Something Weird Happens When E = −mc²

In this Veritasium episode, Derek Muller unpacks how Paul Dirac wrestled with the Schrödinger equation and ended up predicting negative-energy solutions—an insight that led directly to the existence of antimatter. Along the way, we meet the “strangest man in physics,” explore the Dirac and Klein-Gordon equations, and discover how the anti-electron (positron) can be viewed as an electron traveling backward in time, giving birth to the idea of an entire anti-universe.

Muller’s deep dive features expert insights from Graham Farmelo and Cumrun Vafa, rare archives from Caltech and Florida State University, and plenty of clear, engaging animations. Whether you’re brushing up on Heisenberg’s uncertainty principle or marveling at the saddest chapter in modern physics, this video weaves history, theory, and mind-bending implications into a must-watch physics journey.

Watch on YouTube