Meet the Quantum Kid – Ars Technica

Scientists are often advised to explain their work in terms that a child can understand – a particularly difficult task when dealing with topics as complex as quantum mechanics. It’s easier when the interviewer is an actual child, like 9-year-old Kai Moskvitch, aka Quantum Kid. Kai and his mother, theoretical physicist and science communicator Katia Moskvitch, co-host The quantum child podcast, which recently crossed the 100,000 subscriber mark and was nominated for a Webby Award. (Public voting ends tomorrow; you can vote here.)

Katia Moskvitch came up with the idea for a podcast after her precocious son, who loved browsing science videos on YouTube and programming in Python since the age of 6, kept peppering her with big questions about the origins of life and the universe. And of course, quantum physics. Moskvitch found it difficult to answer all of Kai’s questions, despite his training, and when she asked him if he wanted more in-depth answers via his own YouTube channel, Kai responded with an enthusiastic yes.

The duo launched the podcast last summer, producing about one episode per month. It certainly helps that Moskvitch has many contacts within the quantum physics community, both in academia and industry. For example, Kai interviewed Peter Shor about his seminal quantum algorithm, as well as physicist Scott Aaronson of the University of Texas at Austin about time travel.

According to Moskvitch, Aaronson then watched the episode with his own two children, who kept asking follow-up questions. “That’s the target audience,” Moskvitch told Ars. “It’s parents watching, ideally with their kids. I don’t think many kids are watching it alone. According to YouTube analytics, our main age range is 25-45.”