As a species, we’re obsessed with names. They’re one of the first labels we get as kids. We name and rename absolutely everything around us. And these names carry our histories, they can open and close our eyes to the world around us, and they drag the weight of expectation and even irony along with them. This week on Radiolab, we’ve got six stories all about names. Horse names, the names of diseases, names for the beginning, and names for the end. Listen to “Hello, My Name Is” on Radiolab, wherever you find podcasts. 
Special thanks to Jim Wright, author of “The Real James Bond” (Bond segment), Tad Davis (reporting help for The Other Robert E. Lee), Cole delCharco (“del-CHAR-ko”) (tape syncer for Horse Names), Peter Frick-Wright, Alexa Rose Miller, Katherine De La Cruz, and Fahima Haque.Members of The Lab, watch for an audio extra on your exclusive feeds, a poem written and read by Mary Szybist, whom Molly Webster interviewed for her story in this episode about endlings. It is titled “We Think We Do Not Have Medieval Eyes.” If you are not yet a member and would like to listen to it, you can join here.
Radiolab is on YouTube! Catch up with new episodes and hear classics from our archive. Plus, find other cool things we did in the past — like miniseries, music videos, short films and animations, behind-the-scenes features, Radiolab live shows, and more. Take a look, explore and subscribe!Citations:
The Emperor of All Maladies by Siddhartha Mukherjee
Warhorse: Cavalry in Ancient Warfare by Philip SidnellCheck out ArtsPractica.com, a site focused on medical uncertainty. Alexa Rose Miller.

As a species, we’re obsessed with names. They’re one of the first labels we get as kids. We name and rename absolutely everything around us. And these names carry our histories, they can open and close our eyes to the world around us, and they drag the weight of expectation and even irony along with them. This week on Radiolab, we’ve got six stories all about names. Horse names, the names of diseases, names for the beginning, and names for the end. Listen to “Hello, My Name Is” on Radiolab, wherever you find podcasts. 
Special thanks to Jim Wright, author of “The Real James Bond” (Bond segment), Tad Davis (reporting help for The Other Robert E. Lee), Cole delCharco (“del-CHAR-ko”) (tape syncer for Horse Names), Peter Frick-Wright, Alexa Rose Miller, Katherine De La Cruz, and Fahima Haque.Members of The Lab, watch for an audio extra on your exclusive feeds, a poem written and read by Mary Szybist, whom Molly Webster interviewed for her story in this episode about endlings. It is titled “We Think We Do Not Have Medieval Eyes.” If you are not yet a member and would like to listen to it, <a class="c-link" delay="150" href="http://members.radiolab.org/" rel="noopener noreferrer" tabindex="-1" target="_blank">you can join here</a>.
<a href="https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCaum_fMDGgFQCmKHUBPq_xg">Radiolab is on YouTube!</a> Catch up with new episodes and hear classics from our archive. Plus, find other cool things we did in the past — like miniseries, music videos, short films and animations, behind-the-scenes features, Radiolab live shows, and more. Take a look, explore and subscribe!Citations:
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/7170627-the-emperor-of-all-maladies">The Emperor of All Maladies</a> by Siddhartha Mukherjee
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/2753144-warhorse?from_search=true&amp;from_srp=true&amp;qid=7W3hFw2xmR&amp;rank=1">Warhorse: Cavalry in Ancient Warfare</a> by Philip SidnellCheck out <a href="http://www.artspractica.com">ArtsPractica.com</a>, a site focused on medical uncertainty. <a href="https://twitter.com/artspractica">Alexa Rose Miller</a>.

Radiolab

Hello, My Name Is

I love RadioLab but I’m feeling there’s more misses then hits these day … just me or anyone else feeling this way? 

This episode, a tale of a wonder drug that will make you wonder about way more than just drugs.  
Doctor-reporter Avir Mitra follows the epic and fantastical journey of a molecule dug out of a distant patch of dirt that would go on to make billions of dollars, prolong millions of lives, and teach us something fundamental we didn’t know about ourselves. Along the way, he meets a geriatric mouse named Ike, an immigrant dad who’s a little bit cool sometimes, a prophetic dream that prompts a thousand-mile journey, an ice cream container that may or may not be an accessory to international drug smuggling, and - most important of all - an obscure protein that’s calling the shots in every one of your cells RIGHT NOW.
This episode was reported by Avir Mitra and was produced by Sarah Qari, Pat Walters, Suzie Lechtenberg, with help from Carin Leong and Rachael Cusick.
Special thanks to Richard Miller, Stuart Schreiber, Joanne Van Tilburg, and Bethany Halford.
Support Radiolab by becoming a member today at Radiolab.org/donate.  **This episode was taped prior to the news that David Sabatini was fired from The Howard Hughes Medical Institute and prior to his resignation from the Whitehead Institute. More information about Sabatini’s alleged misconduct and the investigation into his behavior can be found here.

