Uploaded August 2022 | Updated September 2026, 3 weeks ago

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Full podcast episodes: askaspaceman.com
Support: patreon.com/pmsutter
Follow: twitter.com/PaulMattSutter and facebook.com/PaulMattSutter

What makes the principle of least action so important? Who came up with it? Is it all just a bunch of math or does it actually mean something? I discuss these questions and more in today’s Ask a Spaceman!

Follow all the show updates at http://www.askaspaceman.com, and help support the show at patreon.com/pmsutter!

Keep those questions about space, science, astronomy, astrophysics, and cosmology coming to #AskASpaceman for COMPLETE KNOWLEDGE OF TIME AND SPACE! Music by Jason Grady and Nick Bain.

00:24 - Lagrangian vs. Newtonian Mechanics
05:49 - The Stationary Action
10:30 - Generating the Laws of Motion
14:49 - Feynman’s Path Integral Approach