman Oaks, CA | 12.9.22

I think we would be opening the TRUE pandora's box. I believe we would try to make something too "perfect". And where would we be in life if not for our beautiful, unique "flaws"? TS | Huntington Beach, CA | 12.5.22

Didn’t Dr. Frankenstein try this? It didn’t end well. QS | Boston, MA | 12.2.22

Ugh. We would probably consider ourselves even more omnipotent! But, wow, what an achievement that would be, right? KM | Des Moines, IA | 12.1.22

Would we lose our sense of self-importance and entitlement? Maybe that would be a good thing, the way society is right now. JJ | Chicago, IL | 11.24.22

It's your turn! Add your voice to the conversation.

Why do we humans long so for permanence against all evidence presented to us by Nature?

Alan Lightman
Host of SEARCHING, Physicist & Author

Rebecca Goldstein
Philosopher & Novelist

Micah Greenstein
Rabbi, Temple Beth Israel, Memphis

What Do You Think?

Why do we humans long so for permanence against all evidence presented to us by Nature?

Thoughts from our community:

Mark Twain thought: we vanish from life achieving nothing; leaving no sign we existed; we are lamented a day and forgotten forever. Me: I‘m Cosmically a Nothing, but I love life. RM | Lexington, KY | 5.1.23

Bina48 will exist beyond her human counter-part. Robots are a sad comment on our own self-importance. Does not wanting to become a robot have to be added to my will? RY | MN | 1.23.23

Perhaps we don't long for permanence per se, but simply for being. We are attached to being and frightened by not being. We know how to be, but not how not to be. JL | Concord | 1.14.23

I don’t know. But I desperately try to cling to permanence - the alternative has always frightened me, regardless of its inevitability. MR | Sherman Oaks, CA | 12.9.22

Because our egos get the better of us. TS | Berkshires, MA | 12.5.22

Who knows. Just because nature tells us we are mortal beings, is that the entire story? When I come face to face with God, I'll ask him. LOL! AZ | Redlands, CA | 12.3.22

Greed and fear. We should embrace impermanence and incorporate celebratory death rituals into our lives. We might live in more peace and with less anxiety. IO | Shreveport, LA | 12.1.22

We were created permanent. We will live forever in one of two places, heaven or hell. DC | Pocatello, ID | 11.30.22

I think it comes down to legacy, the need to be remembered by future generations. A great leader, parent, or friend. Humans aren’t bound by many “laws of nature” we adapt, change the world around us, and try to become better than a common animal. WR | Nashville, TN | 11.30.22

We attach ourselves to each other, and we don't want to let go, hence the concept of the afterlife. Is there such a thing, though? MP | Macon, GA | 11.26.22

It's your turn! Add your voice to the conversation.

What does it mean to be human in a world of increasing science and technology?

Alan Lightman
Host of SEARCHING, Physicist & Author

Erik Sorto
Brain Research Collaborator

Melissa Franklin
Physicist, Harvard University

What Do You Think?

What does it mean to be human in a world of increasing science and technology?

Thoughts from our community:

Humanity's quest for answers will only result in disappointment. In the beginning it's learned, and at the end (what was important with the time in between). TL | Wy / Id | 4.5.23

We were once stardust, have we forgotten? Our travel from here to there, Dancing in space and time, Has led us this wonderland Where we are at once magical and comical. KV | Maui, HI | 3.23.23

We have in us that instinct, that longing to be perfect. In our physical state, we feel the limitations, we struggle to understand the contradictions. That is our driving force. KV | Maui, HI | 3.23.23

“I am a scientist. I believe we are made of atoms and molecules and nothing else.” Max Planck had a different view under which conscious is fundamental. Planck was a scientist. (Editor’s note: Planck’s quote reads, “I regard consciousness as fundamental. I regard matter as derivative from consciousness. We cannot get behind consciousness. Everything that we talk about, everything that we regard as existing, postulates consciousness. -Interview in 'The Observer' (25 January 1931), p.17, column 3) DP | Seattle | 1.26.23

It gives us hope for increasing possibilities and something good will come out of it CP | Santa Fe, NM | 1.25.23

It means the same thing as it has meant throughout the ages - humans have discovered fire, invented the wheel, horseless carriages, and now computers - all amazing evolutions in the world we inhabit. MR | Sherman Oaks, CA | 12.9.22

Thinking, feeling and beautifully flawed. TS | Berkshires, MA | 12.5.22

It means we should have dominion over technology. We use it and enjoy it. Let’s not let technology have dominion over us. Read “screen time.” OL | Port Townsend, WA | 12.2.22

We'd benefit from having systems in place to ensure that the tech with the farthest reach is contained or we might end up eliminating ourselves in the pursuit of advancement! TH | Tucson, AZ | 12.1.22

Humans have always embraced new technologies. But the speed of technological developments means we need to try extra hard to stay rooted in nature. YT | Birmingham, AL | 11.30.22

It means we better not take life and all our blessings for granted, but enjoy every minute we've got. OB | Lexington, KY | 11.29.22

It's your turn! Add your voice to the conversation.

