In this episode of the ASEF Podcast, host Tanja Janko speaks with Simon DeDeo, Professor of Social and Decision Sciences at Carnegie Mellon University, External Professor at the Santa Fe Institute, and complexity scientist working at the intersection of physics, mathematics, cognition, and culture.
Originally trained as a theoretical astrophysicist, DeDeo explores how humans create knowledge, meaning, and understanding. The conversation ranges from the nature of mathematical truth and proof to the role of social systems in shaping knowledge, and the profound implications of artificial intelligence for the future of mathematics.
Along the way, we discuss:
Why many physicists migrated into complexity science and the social sciences
Whether reality is layered, from physical laws to perception, culture, and symbolic systems
Why mathematicians across cultures converge on the same abstract structures
The origins of mathematical proof and why it may be one of humanity’s most remarkable inventions
Whether mathematics is a cognitive achievement, a social achievement, or both
How communities establish trust in mathematical proofs
Why AI-generated proofs could fundamentally transform the practice of mathematics
Whether future mathematicians will focus more on understanding proofs than producing them
How social norms, institutions, and shared meanings emerge and persist
What makes extraordinary human achievements—from Fermat’s Last Theorem to Wikipedia—possible
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