This episode, a tale of a wonder drug that will make you wonder about way more than just drugs.  
Doctor-reporter Avir Mitra follows the epic and fantastical journey of a molecule dug out of a distant patch of dirt that would go on to make billions of dollars, prolong millions of lives, and teach us something fundamental we didn’t know about ourselves. Along the way, he meets a geriatric mouse named Ike, an immigrant dad who’s a little bit cool sometimes, a prophetic dream that prompts a thousand-mile journey, an ice cream container that may or may not be an accessory to international drug smuggling, and - most important of all - an obscure protein that’s calling the shots in every one of your cells RIGHT NOW.
This episode was reported by Avir Mitra and was produced by Sarah Qari, Pat Walters, Suzie Lechtenberg, with help from Carin Leong and Rachael Cusick.
Special thanks to Richard Miller, Stuart Schreiber, Joanne Van Tilburg, and Bethany Halford.
Support Radiolab by becoming a member today at <a href="https://pledge3.wnyc.org/donate/radiolab-it/onestep/?utm_source=wnyc&amp;utm_medium=radiolab-redirect&amp;utm_campaign=pledge&amp;utm_content=show-notes" target="_blank" title="Pledge">Radiolab.org/donate</a>.  **This episode was taped prior to the news that David Sabatini was fired from The Howard Hughes Medical Institute and prior to his resignation from the Whitehead Institute. More information about Sabatini’s alleged misconduct and the investigation into his behavior can be found <a href="https://www.sciencemag.org/news/2021/08/hhmi-fires-prominent-biologist-sexual-harassment" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank" title="https://www.sciencemag.org/news/2021/08/hhmi-fires-prominent-biologist-sexual-harassment">here</a>.

The Dirty Drug and the Ice Cream Tub

I finally listened to this episode and as it turns out, the main person is my friend’s uncle. Agreed it was a great episode with some rollercoastering.

John Scott was the professional hockey player that every fan loved to hate.  A tough guy. A brawler. A goon. But when an impish pundit named Puck Daddy called on fans to vote for Scott to play alongside the world’s greatest players in the NHL All-Star Game, Scott found himself facing off against fans, commentators, and the powers that be.  Was this the realization of Scott’s childhood dreams? Or a nightmarish prank gone too far? Today on Radiolab, a goof on a goon turns into a parable of the agony and the ecstasy of the internet, and democracy in the age of Boaty McBoatface.
This episode was reported by Latif Nasser and was produced by Matt Kielty.
Special thanks to Larry Lynch and Morgan Springer. Check out John Scott's "Dropping the Gloves" podcast and his book "A Guy Like Me".
Support Radiolab today at Radiolab.org/donate.

John Scott was the professional hockey player that every fan loved to hate.  A tough guy. A brawler. A goon. But when an impish pundit named Puck Daddy called on fans to vote for Scott to play alongside the world’s greatest players in the NHL All-Star Game, Scott found himself facing off against fans, commentators, and the powers that be.  Was this the realization of Scott’s childhood dreams? Or a nightmarish prank gone too far? Today on Radiolab, a goof on a goon turns into a parable of the agony and the ecstasy of the internet, and democracy in the age of Boaty McBoatface.
This episode was reported by Latif Nasser and was produced by Matt Kielty.
Special thanks to Larry Lynch and Morgan Springer. Check out John Scott's "Dropping the Gloves" <a href="https://www.johnscottallstar.com/podcast/">podcast</a> and his <a href="https://www.johnscottallstar.com/book/">book</a> "A Guy Like Me".
Support Radiolab today at <a href="https://pledge3.wnyc.org/donate/radiolab-it/onestep/?utm_source=podcast&amp;utm_medium=notes&amp;utm_campaign=membership&amp;utm_content=radiolab" target="_blank">Radiolab.org/donate</a>.

The Punchline

The minute he stopped the interview to put his daughter to bed, I was on his side. 

