This podcast is produced by volunteers at Accelerator Media, a nonprofit educational media organization. Our work is supported by listeners and viewers like you. If you’d like to help us ignite curiosity and inspire long-term thinking about our shared future, please consider making a donation: https://acceleratormedia.org/donate/
In this episode of Go! For Launch, we meet Dr. Jessica Esquivel, a particle physicist working at a national lab who’s on the front lines of unlocking the secrets of the quantum realm. From studying muons and magnetic fields to dreaming about teleportation and time travel, Jessica shares what it’s like to be part of some of the most complex and collaborative scientific efforts in the world.
Jessica takes us inside the Muon g-2 experiment—an ambitious collaboration involving a massive magnetic ring, intense particle beams, and hundreds of scientists all working together to test the limits of the Standard Model of particle physics. She also opens up about her unconventional path into science, the importance of representation, and how asking so-called “stupid” questions might just lead to world-changing discoveries.
In this episode, you’ll learn:
1. How muons may hold clues to undiscovered particles and new physics
2. Why failure and curiosity are essential tools for scientists3. How quantum physics connects to futuristic ideas like time travel
4. What it’s really like to work on large-scale, interdisciplinary experiments
5. How high-energy physics and AI are working together to push discovery forward
Timestamps:
00:01:49 – What it means to be a particle physicist
00:03:16 – The power of representation and sci-fi inspiration
00:05:56 – Building and working with massive detectors
00:08:00 – Busting the lone genius myth in science
00:09:03 – The next generation of neutrino experiments
00:11:27 – Why physics is getting more interdisciplinary
00:13:25 – What is a muon—and why study it?
00:16:43 – Quantum fluctuations and virtual particles
00:18:09 – The three frontiers of high-energy physics
00:21:30 – Could this research lead to time travel?
00:23:28 – The role of failure in scientific discovery
00:26:22 – How AI and quantum computing are reshaping physics
00:30:23 – Redefining success in experimental physics
00:32:24 – What comes after Muon g-2?
00:37:21 – Why the future of physics is all about neutrinos
00:40:06 – Transferable skills and careers beyond the lab
00:43:12 – How particle physics tools could transform everyday life
00:45:33 – Final thoughts from Jessica
Helpful Links:
Careers in national labs:
https://www.energy.gov/science/careers
Muon g-2 experiment: https://muon-g-2.fnal.gov/
Intro to particle physics: https://www.fnal.gov/pub/science/
Follow Accelerator Media
X (Twitter): https://x.com/xceleratormedia
Instagram: https://instagram.com/xcelerator.media/
LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/company/accelerator-media-org
Website: https://acceleratormedia.org/
#GoForLaunch #ParticlePhysics #MuonG2 #QuantumPhysics #ScienceCareers #JessicaEsquivel #NationalLabs #Neutrinos #Podcast
Popular Podcasts
CrimeLess: Hillbilly Heist
It’s 1996 in rural North Carolina, and an oddball crew makes history when they pull off America’s third largest cash heist. But it’s all downhill from there. Join host Johnny Knoxville as he unspools a wild and woolly tale about a group of regular ‘ol folks who risked it all for a chance at a better life. CrimeLess: Hillbilly Heist answers the question: what would you do with 17.3 million dollars? The answer includes diamond rings, mansions, velvet Elvis paintings, plus a run for the border, murder-for-hire-plots, and FBI busts.
Crime Junkie
Does hearing about a true crime case always leave you scouring the internet for the truth behind the story? Dive into your next mystery with Crime Junkie. Every Monday, join your host Ashley Flowers as she unravels all the details of infamous and underreported true crime cases with her best friend Brit Prawat. From cold cases to missing persons and heroes in our community who seek justice, Crime Junkie is your destination for theories and stories you won’t hear anywhere else. Whether you're a seasoned true crime enthusiast or new to the genre, you'll find yourself on the edge of your seat awaiting a new episode every Monday. If you can never get enough true crime... Congratulations, you’ve found your people. Follow to join a community of Crime Junkies! Crime Junkie is presented by audiochuck Media Company.
Stuff You Should Know
If you've ever wanted to know about champagne, satanism, the Stonewall Uprising, chaos theory, LSD, El Nino, true crime and Rosa Parks, then look no further. Josh and Chuck have you covered.