Matt Cook's Sleight of Mind: Unraveling the Mysteries of Paradoxes
Paradox is a sophisticated kind of magic trick. A magician's purpose is to create the appearance of impossibility, to pull a rabbit from an empty hat. Yet paradox doesn't require tangibles, like rabbits or hats. Paradox works in the abstract, with words and concepts and symbols, to create the illusion of contradiction.
Ever been baffled by a paradox? In this episode of 'New Books in Drugs, Addiction and Recovery', Marshall Poe sits down with Matt Cook, the author of 'Sleight of Mind: 75 Ingenious Paradoxes in Mathematics, Physics, and Philosophy'. Cook, who is also a professional magician, takes listeners on a mind-bending journey through more than 75 paradoxes that stretch across various fields like mathematics, physics, and philosophy.
Imagine the perplexity of Maxwell's demon or the conundrum of Zeno's paradox—Cook explains these and more with clarity and wit. You'll travel from Ancient Greece to modern laboratories, meet twins living in different millennia, and even ponder the mathematical impossibilities in elections. Each paradox serves as a fascinating puzzle that challenges our understanding of reality. Cook's knack for making complex ideas accessible ensures that even those new to these topics will find themselves intrigued.
So, if you're curious about how reason can dispel the illusion of contradiction, this episode is your ticket to an intellectual adventure.