Since its inception, the perennial thorn in Facebook’s side has been content moderation. That is, deciding what you and I are allowed to post on the site and what we’re not. Missteps by Facebook in this area have fueled everything from a genocide in Myanmar to viral disinformation surrounding politics and the coronavirus. However, just this past year, conceding their failings, Facebook shifted its approach. They erected an independent body of twenty jurors that will make the final call on many of Facebook’s thorniest decisions. This body has been called: Facebook’s Supreme Court.
So today, in collaboration with the New Yorker magazine and the New Yorker Radio Hour, we explore how this body came to be, what power it really has and how the consequences of its decisions will be nothing short of life or death.
This episode was reported and produced by Simon Adler.
To hear more about the court's origin, their rulings so far, and their upcoming docket, check out David Remnick and reporter Kate Klonick’s conversation in the New Yorker Radio Hour podcast feed.
Support Radiolab by becoming a member today at Radiolab.org/donate.

Since its inception, the perennial thorn in Facebook’s side has been content moderation. That is, deciding what you and I are allowed to post on the site and what we’re not. Missteps by Facebook in this area have fueled everything from a genocide in Myanmar to viral disinformation surrounding politics and the coronavirus. However, just this past year, conceding their failings, Facebook shifted its approach. They erected an independent body of twenty jurors that will make the final call on many of Facebook’s thorniest decisions. This body has been called: Facebook’s Supreme Court.
So today, in collaboration with the New Yorker magazine and the New Yorker Radio Hour, we explore how this body came to be, what power it really has and how the consequences of its decisions will be nothing short of life or death.
This episode was reported and produced by Simon Adler.
To hear more about the court's origin, their rulings so far, and their upcoming docket, check out David Remnick and reporter Kate Klonick’s conversation in the New Yorker Radio Hour podcast <a href="https://smarturl.it/newyorkerradiohour/spotify">feed</a>.
Support Radiolab by becoming a member today at <a href="https://pledge3.wnyc.org/donate/radiolab-it/onestep/?utm_source=wnyc&amp;utm_medium=radiolab-redirect&amp;utm_campaign=pledge&amp;utm_content=show-notes" target="_blank" title="Pledge">Radiolab.org/donate</a>.

Facebook's Supreme Court

Great introduction to Facebook’s new ‘Supreme Court,’ a multi-national collection of humans tasked with defining and refining the guiding principles of Facebook’s content policy. 

We all think we know the story of pregnancy. Sperm meets egg, followed by nine months of nurturing, nesting, and quiet incubation. But this story isn’t the nursery rhyme we think it is. In a way, it’s a struggle, almost like a tiny war. And right on the front lines of that battle is another major player on the stage of pregnancy that not a single person on the planet would be here without. An entirely new organ: the placenta.
In this episode we take you on a journey through the 270-day life of this weird, squishy, gelatinous orb, and discover that it is so much more than an organ. It’s a foreign invader. A piece of meat. A friend and parent. And it’s perhaps the most essential piece in the survival of our kind.
This episode was reported by Heather Radke and Becca Bressler, and produced by Becca Bressler and Pat Walters, with help from Matt Kielty and Maria Paz Gutierrez. Additional reporting by Molly Webster.
Special thanks to Diana Bianchi, Julia Katz, Sam Behjati, Celia Bardwell-Jones, Mathilde Cohen, Hannah Ingraham, Pip Lipkin, and Molly Fassler.
 
Support Radiolab by becoming a member today at Radiolab.org/donate.  
 
For cool new research on the placenta:
Check out Harvey’s latest paper published with Julia Katz.
Sam Behjati's latest paper on the placenta as a "genetic dumping ground".

We all think we know the story of pregnancy. Sperm meets egg, followed by nine months of nurturing, nesting, and quiet incubation. But this story isn’t the nursery rhyme we think it is. In a way, it’s a struggle, almost like a tiny war. And right on the front lines of that battle is another major player on the stage of pregnancy that not a single person on the planet would be here without. An entirely new organ: the placenta.
In this episode we take you on a journey through the 270-day life of this weird, squishy, gelatinous orb, and discover that it is so much more than an organ. It’s a foreign invader. A piece of meat. A friend and parent. And it’s perhaps the most essential piece in the survival of our kind.
This episode was reported by Heather Radke and Becca Bressler, and produced by Becca Bressler and Pat Walters, with help from Matt Kielty and Maria Paz Gutierrez. Additional reporting by Molly Webster.
Special thanks to Diana Bianchi, Julia Katz, Sam Behjati, Celia Bardwell-Jones, Mathilde Cohen, Hannah Ingraham, Pip Lipkin, and Molly Fassler.
 
Support Radiolab by becoming a member today at <a href="https://pledge3.wnyc.org/donate/radiolab/onestep/">Radiolab.org/donate</a>.  
 
