An independent research lab exploring the future of research and education.
We envision a renaissance in fundamental research, where genuine curiosity drives discovery rather than metrics and prestige. We're working to create an environment where deep thinkers can pursue truth freely, unencumbered by institutional politics and funding pressures. Though our specific projects evolve, everything we do supports this core mission.
Developing and testing new approaches to learning that emphasize deep understanding over memorization, fostering genuine intellectual curiosity.
Exploring systematic issues in research and building alternatives that enable paradigm shifts instead of incrementalism.
Creating accessible yet rigorous content that helps people understand fundamental concepts in physics, mathematics, and other fields.
Clear and intuitive introductions to the fundamental theories of physics
Curation of high-signal content on the nature of reality.
Conversations with thinkers trying to uncover "Zeros" instead of practicing incrementalism.
Physics concepts explained in three levels of difficulty.
Even though more money than ever is spent on research, progress in most fields is stagnating. In fundamental physics, for example, there has been no progress in the last 60 years.
After the second world war, the education system shifted towards producing PhDs at scale. Instead of just a few genuine seekers of truth, there were suddenly thousands of people flooding the education system. To adapt, deep discussions were replaced by lectures focused purely on technical aspects that can be easily tested. The influx of big money also meant that the focus shifted from the pursuit of truth to the pursuit of funding and prestige.
Instead of worrying about deep questions, researchers started to worry about university politics, publication games, and where the next grant would come from. Nowadays, the small number of people who truly care about the pursuit of truth are driven out of academia. Many are discouraged by the current lecture system and the disinterest of their peers in deep questions. Moreover, at later stages their chances of securing funding or a permanent position are effectively zero.
As a result, even though there are more researchers than ever, there are few dedicating signficiant time to the pursuit of truth. The smartest minds of our generation aren't thinking about Bell's Theorem. They're thinking about how to make people click ads or what stocks to buy.
We need to explore alternative forms of education that prioritize deep understanding over rote memorization of technical recipes. We need to build a community of people who care about the pursuit of truth not status games.
We need a cultural shift where ideas are evaluated based on their merit and not on the prestige of the person who came up with them. Instead of polished papers hidden behind paywalls, we need independent thinkers "working with the garage door up". We need less cargo cult science and citation hunting and more genuine curiosity.
We don't have all the answers. But we're doing our part in bringing into existence the word we want to live in.
Jakob Schwichtenberg
jakobschwichtenberg.com