Science Friday

In the new movie “Whalefall,” a scuba diver (Austin Abrams) gets accidentally swallowed by a sperm whale. What follows is a tense battle against time and the whale’s digestive system, to escape before his air supply runs out.
But could a whale actually swallow a human? And how might this play out in real life? Joining Flora to weigh in are sperm whale biologist Shane Gero, and “Whalefall” director Brian Duffield.
Wondering how you’d fare inside a sperm whale’s stomach? Read more here.
Guests:
Brian Duffield is the director of “Whalefall.” He is based in Los Angeles, California.
Dr. Shane Gero is a whale biologist and biology lead for Project CETI based in Ottawa, Ontario.
Transcripts for each episode are available within 1-3 days at sciencefriday.com.


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With the midterms approaching, politicians are out in full force to convince voters to elect them. And that means that we’re hearing a lot of “politician speak.” You know it when you hear it: those folksy turns of phrase, the vague promises.
But what do linguists have to say about this vocal register? How has politician speak changed over time? Does the way someone pronounces their As signal something about their values? Sociolinguist Valerie Fridland joins Flora to decode politician speak.
Guest:
Dr. Valerie Fridland is a professor of linguistics at University of Nevada, Reno.
Transcripts for each episode are available within 1-3 days at sciencefriday.com.

Subscribe to this podcast. Follow our show on Instagram, TikTok, Facebook, and Bluesky @scifri and sign up for our newsletters. Got a science question that’s keeping you up at night? Call us: 877-472-4374

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An unwelcome visitor is arriving on beaches from West Africa to the Caribbean, and Brazil to Florida. It’s brown, it’s stinky, and it’s more abundant than ever: sargassum. This free-floating seaweed has become a major problem for coastal ecosystems, communities, tourism, and infrastructure.
So what is fueling the sargassum superbloom? And is there anything to do about it? Flora chats with satellite oceanographer Brian Barnes about sargassum biology, why the blooms are so hard to deal with, and what we could do about it.
Guest:
Dr. Brian Barnes is an oceanographer and associate professor at the University of South Florida.
Transcripts for each episode are available within 1-3 days at sciencefriday.com.

Subscribe to this podcast. Follow our show on Instagram, TikTok, Facebook, and Bluesky @scifri and sign up for our newsletters. Got a science question that’s keeping you up at night? Call us: 877-472-4374

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This year, October 13 marks Ada Lovelace Day, an observance that calls attention to the role of women in computing and technology. In this conversation from 2018, Ira talks with Claire Evans, author of “Broad Band: The Untold Story of the Women Who Made the Internet,” about some of the women who played key roles in the development of computing. Then, Stacy Horn joins the conversation to describe her creation, EchoNYC, an early bulletin board service.
Guests:
Claire L. Evans is the author of “Broad Band: The Women Who Made The Internet.”
Stacy Horn is the founder of EchoNYC in New York, New York.
Transcripts for each episode are available within 1-3 days at sciencefriday.com.


Subscribe to this podcast. Follow our show on Instagram, TikTok, Facebook, and Bluesky @scifri and sign up for our newsletters. Got a science question that’s keeping you up at night? Call us: 877-472-4374

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In the past few years, the idea of attachment styles has taken off, both online and in therapy offices. It’s gone from a niche psychological concept to a shorthand to describe how we show up in relationships. Here’s a crash course: Anxious attachment is when you seek constant reassurance. Avoidant attachment is when you flee when someone tries to get close. Fearful-avoidant, also called disorganized, is some combination of the two. And secure attachment is a more regulated approach to relationship stress.
But where does your attachment style come from? Do you have more than one? Can it change? And are the ideas we hear from influencers at odds with how psychologists understand attachment theory? Flora talks with neuroscientist Amir Levine, who has written two books about attachment styles, “Attached” and “Secure.”
Want to learn more about your attachment styles? Take this survey.
Transcripts for each episode are available within 1-3 days at sciencefriday.com.

Subscribe to this podcast. Follow our show on Instagram, TikTok, Facebook, and Bluesky @scifri and sign up for our newsletters. Got a science question that’s keeping you up at night? Call us: 877-472-4374

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.