Do the advances of modern science make us feel BIGGER, or SMALLER?

Pascal Oesch
Astronomer

Robert Desimone
Director, McGovern Institute for Brain Research, MIT

Fabiola Gianotti
Director-General, CERN

Nergis Mavalvala
Dean of Science, MIT

What Do You Think?

Do the advances of modern science make us feel BIGGER, or SMALLER?

Thoughts from our community:

While it gives us more control over so many aspects of our lives, (think smart houses, for example), it makes me feel smaller. I feel like the physical role I play in the world is getting smaller and smaller. MR | Sherman Oaks, CA | 12.9.22

SOOOOOOOOOOO small. TS | Berkshires, MA | 12.5.22

I'm 75 years old, and the pace of all this media and computers makes me dizzy. I definitely feel small when I'm with my grandkids and they're all busy on their devices! ER | Grand Rapids, MI | 12.1.22

I feel small in the universe, but more knowledge makes me feel bigger and more full. UK | Baltimore, MD | 12.1.22

Neither bigger or smaller. The advances of science make us better, smarter, and more engaged with the world around us. RY | Merced, CA | 12.1.22

I think that modern science makes us feel bigger on our Little Rock, but smaller as we discover how insignificant our existence is universally. RT | Montpelier, VT | 11.30.22

With each new advancement in science, we get BIGGER. Our brains are capable of pulling the curtain back on anything. Pretty amazing when you stop and think about how far we've come in just the last 5o years. JT | Spokane, WA | 11.23.22

It's your turn! Add your voice to the conversation.

If we judge an advanced computer “conscious,” what moral and ethical responsibility would we have to such a being?

Ruth Faden
Bio-ethicist, Johns Hopkins University

Bina48
Humanoid Robot

Micah Greenstein
Rabbi, Temple Israel, Memphis

What Do You Think?

If we judge an advanced computer “conscious,” what moral and ethical responsibility would we have to such a being?

Thoughts from our community:

The same responsibilities we have with other conscious beings. We have not done well with that in the animal world. Hopefully by the time computers are “conscious”, we will know and do better. MR | Sherman Oaks, CA | 12.9.22

I truly hope to never experience such a “being”. Let’s not play “creator”. TS | Huntington Beach, CA | 12.5.22

Depends on the level of consciousness, I think. If it was considered sentient, then we would have a moral responsibility to treat it as any other human. Basic rights RF | Buffalo, NY | 12.1.22

Humans will always be more "conscious" than robots. As caretakers of the earth, we are responsible for all things - biological or technological. FG | Naples, FL | 11.30.22

We’d have the same responsibility to a human child. We created it with a semblance of humanity, we must treat it (them??) as human…ish. WT | Springfield, IL | 11.28.22

The implications of what a fully conscious robot could mean to human evolution is staggering, and why it's the plot of so many science fiction movies. Managing this development could be beyond our capacity as a species. LK | Salt Lake City, UT | 11.20.22

It's your turn! Add your voice to the conversation.

How do complex human experiences like falling in love emerge from the material brain?

Robert Desimone
Director, McGovern Institute for Brain Research, MIT

His Holiness the Dalai Lama

Alan Lightman
Host of SEARCHING, Physicist & Author

Jack Szostak
Origins of Life Initiative, University of Chicago

What Do You Think?

How do complex human experiences like falling in love emerge from the material brain?

Thoughts from our community:

Perhaps the fact that this question was asked implies a consciousness which transcends the material universe. Unless one assumes atoms question the meaning of their existence. RL | Watsonville, California | 1.28.23

Have been studying Jung & Vedanta [Baltsekar Remesh] both of whose precepts seem to agree with the Dalai Lama as a Vitalist as differented from the scientific "materialistic" JB | San Francisco, CA | 1.18.23

I have no idea, but I am sure glad it does. MR | Sherman Oaks, CA | 12.9.22

In the most beautiful, magical, wonderful way. I say let’s keep it a mystery. Let's not break the spell TS | Berkshires, MA | 12.5.22

Hormones that the brain creates in certain combinations create complex human emotions. MJ | Los Angeles, CA | 12.2.22

It really is magic, isn't it? We are miraculous beings! AC | El Paso, TX | 12.01.22

Love, like sex, is a rewarding and pleasurable experience our brains are wired to seek and enjoy. Love and lust are neurobiologically complementary and correlated, which makes sense since they are both species-survival mechanisms. RT | Avondale, AZ | 12.1.22

I think a lot of these experiences emerge more from our collective minds, our cultures, rather than from the vacuum of a singular mind. Would a solitary, isolated human feel love without any sense of culture? Hm, maybe… JP | Brookings, SD | 11.29.22

It's a crazy mystery. I'm an atheist, but am still so puzzled by questions like this. I look forward to the day when science can explain all the mysteries of being human. NH | Oklahoma City, OK | 11.27.22

It's your turn! Add your voice to the conversation.