Explore every episode of the podcast The Fundamental Why

In this episode, co-hosts Cary and Saahil explore the nature of time through both scientific and philosophical lenses. They discuss its definition, relativity’s impact on time perception, and theories like time dilation, A-Theory vs. B-Theory, and the Block Universe. The episode questions whether time is fundamental or a mental construct, and how our understanding of time shapes daily life. Open discussions tackle free will, the direction of time, and the mystery of time before the Big Bang. Listeners are invited to reflect on which theory they believe in and consider one defining question: What is the nature of time?

In this teaser episode, hosts Saahil and Cary introduce The Fundamental Why, a podcast dedicated to exploring the deepest questions in physics and philosophy — from the nature of time and consciousness to the origin and structure of the universe.

We begin with brief personal introductions and the story behind our podcast title. Why “The Fundamental Why”? Because we’re drawn to the foundational questions — the “why” behind the laws of nature, the concepts we take for granted, and the boundaries of what we think we know.

This episode outlines the vision for the podcast: to create engaging, thoughtful discussions that blend scientific exploration with philosophical reflection. Each episode will follow a flexible structure:

• An introduction to the topic,
• A breakdown of core physics concepts,
• A dive into the related philosophical implications.

Some episodes will feature just the two of us in conversation, while others will include interviews with students, teachers, professors, and professionals who share our curiosity for the unknown.

We also preview our first major theme: What is physics? What is philosophy? From classical mechanics and quantum theory to metaphysics and epistemology, we explore how these two disciplines — one empirical, one reflective — intersect to shape our understanding of reality.

Along the way, we introduce some of the guiding questions that will shape future episodes:

• What is the nature of time?
• Does the universe have a beginning or end?
• Can we ever truly know anything?
• What is consciousness?
• Where do the limits of science meet the boundaries of thought?

Whether you're a physics enthusiast, a philosophy lover, or just someone who enjoys thinking deeply, The Fundamental Why is an invitation to join us in questioning everything — one episode at a time.

Subscribe now, send us your questions, and stay tuned as we dive into the big “whys” of existence in the episodes ahead.

How did the universe begin? Was it a divine creation, a quantum glitch, or a line of alien code? In this episode, co-hosts Saahil and Cary explore the origin of everything—from the dramatic Big Bang and cosmic inflation to the mind-bending simulation hypothesis. We dive into philosophical questions like whether the laws of physics existed before the universe and whether “nothing” can really create something. This episode lays the foundation for our entire podcast series. Join us at the very beginning—where time, matter, and meaning all collide.

What do you think caused the universe?

How does the universe meet its end? Will it drift into a frozen void, collapse in on itself, or be torn apart by dark energy? In the 3rd episode of The Fundamental Why, Cary and Saahil explore both physics and philosophy: from heat death, the Big Crunch, Big Rip, and vacuum decay to cosmic nihilism, eternal recurrence, and determinism. Can we even know how it ends—and does that knowledge even give meaning to existence? Join us as we close the loop from the birth of the cosmos to its ultimate destiny.

What if every choice you ever made—and didn't make—created a new reality? A universe where you missed that train, took that job, or never existed at all. This isn't just science fiction; it's a possibility that emerges from our deepest theories of the cosmos.

In this episode of The Fundamental Why, hosts Saahil and Cary are joined by a special surprise guest, John Wang, to journey through the mind-bending concept of the multiverse. We break down physicist Max Tegmark's four distinct levels of parallel universes, from the statistically inevitable (doppelgängers living in a universe just like ours) to the truly bizarre (realities where the laws of physics are completely different).

Join us as we explore: 🌌 Level I: The Quilted Multiverse - Are there infinite copies of you out there? 💥 Level II: Bubble Universes - Did our Big Bang create just one universe in a cosmic foam? 🔬 Level III: The Quantum Many-Worlds - Does every decision split reality? 🔢 Level IV: The Mathematical Universe - Is our reality just one possible equation?

