The Physics of Living Systems with Chris Kempes | Reason with Science | Emergence | Evolution

About this episode

Chris Kempes discusses the intersection of physics and biology, exploring life's origins and behaviors through physical laws.

This episode is with Chris Kempes, a professor at the Santa Fe Institute working at the fascinating intersection of physics and biology. Chris joins us to talk about some of the most profound questions about life starting from fundamental definitions to exploring life's potential multiple origins guided by the laws of physics. Join us as we explore the role of energy landscapes in Prebiotic chemistry, the physical basis of microbial behaviors, scaling laws that govern life's metabolic patterns, and how collective behaviors emerge in multicellular organisms. Let's embark on a journey to rethink life's mysteries through the lens of physics. Guests info: Website: https://chriskempes.com/Chris_Kempes/Home.html Episode links: Website: https://reasonwithscience.com/the-physics-of-living-system-with-chris-kempes Youtube: https://youtu.be/2rvJoa31-KI?si=TBAngZ5ZvgK3DoHC Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/episode/2NSmBsJWfp7l5ZJMaxRVsv?si=0ceaa05de2964ecb Apple podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-physics-of-living-system-with-chris-kempes/id1641776894?i=1000705041814 YouTube music: https://music.youtube.com/watch?v=2rvJoa31-KI&si=8jyG5q4MTQDiC7Ov Follow Reason with…

People in this episode

Host: Jitender Kumar

Guest: Chris Kempes

Topics covered

• physics
• biology
• emergence
• evolution
• energy landscapes
• microbial behaviors

Keywords

• physics
• biology
• emergence
• evolution
• energy landscapes
• metabolic patterns
• collective behaviors

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Santa Fe Institute

More episodes of Reason with Science

• Why evolution explains more than we think · December 12, 2025 · 1h 3m
• How sleep shapes the developing Brain with Mark Blumberg I Infant sleep neuroscience I Podcast · November 29, 2025 · 1h 24m
• The Metabolic Truth: Rethinking Calories and Energy with Herman Pontzer | Lifestyle | Health | Food · October 18, 2025 · 1h 16m
• Predicting future of the Planet with J. Doyne Farmer I Reason with Science | Complexity Economics · October 14, 2025 · 1h 10m
• Is evolution predictable? with Simon Conway Morris | Reason with Science | Emergence | Convergence · August 9, 2025 · 1h 47m
• How nature builds complexity | Ricard Solé | Reason with Science | Liquid brains | Synthetic worlds · July 26, 2025 · 1h 51m