#153 – Dmitry Korkin: Evolution of Proteins, Viruses, Life, and AI

Dmitry Korkin is a professor of bioinformatics and computational biology at WPI. Please support this podcast by checking out our sponsors: - Brave: brave.com/lex - NetSuite: netsuite.com/lex to get free product tour - Magic Spoon: magicspoon.com/lex and use code LEX to get $5 off - Eight Sleep: eightsleep.com/lex and use code LEX to get special savings EPISODE LINKS: Dmitry's Website: korkinlab.org/ Dmitry's Twitter: twitter.com/dmkorkin PODCAST INFO: Podcast website: lexfridman.com/podcast Apple Podcasts: apple.co/2lwqZIr Spotify: spoti.fi/2nEwCF8 RSS: lexfridman.com/feed/podcast/ YouTube Full Episodes: youtube.com/lexfridman YouTube Clips: youtube.com/lexclips SUPPORT & CONNECT: - Check out the sponsors above, it's the best way to support this podcast - Support on Patreon: patreon.com/lexfridman - Twitter: twitter.com/lexfridman - Instagram: instagram.com/lexfridman - LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/lexfridman - Facebook: facebook.com/LexFridmanPage - Medium: medium.com/@lexfridman OUTLINE: Here's the timestamps for the episode. On some podcast players you should be able to click the timestamp to jump to that time. (00:00) - Introduction (07:21) - Proteins and the building blocks of life (14:23) - Spike protein (21:11) - Coronavirus biological structure explained (26:09) - Virus mutations (32:39) - Evolution of proteins (42:25) - Self-replicating computer programs (50:02) - Origin of life (57:34) - Extraterrestrial life in our solar system (59:31) - Joshua Lederberg (1:05:30) - Dendral (1:08:24) - Why did expert systems fail? (1:10:35) - AlphaFold 2 (1:32:13) - Will AI revolutionize art and music? (1:39:12) - Multi-protein folding (1:43:39) - Will AlphaFold 2 result in a Nobel Prize? (1:46:10) - Will AI be used to engineer deadly viruses? (2:01:17) - Book recommendations (2:11:00) - Family (2:13:38) - A poem in Russian