But we don't stop at the physics. We dive headfirst into the profound philosophical questions: If infinite versions of you exist, what does that mean for your identity? Does free will still matter? And does the multiverse violate the principle of Occam's Razor?

Let us know your answer to our final question in the comments: Would you want to know about the lives of your parallel selves?

🔮 Welcome to Part 1 of our Quantum Mechanics Mini-Series!

Imagine believing physics was finished — that the universe was a perfect, predictable clockwork machine… until everything broke. Today, we dive into the moment science flipped upside down. This is The Fundamental Why, and in this episode, we unravel how quantum mechanics shattered classical certainty and opened the door to one of the biggest questions ever asked: Do we truly have free will?

🎙️ Guest Speaker: Khanjan

We’re joined by Khanjan, a university student specializing in quantum physics. He shares how he got into this field, his background, and why quantum mechanics continues to challenge our deepest assumptions about reality.

1. Introduction

We set the stage with the downfall of Newtonian determinism — the idea that the entire universe could be predicted if we just knew the initial conditions. From classical laws to the cracks in the system, we explore how physics went from certainty to strangeness.

2. The Birth of Quantum Mechanics

We walk through:

• Newton’s clockwork universe → Perfect predictability, cause-and-effect, the illusion of free will

• UV Catastrophe → Why classical physics failed dramatically

• Blackbody radiation and why objects emit EM radiation

• Photoelectric Effect → Why dim purple light knocks out electrons but bright red doesn’t

• Planck’s quantum breakthrough → Energy in quanta, not smooth waves

• Einstein’s photons → Wave-particle duality begins

• Definition of Quantum Mechanics → A probabilistic framework describing the microscopic world

3. Philosophical Implications

We explore three major interpretations and what they say about free will:

• Copenhagen Interpretation → Reality isn’t real until observed

• Hidden Variable Theory → “God does not play dice” — Einstein’s determinism

• Many-Worlds Interpretation → Infinite branching universes where all outcomes happen

These theories raise a central question: If the quantum world is probabilistic, are we more free—or just more random?

4. Open Discussion

We debate the strangest, most counterintuitive aspects of quantum physics and challenge each other with the big question:

Does quantum indeterminacy give humans more agency… or simply remove predictability?

We recap the journey:

Newton → cracks in classical physics → quantum leap → free will vs. determinism.

Listener Question:

👉 Do you think quantum mechanics gives us free will—or just changes the kind of uncertainty we have?

A) Yes, it gives us freedom

B) No, it’s just randomness

C) It’s more complicated…

Huge thank you to our guest, Khanjan, for joining us!

Special thanks to our editor, Alman Hashmi, for bringing this episode to life with stunning visuals and seamless audio!

Next time, we dive deeper into the quantum rabbit hole: superposition, entanglement, and wave-function collapse.

👍 Like, comment, and subscribe for Part 2 — coming soon!

🎙 Episode 6: Quantum Superposition & The Uncertainty Principle

Last episode, quantum mechanics broke classical physics.

Today, we ask something more unsettling:

What did it replace it with?

In Part 2 of our quantum series, we explore:

🌀 Superposition: can something exist in multiple states at once?

⚛ The Uncertainty Principle: is reality fundamentally limited?

🧠 Free will, determinism, and whether randomness means freedom

Is the world fuzzy, or are we?

We move beyond equations and ask whether possibilities themselves are real.

A huge thank you to our guest Fannie Zhao for sharing her insights from experimental condensed matter physics and quantum materials research, and for reminding us that physics isn’t something to fear, but something to explore.

What if two particles could stay connected—even across light-years?

Can this enable faster-than-light communication? 

Are particles truly separate—or never independent at all?

In Part 3 of our Quantum Mechanics series, we dive into quantum entanglement—one of the strangest ideas in physics. We break down how entangled particles share a single state, challenge locality, and led Einstein to call it “spooky action at a distance.”

**Many thanks to Han, a master's student at the University of Alberta, for joining us today for our discussion! 🙏

Subscribe for more deep dives into the nature of reality.