Cosmic strings may be ultra-thin defects in spacetime—relic “cracks” from the early universe. How we’d detect them, what they mean for physics, and how aliens might exploit them.

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Credits:

Cosmic Strings – Cracks in the Fabric of the Universe

Written, Produced & Narrated by: Isaac Arthur

Select imagery/video supplied by Getty Images

Chapters

0:00 Intro - Cracks in the Fabric of the Universe

6:11 From Defects to Cosmic Strings

13:31 Civilizations and Cosmic Strings: Tools, Traps, and Temptations

19:43 Nebula

20:39 Cousins, Confusions, and What a Discovery Would Mean

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Cosmic strings may be ultra-thin defects in spacetime—relic “cracks” from the early universe. How we’d detect them, what they mean for physics, and how aliens might exploit them.

Get Nebula using my link for 50% off an annual subscription: https://go.nebula.tv/isaacarthur

Watch my exclusive video Settling Saturn's Rings: https://nebula.tv/videos/isaacarthur-settling-saturns-rings-exploring-the-origins-resources-and-future-habitats-of-a-halo-world

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Credits:

Cosmic Strings – Cracks in the Fabric of the Universe

Written, Produced & Narrated by: Isaac Arthur

Select imagery/video supplied by Getty Images

Chapters

0:00 Intro - Cracks in the Fabric of the Universe

6:11 From Defects to Cosmic Strings

13:31 Civilizations and Cosmic Strings: Tools, Traps, and Temptations

19:43 Nebula

20:39 Cousins, Confusions, and What a Discovery Would Mean

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Interstellar city-states may dominate future space travel, governing the laser highways that connect stars and shape galactic civilization.

Get Nebula using my link for 50% off an annual subscription: https://go.nebula.tv/isaacarthur

Watch my exclusive video Settling Saturn's Rings: https://nebula.tv/videos/isaacarthur-settling-saturns-rings-exploring-the-origins-resources-and-future-habitats-of-a-halo-world

Check out Practical Engineering: https://nebula.tv/videos/realengineering-the-anatomy-of-the-nokia-3310/?ref=isaacarthur

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Credits:

Interstellar Banking - The Galactic Financial System

Produced & Narrated by: Isaac Arthur

Written & Edited by: Briana Brownell, Isaac Arthur, Merv Johnson II, Thomas Owens

Graphics from Jeremy Jozwik & Sergio Botero

Music Courtesy of Chris Zabriskie & Stellardrone

Select imagery/video supplied by Getty Images

Chapters

0:00 Intro

4:45 Foundations of Currency in Space

6:06 Commodity Money

8:47 Fiat Money

10:40 Crypto & Distributed Ledgers

12:09 Time Dilation, Distance, and the Death of Real-Time Banking

12:55 Interplanetary Banking

18:34 Interstellar Banking

19:50 Interstellar Banking (Light-Years Away)

22:56 Intergalactic & FTL Banking

25:09 Automation, AI, and Autonomous Banking

26:22 CT Scan

27:28 Cultural and Ethical Dimensions of Cosmic Wealth

28:45 The Economics of Forever

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Interstellar city-states may dominate future space travel, governing the laser highways that connect stars and shape galactic civilization.

Get Nebula using my link for 50% off an annual subscription: https://go.nebula.tv/isaacarthur

Watch my exclusive video Settling Saturn's Rings: https://nebula.tv/videos/isaacarthur-settling-saturns-rings-exploring-the-origins-resources-and-future-habitats-of-a-halo-world

Check out Practical Engineering: https://nebula.tv/videos/realengineering-the-anatomy-of-the-nokia-3310/?ref=isaacarthur

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Credits:

Interstellar Banking - The Galactic Financial System

Produced & Narrated by: Isaac Arthur

Written & Edited by: Briana Brownell, Isaac Arthur, Merv Johnson II, Thomas Owens

Graphics from Jeremy Jozwik & Sergio Botero

Music Courtesy of Chris Zabriskie & Stellardrone

Select imagery/video supplied by Getty Images

Chapters

0:00 Intro

4:45 Foundations of Currency in Space

6:06 Commodity Money

8:47 Fiat Money

10:40 Crypto & Distributed Ledgers

12:09 Time Dilation, Distance, and the Death of Real-Time Banking

12:55 Interplanetary Banking

18:34 Interstellar Banking

19:50 Interstellar Banking (Light-Years Away)

22:56 Intergalactic & FTL Banking

25:09 Automation, AI, and Autonomous Banking

26:22 CT Scan

27:28 Cultural and Ethical Dimensions of Cosmic Wealth

28:45 The Economics of Forever

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Humanity may not colonize planets—we may build our own worlds. Explore how rotating space habitats could spread across the Solar System and beyond, forming a vast diaspora of artificial worlds that reshape civilization and interstellar expansion.

Get Nebula using my link for 50% off an annual subscription: https://go.nebula.tv/isaacarthur

Watch my exclusive video Settling Saturn's Rings: https://nebula.tv/videos/isaacarthur-settling-saturns-rings-exploring-the-origins-resources-and-future-habitats-of-a-halo-world

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Credits:

The Space Habitat Diaspora – Humanity Spreads Without Planets

Written, Produced & Narrated by: Isaac Arthur

Graphics from Bryan Versteeg, Jeremy Jozwik, Sergio Botero, Udo Schroeter

Select imagery/video supplied by Getty Images

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Humanity may not colonize planets—we may build our own worlds. Explore how rotating space habitats could spread across the Solar System and beyond, forming a vast diaspora of artificial worlds that reshape civilization and interstellar expansion.

Get Nebula using my link for 50% off an annual subscription: https://go.nebula.tv/isaacarthur

Watch my exclusive video Settling Saturn's Rings: https://nebula.tv/videos/isaacarthur-settling-saturns-rings-exploring-the-origins-resources-and-future-habitats-of-a-halo-world

🛒 SFIA Merchandise: https://isaac-arthur-shop.fourthwall.com/

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Credits:

The Space Habitat Diaspora – Humanity Spreads Without Planets

Written, Produced & Narrated by: Isaac Arthur

Graphics from Bryan Versteeg, Jeremy Jozwik, Sergio Botero, Udo Schroeter

Select imagery/video supplied by Getty Images

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Is science nearing its limits? We explore whether humanity could ever run out of discoveries—or if the universe guarantees endless questions, deeper mysteries, and new frontiers forever.

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❤️ Support us on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/IsaacArthur

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Credits:

The End of Science

Episode 488a; Originally Aired: March 1, 2025; Nebula Exclusive

Written, Produced & Narrated by: Isaac Arthur

Select imagery/video supplied by Getty Images

Music Courtesy of Epidemic Sound http://epidemicsound.com/creator

Phase Shift, "Forest Night"

Chris Zabriskie, "Unfoldment, Revealment", "A New Day in a New Sector", "Oxygen Garden"

Stellardrone, "Red Giant", "Billions and Billions"

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Is science nearing its limits? We explore whether humanity could ever run out of discoveries—or if the universe guarantees endless questions, deeper mysteries, and new frontiers forever.

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here → https://nordvpn.com/isaacarthur It’s risk-free

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Credits:

The End of Science

Episode 488a; Originally Aired: March 1, 2025; Nebula Exclusive

Written, Produced & Narrated by: Isaac Arthur

Select imagery/video supplied by Getty Images

Music Courtesy of Epidemic Sound http://epidemicsound.com/creator

Phase Shift, "Forest Night"

Chris Zabriskie, "Unfoldment, Revealment", "A New Day in a New Sector", "Oxygen Garden"

Stellardrone, "Red Giant", "Billions and Billions"

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.