Quantum physics is for everybody

Subatomic particles, gravity wells and the beginning of the universe – these are difficult and mysterious concepts that are better understood with storytelling and metaphor. That’s exactly theoretical physicist Chanda Prescod-Weinstein ’s tack in the new book The Edge of Space-Time : use metaphor and wonder to bridge the gap between people’s confusion and excitement with quantum physics. In this episode we talk about Star Trek, how first year physics students are taught and how theoretical physics affects your everyday life. Interested in more space science? Email us your question at shortwave@npr.org . Listen to every episode of Short Wave sponsor-free and support our work at NPR by signing up for Short Wave+ at plus.npr.org/shortwave . Listen to Short Wave on Spotify and Apple Podcasts . This episode was produced by Hannah Chinn. It was edited by Rebecca Ramirez. Tyler Jones checked the facts. The audio engineer was Jimmy Keeley. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences. NPR Privacy Policy

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Quantum physics is for everybody is an episode from Short Wave by NPR.

This episode is 14:12 long.

This episode was published on Apr 8, 2026.

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