Neil and Katy Discuss Fingerprints and Individuality | StarTalk

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·Nov 11, 2024

Why are there seven million people? And why do each one of us have our own fingerprint? Even twins have different fingerprints, who are otherwise genetically identical. Why would you rather we were all the same? No, I'm not. Why is that more odd to you than the fact that we all have different personalities? We have different talents.

But personalities can be based on what you learn, environment—not sure—and not just nature, right? So I thought about that the other day, and it like kind of made me spin. It's just like we all have different fingerprints. Okay, I get it. Grand design. Well, so it's an intriguing fact.

But here's something that may relate: most people who could be born will never be born. Will never even exist. So the fact that sperm—okay, yeah, sure, yeah, yeah—one gets 98, science the rest don't. So where do they go? Yeah, they're part of the number of human beings that will never ever be born.

So the fuel—because there's not enough souls. That would be something! If you ran out of souls, what would a soulless person look like? Do you believe you have a soul? I don't know what a soul is. I know there's—what? Here's something that freaks me out.

Every day, every morning, I wake up, and I say, "How is it that every morning I wake up as me and not as someone else?" Oh yeah, yeah. This is weird—being me! What is it like being you, right? What's something it's like? Why am I me every day? Wow. How does that happen?

We have these electro-chemicals in our head, and somehow that's me. And on me every day, as far as I know, as far as now. I wonder if I woke up as a different person each day—would I know it?

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