For cool new research on the placenta:
Check out Harvey’s latest <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0143400421001284">paper</a> published with Julia Katz.
Sam Behjati's latest<a href="https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2021/03/210310122521.htm"> paper</a> on the placenta as a "genetic dumping ground".

Everybody’s Got One

I've recently started working with a client in the women's health/fertility space, and I can honestly say that i did not realize how powerful and fascinating the female body is through pregnancy. Never really thought about it. The placenta especially is just so interesting. 

A major development in the case of Guantanamo detainee Abdul Latif Nasser.
To listen to our series about him, go to theotherlatif.org.

A major development in the case of Guantanamo detainee Abdul Latif Nasser.
To listen to our series about him, go to <a href="http://theotherlatif.org">theotherlatif.org</a>.

Breaking News about The Other Latif

As our co-Hosts Lulu Miller and Latif Nasser are out this week, we are re-sharing the perfect episode to start the summer season!
This one, which first aired in 2014, tells the strange story of a small group of islands that keeps us wondering: will our most sacred natural landscapes inevitably get swallowed up by humans? How far are we willing to go to stop that from happening?
This hour is about the Galápagos archipelago, which inspired Darwin’s theory of evolution and natural selection. Nearly 200 years later, the Galápagos are undergoing rapid changes that continue to pose — and perhaps answer — critical questions about the fragility and resilience of life on Earth.
Radiolab is supported by listeners like you. Support Radiolab by becoming a member of The Lab (https://members.radiolab.org/) today.
Our newsletter comes out every Wednesday. It includes short essays, recommendations, and details about special events. Sign up (https://radiolab.org/newsletter)!
Follow our show on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook @radiolab, and share your thoughts with us by emailing radiolab@wnyc.org.

As our co-Hosts Lulu Miller and Latif Nasser are out this week, we are re-sharing the perfect episode to start the summer season!
This one, which first aired in 2014, tells the strange story of a small group of islands that keeps us wondering: will our most sacred natural landscapes inevitably get swallowed up by humans? How far are we willing to go to stop that from happening?
This hour is about the Galápagos archipelago, which inspired Darwin’s theory of evolution and natural selection. Nearly 200 years later, the Galápagos are undergoing rapid changes that continue to pose — and perhaps answer — critical questions about the fragility and resilience of life on Earth.
Radiolab is supported by listeners like you. Support Radiolab by becoming a member of <a href="https://members.radiolab.org/"></a>The Lab (https://members.radiolab.org/) today.
Our newsletter comes out every Wednesday. It includes short essays, recommendations, and details about special events. <a href="https://radiolab.org/newsletter">Sign up</a> (<a href="https://radiolab.org/newsletter">https://radiolab.org/newsletter</a>)!
Follow our show on <a href="https://www.instagram.com/radiolab/">Instagram</a>, <a href="https://twitter.com/Radiolab">Twitter</a> and <a href="https://www.facebook.com/Radiolab">Facebook</a> @radiolab, and share your thoughts with us by emailing radiolab@wnyc.org.

Galápagos

Since the massacre that took the lives of 19 schoolchildren in Uvalde, Texas, people across the world began to ask versions of one question: why did police wait outside the door instead of protecting the kids?
It's not the first time this question has come up. Two years ago, as she watched police respond to the protests that followed the death of George Floyd, Producer B.A. Parker wondered: what are police for? With the help of our Producer Sarah Qari, she found that the United States’ Supreme Court had given this a most consequential and bewildering answer.
We decided to re-air this episode to shed light on how a case from 2005 upended our assumptions about the role police are meant to play in our lives.
Support Radiolab by becoming a member of The Lab (https://members.radiolab.org/) today.    
Radiolab is on YouTube! (https://zpr.io/MTSFMLXQWDkE) Catch up with new episodes and hear classics from our archive. Plus, find other cool things we did in the past — like miniseries, music videos, short films and animations, behind-the-scenes features, Radiolab live shows, and more. Take a look, explore and subscribe!

Since the massacre that took the lives of 19 schoolchildren in Uvalde, Texas, people across the world began to ask versions of one question: why did police wait outside the door instead of protecting the kids?
It's not the first time this question has come up. Two years ago, as she watched police respond to the protests that followed the death of George Floyd, Producer B.A. Parker wondered: what are police for? With the help of our Producer Sarah Qari, she found that the United States’ Supreme Court had given this a most consequential and bewildering answer.
We decided to re-air this episode to shed light on how a case from 2005 upended our assumptions about the role police are meant to play in our lives.
Support Radiolab by becoming a member of <a href="https://members.radiolab.org/">The Lab</a> (https://members.radiolab.org/) today.    
<a href="https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCaum_fMDGgFQCmKHUBPq_xg">Radiolab is on YouTube!</a> (https://zpr.io/MTSFMLXQWDkE) Catch up with new episodes and hear classics from our archive. Plus, find other cool things we did in the past — like miniseries, music videos, short films and animations, behind-the-scenes features, Radiolab live shows, and more. Take a look, explore and subscribe!

