Check out the episode:

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Check out the trailer:

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“Cities are part of the extended phenotype for the kind of knowledge that is produced by human civilisation.”

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Are you interested in how quantum physics is influencing the future of cities? What do you think about the connection between knowledge and urban evolution? How can we create better urban environments for knowledge creation?

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Interview with Chiara Marletto, Scientific Researcher at University of Oxford. We will talk about her vision for the future of cities, the effects of scientific evolution, the best environment for knowledge creation, and many more as a special edition part of the Podcasthon 2025.

Chiara Marletto is a Research Fellow at Wolfson College and the Physics Department, University of Oxford. She holds degrees from Oxford and the University of Turin. Her research focuses on the foundations of physics, spanning quantum information theory, condensed matter physics, quantum biology, and thermodynamics. Chiara has pioneered a novel approach to physics, constructor theory and has applied it to fundamental questions of control, causation and the nature of information in physics. Her work has also explored how essential features of living systems, such as self-reproduction and evolution, align with fundamental physical laws. Recently she has discovered a new method to test quantum effects in gravity, based on constructor-theoretic ideas. She is the author of The Science of Can and Can’t, her first trade book.

This is also a special episode to be part of Podcasthon 2025 – a globally coordinated effort for podcasts to highlight a charity of their choice. WTF4Cities is happy to participate in this 3rd edition of the Podcasthon with thousands of podcasts worldwide.

The charity where you can support Chiara and her research is through Wolfson College at the University of Oxford with New Frontiers reference. Donations will be held in a dedicated fund, controlled by Chiara, and she’ll be able to keep donors updated on the progress of her research and what their generosity has made possible. So if you want to help the research move ahead:

• Name: Wolfson College, University of Oxford
• Reference: New Frontiers
• For donations from the UK:
  • Bank: Barclays Bank plc,
  • Address: 54 Cornmarket Street, Oxford, OX1 3HB United Kingdom
  • Bank sort code: 20 65 26
  • Bank Account Number: 30978892
  • Bank Account Name: Wolfson College, Oxford
• For donations from overseas:
  • Bank: Barclays Bank plc,
  • Address: I Churchill Place, London, E14 5HP United Kingdom
  • Bank sort code: 20 65 26
  • Bank Account Number: 30978892
  • Bank Account Name: Wolfson College, Oxford
  • Swift code: BARCGB22
  • IBAN: GB28 BARC 2065 2630 9788 92

Learn more about Chiara through these links:

• Chiara Marletto on LinkedIn
• Chiara Marletto website
• Chiara Marletto at Wolfson College
• Chiara Marletto on Wikipedia
• Chiara Marletto on Google Scholar
• Quantum New Frontiers Hub in Wolfson college
• The Science of Can and Can’t – book by Chiara Marletto
• The Beginning of Infinity – book by David Deutsch
• The Fabric of Reality – book by David Deutsch

Connecting episodes you might be interested in:

• No.156 – Interview with Fanni Melles about urban conscious evolution
• No.180 – Interview with Ben Vass about knowledge creation
• No.272 – Interview with Frank Elavsky about philosophy
• No.307R – The Science of Can and Can’t (book summary)

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