In this episode, the 632 nm Podcast teams up with Daniel Aaronovitch from Data Science Decoded. Daniel, Xinghui, Misha and Mike discuss Eugene Wigner's essay The Unreasonable Effectiveness of Mathematics in the Natural Sciences. Follow along as they ponder the secrets of the universe. Break down the key points of the essay and go off on various entertaining tangents.

This is the first episode in our Origins of Life series where we will interview an interdisciplinary group of scientists working at the cutting edge of one of the most profound unanswered questions: How does matter become living nanotechnology and how did it happen here on earth?

Our first guest, Anna Wong, professor at UNSW Sydney, shares her insights into the properties of cell membranes and her experiences at Harvard under the mentorship of Nobel Laureate Jack Szostak. We discuss Origins of Life research broadly, as well as her work on the physics of lipid membranes.

Our podcast team is excited to bring you a wide-ranging conversation with MIT Professor Moungi Bawendi, 2023 Nobel laureate in Chemistry, who pioneered the controlled synthesis of semiconductor quantum dots (the source of the "Q' in QLED TVs). We cover the exciting story of his discovery, the scientific and historical context, alchemy, flaws in today's system of research funding, and more.