No Special Duty

A few months ago, co-Host Latif Nasser, who was otherwise healthy, saw blood in his poop. It was the start of a medical journey that made him not only question what was going on in his body, but also dig into the secret genetic story of how we became human. Curled up in a hospital bathroom, Latif tries to sort out whether his ordeal is the result of a long-lost sibling knifing him in the gut or, on the contrary, a long-forgotten kindness shared between two human-ish travelers. 
Special thanks to Azra Premiji, Avir Mitra, Suzanne Lehrer, David Reich, Sriram Sankararaman, Ainara Sistiaga, Carl Zimmer, Carly Mensch, Latif's GI Doctor Florence Damilola Odufalu and her entire team, and the staff at LA County-USC Medical Center and Keck USC hospitals who looked after Latif during his hospitalization.
Support Radiolab by becoming a member of The Lab today.    
Radiolab is on YouTube! Catch up with new episodes and hear classics from our archive. Plus, find other cool things we did in the past — like miniseries, music videos, short films and animations, behind-the-scenes features, Radiolab live shows, and more. Take a look, explore and subscribe!

A few months ago, co-Host Latif Nasser, who was otherwise healthy, saw blood in his poop. It was the start of a medical journey that made him not only question what was going on in his body, but also dig into the secret genetic story of how we became human. Curled up in a hospital bathroom, Latif tries to sort out whether his ordeal is the result of a long-lost sibling knifing him in the gut or, on the contrary, a long-forgotten kindness shared between two human-ish travelers. 
Special thanks to Azra Premiji, Avir Mitra, Suzanne Lehrer, David Reich, Sriram Sankararaman, Ainara Sistiaga, Carl Zimmer, Carly Mensch, Latif's GI Doctor Florence Damilola Odufalu and her entire team, and the staff at LA County-USC Medical Center and Keck USC hospitals who looked after Latif during his hospitalization.
Support Radiolab by becoming a member of <a href="https://www.wnycstudios.org/podcasts/radiolab/membership">The Lab</a> today.    
<a href="https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCaum_fMDGgFQCmKHUBPq_xg">Radiolab is on YouTube!</a> Catch up with new episodes and hear classics from our archive. Plus, find other cool things we did in the past — like miniseries, music videos, short films and animations, behind-the-scenes features, Radiolab live shows, and more. Take a look, explore and subscribe!

Neanderthal's Revenge

We’re all in a tizzy over here and Radiolab on account of our 20 years in existence anniversary. And, as one does upon passing a milestone, we’ve been looking back in all kinds of ways. A few weeks ago we went out over the airwaves, as in, “Live on your FM dial” as a callback to our origins as an actual radio show. We revamped and redid our website and logo (get your Freq on people!!) And more recently, Lulu and Latif’s firsts came up in a meeting, they weren’t always the intrepid hosts of our collective journey in wonder. Soren Wheeler, our editor, thought it may be fun to highlight those firsts for you all. 
So here they are, Baby Latif and Lulu, doing their darndest to make audio magic.
Support Radiolab by becoming a member of The Lab today.    
Radiolab is on YouTube! Catch up with new episodes and hear classics from our archive. Plus, find other cool things we did in the past — like miniseries, music videos, short films and animations, behind-the-scenes features, Radiolab live shows, and more. Take a look, explore and subscribe!

We’re all in a tizzy over here and Radiolab on account of our 20 years in existence anniversary. And, as one does upon passing a milestone, we’ve been looking back in all kinds of ways. A few weeks ago we went out over the airwaves, as in, “Live on your FM dial” as a callback to our origins as an actual radio show. We revamped and redid our website and logo (get your Freq on people!!) And more recently, Lulu and Latif’s firsts came up in a meeting, they weren’t always the intrepid hosts of our collective journey in wonder. Soren Wheeler, our editor, thought it may be fun to highlight those firsts for you all. 
So here they are, Baby Latif and Lulu, doing their darndest to make audio magic.
Support Radiolab by becoming a member of <a href="https://www.wnycstudios.org/podcasts/radiolab/membership">The Lab</a> today.    
<a href="https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCaum_fMDGgFQCmKHUBPq_xg">Radiolab is on YouTube!</a> Catch up with new episodes and hear classics from our archive. Plus, find other cool things we did in the past — like miniseries, music videos, short films and animations, behind-the-scenes features, Radiolab live shows, and more. Take a look, explore and subscribe!

