In today’s episode, MIT computational biologist Manolis Kellis dive into the hidden patterns linking DNA, evolution, and cognition, exploring a potential unifying theory that bridges biology, AI, and the essence of life. New Substack! Follow my personal writings and EARLY ACCESS episodes here: https://curtjaimungal.substack.com SPONSOR (THE ECONOMIST): As a listener of TOE you can get a special 20% off discount to The Economist and all it has to offer! Visit https://www.economist.com/toe LINKS MENTIONED: - Manolis Kellis’s Lab (website): https://compbio.mit.edu/ - Manolis Kellis’s profile: https://web.mit.edu/manoli/ - Curt’s article on language: https://curtjaimungal.substack.com/p/language-isnt-just-low-resolution - Chiara Marletto on TOE: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Uey_mUy1vN0 - Roger Penrose on TOE: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sGm505TFMbU TIMESTAMPS: 00:00 - Introduction 02:05 - The Scope of Biological Unification 06:02 - Biology vs. Physics 09:31 - DNA as Life’s Language 13:45 - The Universal Compatibility of DNA 16:55 - Evolutionary Trade-Offs and Isolation 20:17 - Layers of Abstraction in Biology 24:51 - Beyond DNA: The Role of Histones 30:30 - Protein Folding and Function 35:26 - How Cells Interpret DNA Signals 40:24 - The Creativity of Language and Miscommunication 44:55 - Teaching and Simplification 51:09 - Evolution of Cognition and Centralized Decision-Making 57:35 - Vertical vs. Horizontal Evolution 1:04:20 - Specialization and Society’s Role in Evolution 1:08:50 - The Future of Biological Understanding TOE'S TOP LINKS: - Support TOE on Patreon: https://patreon.com/curtjaimungal (early access to ad-free audio episodes!) - Listen to TOE on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/4gL14b92xAErofYQA7bU4e - Become a YouTube Member Here: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCdWIQh9DGG6uhJk8eyIFl1w/join - Join TOE's Newsletter 'TOEmail' at https://www.curtjaimungal.org Other Links: - Twitter: https://twitter.com/TOEwithCurt - Discord Invite: https://discord.com/invite/kBcnfNVwqs - iTunes: https://podcasts.apple.com/ca/podcast/better-left-unsaid-with-curt-jaimungal/id1521758802 - Subreddit r/TheoriesOfEverything: https://reddit.com/r/theoriesofeverything #science #sciencepodcast #physics #biology #consciousness Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices