Explore the future through real science, from interstellar travel and megastructures to the Fermi paradox.

I'm Jacob, and I host Entropy Rising alongside my longtime friend Lucas. We met while working in science. At the time I was pursuing graduate work in biochemistry, and Lucas had just started as a lab technician. We quickly realized we spent as much time talking about space, the future, and science fiction as we did our actual jobs. Eventually we decided those conversations were exactly the kind of show we wanted to listen to ourselves, so we turned them into a podcast.

Entropy Rising is a science and futurism podcast that explores humanity's long term future through the lens of real physics. Every episode starts with a simple question: if we never discover faster than light travel or other fictional technologies, what could humanity still accomplish?

That approach leads us to topics like interstellar travel, Dyson swarms, orbital elevators, shell worlds, future food production, advanced civilizations, the Fermi Paradox, and emerging technologies. We also explore the science behind great science fiction, using stories like The Expanse and The Culture to discuss the real engineering, physics, and societal questions they raise.

Our goal is to make big ideas accessible without sacrificing scientific accuracy. Whether we're talking about harvesting energy from stars, extending the lives of stars, building civilizations that survive for billions of years, or asking why we haven't found evidence of alien civilizations, every discussion is grounded in what our current understanding of physics says may actually be possible.

Our listeners are naturally curious people who love science, astronomy, engineering, and science fiction. They enjoy asking "what if," but they also want answers that are rooted in real science rather than fantasy. We want every episode to leave listeners entertained, having learned something new, and with a bigger sense of what humanity may one day be capable of.
 

Entropy Rising started about two years ago for a very simple reason. Lucas and I were no longer working together, and we realized we missed the conversations we used to have almost every day. We wanted an excuse to keep getting together each week to talk about the things we both love: space, science, technology, and the future.

A podcast felt like the perfect format because our conversations were already long, unscripted, and full of questions. Instead of letting those discussions stay between the two of us, we thought it would be fun to share them with anyone else who found these topics as fascinating as we did.

What began as a hobby quickly became something much bigger. I'm the kind of person who loves improving and refining things, so before we ever released an episode we recorded five complete episodes. That gave us time to get comfortable behind the microphones, develop the style of the show, and figure out what worked before anyone ever heard it.

Our original goal was simply to create the kind of science podcast we wanted to listen to ourselves. Over time that grew into a mission of making complex ideas about physics, astronomy, and humanity's future approachable without sacrificing scientific accuracy. Today we spend countless hours researching every topic, refining our production, and trying to make each episode better than the last.

What started as an excuse for two friends to keep having the conversations they loved has grown into something neither of us expected. We now release new episodes every week, have built a small but incredibly loyal audience, and are passionate about creating a show that inspires curiosity while helping people better understand the universe and humanity's place within it.
 

If you love something, you make time for it. I have a full time career, completed my master's in chemical engineering while the podcast was running, and of course I want to make time for my wife as well. For me, though, the podcast is not another obligation. It's my escape. After a long day at work, sitting down with Lucas to talk about space and science is something I genuinely look forward to every week.

We recently moved from releasing episodes every other week to publishing weekly. To make that sustainable, we usually record two episodes in a single session, which takes about two and a half hours including setup. Editing, audio cleanup, video production, thumbnails, descriptions, and publishing take another two to three hours each week, plus however much time I spend researching upcoming topics. Altogether, I probably devote around eight hours each week to the podcast.

Financially, Entropy Rising is almost entirely self funded. We have an incredible group of Patreon supporters who help offset some of the costs, but the show still operates at a loss, and that's perfectly fine with me. Between hosting, software subscriptions, and other recurring services, we spend roughly $130 each month, and we've invested around $3,000 in microphones, cameras, lighting, and other equipment.

Will we eventually break even? I hope so. But that has never been the reason we do this. The real reward is creating something we're proud of, building a community of curious listeners, and getting to spend every week exploring ideas that we genuinely find fascinating.
 

Definitely not money! At least not yet.

We are actually eligible to run ads, and based on our current audience they would probably generate around $100 a month. But we've chosen not to. At this stage, I'd rather focus on growing the show than filling it with advertisements. Personally, I'm not a fan of ads as a listener, and if we ever do work with sponsors, I'd much rather partner with companies that I genuinely use and believe our audience would appreciate.

What I gain from podcasting is much more valuable than the financial side. It gives me a creative outlet and an opportunity to spend time every week talking about subjects that genuinely fascinate me. I also love the research process. Every episode pushes me to learn something new, whether it's astrophysics, engineering, biology, or the history of science.

Podcasting has also introduced us to an incredible community of listeners who share that same curiosity. Seeing people tell us they learned something new, picked up a book because of an episode, or started looking at the universe differently is incredibly rewarding.

The show still operates at a loss, and I'm perfectly okay with that. If it eventually becomes financially sustainable, that would be fantastic, but it has never been the reason we do this. The fulfillment comes from creating something we're proud of, continuing to learn, and sharing that passion with thousands of people who are just as excited about the future as we are.
 

Our process is fairly straightforward, but we've refined it over the past two years into something that works well for us.

Every episode starts with choosing a topic that genuinely excites us. From there, Lucas and I research independently so we each bring different perspectives and ideas to the discussion. Before we record, we spend a little time talking through the outline and deciding which areas each of us wants to cover. That keeps the conversation natural while making sure we don't miss the points we want to discuss.

We usually record two episodes in a single session. Rather than scripting the show, we rely on our research and let the conversation develop organically. We want listeners to feel like they're sitting in on two friends exploring a fascinating topic together.

After recording, I edit the audio in Adobe Audition before bringing everything into Descript for the final audio and video edit. Once the episode is finished, I write the descriptions, chapter markers, and metadata, optimize everything for each platform, and schedule the release. We also work with a talented designer on Fiverr who creates our episode thumbnails.

At the moment we don't regularly interview guests. The focus of Entropy Rising is the conversation between Lucas and me, although we'd love to bring on scientists, engineers, and authors whose expertise can add to topics we're exploring in the future.
 

Marketing has probably been our weakest area, simply because of the time commitment. In the beginning, I was much more active on Reddit and in online science communities, which helped us find our first listeners. As the podcast grew and life became busier, I shifted my focus toward improving the show itself rather than actively promoting it.

Today, most of our growth comes from organic discovery and word of mouth. Listeners recommend the show to friends, share episodes online, and the podcast platforms themselves help surface our content to people interested in science and futurism. I think that's one of the best indicators that we're creating something people genuinely enjoy.

Today, roughly 70 percent of our audience listens on Spotify, about 20 percent comes from Apple Podcasts, and the remaining 10 percent is spread across YouTube and other podcast platforms.

Going forward, I want to spend more time on marketing. We recently increased our release schedule from every other week to weekly, and now that we have a more consistent publishing cadence, I'm looking at expanding into newsletters, collaborations with other creators, and more consistent social media content to help introduce the show to new listeners.
 

My biggest piece of advice is to stay ahead of your upload schedule. There is nothing worse than staying up late editing the night before an episode is supposed to go live. Having a backlog of episodes gives you room to improve the show, deal with unexpected life events, and enjoy the process a lot more. Before we launched Entropy Rising, we recorded five episodes, and I think that was one of the best decisions we made.

The other piece of advice is to start a podcast because you love talking about a subject, not because you want to be a podcaster. If your motivation is simply "I want a podcast," you'll eventually run out of things to say. But if you're constantly reading, learning, and thinking about a topic because it genuinely fascinates you, you'll never run out of conversations. The podcast becomes a natural extension of your curiosity instead of something you have to force.

Finally, don't wait for everything to be perfect. Your first episode won't sound as good as your fiftieth, and your fiftieth won't sound as good as your hundredth. The only way to improve is to keep publishing, keep listening to feedback, and keep refining your craft. Consistency beats perfection every time.
 

https://www.entropy-rising.com
https://www.patreon.com/c/EntropyRising
you can email me at jacob@entropy-rising.com