Origin Stories

Back in 2002, Jad Abumrad started Radiolab as a live radio show. He DJ’d out into the ether and 20 years later we do the same. To commemorate the 20-year anniversary of the show, the Radiolab team went old school and took over WNYC Radio, went live on the FM band. We answered the phones, played some wonderfully weird audio, including one piece where Kurt Vonnegut, yes that Kurt Vonnegut, interviews the dead, took part in some games and tomfoolery, and did everything we could to have and to share in our good time.

Back in 2002, Jad Abumrad started Radiolab as a live radio show. He DJ’d out into the ether and 20 years later we do the same. To commemorate the 20-year anniversary of the show, the Radiolab team went old school and took over WNYC Radio, went live on the FM band. We answered the phones, played some wonderfully weird audio, including one piece where Kurt Vonnegut, yes that Kurt Vonnegut, interviews the dead, took part in some games and tomfoolery, and did everything we could to have and to share in our good time.

Radiolab After Dark

All the world’s a stage. Or, sometimes it feels that way, especially these days. In this episode, originally aired in 2015, we push through the fourth wall, pierce the spandex-ed heart of professional wrestling, and travel 400 years into the past to unmask our obsession with authenticity and our desire to walk the line between reality and fantasy.
Thanks to Nick Hakim for the use of his song "The Light". 
Support Radiolab by becoming a member of The Lab today.    
Radiolab is on YouTube! Catch up with new episodes and hear classics from our archive. Plus, find other cool things we did in the past — like miniseries, music videos, short films and animations, behind-the-scenes features, Radiolab live shows, and more. Take a look, explore and subscribe!

All the world’s a stage. Or, sometimes it feels that way, especially these days. In this episode, originally aired in 2015, we push through the fourth wall, pierce the spandex-ed heart of professional wrestling, and travel 400 years into the past to unmask our obsession with authenticity and our desire to walk the line between reality and fantasy.
Thanks to Nick Hakim for the use of <a href="https://soundcloud.com/enhakim" target="_blank">his song "The Light". </a>
Support Radiolab by becoming a member of <a href="https://www.wnycstudios.org/podcasts/radiolab/membership">The Lab</a> today.    
<a href="https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCaum_fMDGgFQCmKHUBPq_xg">Radiolab is on YouTube!</a> Catch up with new episodes and hear classics from our archive. Plus, find other cool things we did in the past — like miniseries, music videos, short films and animations, behind-the-scenes features, Radiolab live shows, and more. Take a look, explore and subscribe!

La Mancha Screwjob

This week, we bring you two stories about little guys trying to do big big things.
First, self-proclaimed animal grinch producer Becca Bressler introduces us to perhaps the one creature that has warmed her heart: a cricket. And more specifically, a male cricket. This is a tale about a tiny Romeo insect trying to find a mate, and the ingenious lengths he’ll go to have his beckoning heard.
And second, producer Annie McEwen journeys through perhaps the zaniest game of football that has ever been played. When a ragtag group of players take on the top team, will it be an underdog tale for the ages or an absolute disaster?
Special thanks to Stephen Spann and Joshua Baxter at the Doris and Harry Vice University Library at Cumberland University as well as Alison Reynolds at Georgia Tech Library. Thanks also to Rick Bell, and to Scott Larson who wrote a book all about this game called Cumberland: The True Story of the Highest Scoring Football Game in History. And finally, thanks so much to our tape syncer Ambriehl Crutchfield for her help with this episode. 
If you’re still interested in learning more about this epic football game, be sure to check out this brilliant and hilarious video by sportswriter Jon Bois.
 
Support Radiolab by becoming a member of The Lab today.    
Radiolab is on YouTube! Catch up with new episodes and hear classics from our archive. Plus, find other cool things we did in the past — like miniseries, music videos, short films and animations, behind-the-scenes features, Radiolab live shows, and more. Take a look, explore and subscribe!

This week, we bring you two stories about little guys trying to do big big things.
First, self-proclaimed animal grinch producer Becca Bressler introduces us to perhaps the one creature that has warmed her heart: a cricket. And more specifically, a male cricket. This is a tale about a tiny Romeo insect trying to find a mate, and the ingenious lengths he’ll go to have his beckoning heard.
And second, producer Annie McEwen journeys through perhaps the zaniest game of football that has ever been played. When a ragtag group of players take on the top team, will it be an underdog tale for the ages or an absolute disaster?
Special thanks to Stephen Spann and Joshua Baxter at the Doris and Harry Vice University Library at Cumberland University as well as Alison Reynolds at Georgia Tech Library. Thanks also to Rick Bell, and to Scott Larson who wrote a book all about this game called <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/36549726-cumberland">Cumberland: The True Story of the Highest Scoring Football Game in History</a>. And finally, thanks so much to our tape syncer Ambriehl Crutchfield for her help with this episode. 
If you’re still interested in learning more about this epic football game, be sure to check out this brilliant and hilarious <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=doZzrsDJo-4&amp;ab_channel=JonBois">video</a> by sportswriter Jon Bois.
 
Support Radiolab by becoming a member of <a href="https://www.wnycstudios.org/podcasts/radiolab/membership">The Lab</a> today.    
<a href="https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCaum_fMDGgFQCmKHUBPq_xg">Radiolab is on YouTube!</a> Catch up with new episodes and hear classics from our archive. Plus, find other cool things we did in the past — like miniseries, music videos, short films and animations, behind-the-scenes features, Radiolab live shows, and more. Take a look, explore and subscribe!

Frailmales

In competitive debate future presidents, supreme court justices, and titans of industry pummel each other with logic and rhetoric. 
Unclasp your briefcase. It’s time for a showdown. Looking back on an episode originally aired in 2016, we take a good long look at the world of competitive college debate. This is Ryan Wash's story. He's a queer, Black, first-generation college student from Kansas City, Missouri who joined the debate team at Emporia State University on a whim. When he started going up against fast-talking, well-funded, “name-brand” teams, from places like Northwestern and Harvard, it was clear he wasn’t in Kansas anymore. So Ryan became the vanguard of a movement that made everything about debate debatable. In the end, he made himself a home in a strange and hostile land. Whether he was able to change what counts as rigorous academic argument … well, that’s still up for debate.
Special thanks to Will Baker, Myra Milam, John Dellamore, Sam Mauer, Tiffany Dillard Knox, Mary Mudd, Darren "Chief" Elliot, Jodee Hobbs, Rashad Evans and Luke Hill. 
Special thanks also to Torgeir Kinne Solsvik for use of the song h-lydisk / B Lydian from the album Geirr Tveitt Piano Works and Songs









Support Radiolab by becoming a member of The Lab today.    
Radiolab is on YouTube! Catch up with new episodes and hear classics from our archive. Plus, find other cool things we did in the past — like miniseries, music videos, short films and animations, behind-the-scenes features, Radiolab live shows, and more. Take a look, explore and subscribe!

In competitive debate future presidents, supreme court justices, and titans of industry pummel each other with logic and rhetoric. 
Unclasp your briefcase. It’s time for a showdown. Looking back on an episode originally aired in 2016, we take a good long look at the world of competitive college debate. This is Ryan Wash's story. He's a queer, Black, first-generation college student from Kansas City, Missouri who joined the debate team at Emporia State University on a whim. When he started going up against fast-talking, well-funded, “name-brand” teams, from places like Northwestern and Harvard, it was clear he wasn’t in Kansas anymore. So Ryan became the vanguard of a movement that made everything about debate debatable. In the end, he made himself a home in a strange and hostile land. Whether he was able to change what counts as rigorous academic argument … well, that’s still up for debate.
Special thanks to Will Baker, Myra Milam, John Dellamore, Sam Mauer, Tiffany Dillard Knox, Mary Mudd, Darren "Chief" Elliot, Jodee Hobbs, Rashad Evans and Luke Hill. 
Special thanks also to Torgeir Kinne Solsvik for use of the song h-lydisk / B Lydian from the album <a href="https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B007IVZUEU/ref=dm_ws_sp_ps_dp" target="_blank">Geirr Tveitt Piano Works and Songs</a>









Support Radiolab by becoming a member of <a href="https://www.wnycstudios.org/podcasts/radiolab/membership">The Lab</a> today.    
<a href="https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCaum_fMDGgFQCmKHUBPq_xg">Radiolab is on YouTube!</a> Catch up with new episodes and hear classics from our archive. Plus, find other cool things we did in the past — like miniseries, music videos, short films and animations, behind-the-scenes features, Radiolab live shows, and more. Take a look, explore and subscribe!

Debatable

Almost exactly twenty years ago, detainee 244 got transferred to Guantanamo Bay. Captured by American forces at the battle Tora Bora five months previous, Abdul Latif Nasser was shaved, hooded, shackled, diapered, and flown halfway across the world.
The Radiolab special series, The Other Latif, kicked off when one of our hosts, Latif Nasser, made a bizarre and shocking discovery. He shares his name with detainee 244. A man the U.S. government paints a terrifying picture of as Al-Qaeda’s top explosives expert, and one of the most important advisors to Osama bin Laden. Nasser’s lawyer claims, on the other hand, that he was at the wrong place at the wrong time, and that he was never even in Al-Qaeda. This clash launched our Latif into a years-long investigation, picking apart evidence, attempting to separate fact from fiction, and trying to uncover what the man with whom he shares a name actually did or didn’t do. Along the way, Radiolab’s Latif reflects on American values and his own religious past, and wonders how a fellow nerdy, suburban Muslim kid, may have gone down such a strikingly different path.
Episode 5: Cuba-ish 
To mark the solemn occasion of The Other Latif's transfer to, "the legal equivalent of outer space, we thought we'd replay Cuba-ish, the fifth episode of our special series which first aired back in 2020. In this episode, our Latif heads to Guantanamo Bay to try to speak to his namesake. Before he gets there, he dives deep, seeking the answer to what seems like a simple question: why Cuba? Why in the world did the United States pick this sleepy military base in the Caribbean to house “the worst of the worst”?  Support Radiolab by becoming a member of The Lab today.    
Radiolab is on YouTube! Catch up with new episodes and hear classics from our archive. Plus, find other cool things we did in the past — like miniseries, music videos, short films and animations, behind-the-scenes features, Radiolab live shows, and more. Take a look, explore and subscribe!

Almost exactly twenty years ago, detainee 244 got transferred to Guantanamo Bay. Captured by American forces at the battle Tora Bora five months previous, Abdul Latif Nasser was shaved, hooded, shackled, diapered, and flown halfway across the world.
The Radiolab special series, <a href="https://www.wnycstudios.org/podcasts/other-latif">The Other Latif</a>, kicked off when one of our hosts, Latif Nasser, made a bizarre and shocking discovery. He shares his name with detainee 244. A man the U.S. government paints a terrifying picture of as Al-Qaeda’s top explosives expert, and one of the most important advisors to Osama bin Laden. Nasser’s lawyer claims, on the other hand, that he was at the wrong place at the wrong time, and that he was never even in Al-Qaeda. This clash launched our Latif into a years-long investigation, picking apart evidence, attempting to separate fact from fiction, and trying to uncover what the man with whom he shares a name actually did or didn’t do. Along the way, Radiolab’s Latif reflects on American values and his own religious past, and wonders how a fellow nerdy, suburban Muslim kid, may have gone down such a strikingly different path.
Episode 5: Cuba-ish 
To mark the solemn occasion of The Other Latif's transfer to, "the legal equivalent of outer space, we thought we'd replay Cuba-ish, the fifth episode of our special series which first aired back in 2020. In this episode, our Latif heads to Guantanamo Bay to try to speak to his namesake. Before he gets there, he dives deep, seeking the answer to what seems like a simple question: why Cuba? Why in the world did the United States pick this sleepy military base in the Caribbean to house “the worst of the worst”?  Support Radiolab by becoming a member of <a href="https://www.wnycstudios.org/podcasts/radiolab/membership">The Lab</a> today.    
<a href="https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCaum_fMDGgFQCmKHUBPq_xg">Radiolab is on YouTube!</a> Catch up with new episodes and hear classics from our archive. Plus, find other cool things we did in the past — like miniseries, music videos, short films and animations, behind-the-scenes features, Radiolab live shows, and more. Take a look, explore and subscribe!

The Other Latif: Cuba-ish

Another public radio program that is also available for free as a podcast, *Radiolab* has been running since 2002. It focuses on topics in the philosophy and science realms but in an accessible and light-hearted way perfect for the podcast format. If you think you’re not into science, podcast hosts Jad Abumrad and Robert Krulwich may just be able to convince you otherwise. Each hour-long episode is innovative, stylized, and engaging, full of music and sound effects to hold the interest of even the most attention-challenged listeners.

Radiolab is on a curiosity bender. We ask deep questions and use investigative journalism to get the answers. A given episode might whirl you through science, legal history, and into the home of someone halfway across the world. The show is known for innovative sound design, smashing information into music. It is hosted by Jad Abumrad, Lulu Miller, and Latif Nasser.


Radiolab

Best Radiolab Episodes

Recent Posts

Radiolab

Best Radiolab EpisodesBestNew

Recent Posts

Best Radiolab Episodes