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 abou ... Show More
Apr 2024
Viking Royalty: Nicknames, Love Poems & Victorian Myths
<p>We think we know the Vikings, but how well do we <em>really</em> know them?</p><br><p>From the insignia we think they wear, to the names they call themselves and the way they spoke to each other, there's a lot to uncover.</p><br><p>Joining Kate today is Dr. Caitlin Ellis, hist ... Show More
40m 34s
Aug 2023
Etymology (WORD ORIGINS) Encore with Helen Zaltzman
<p>The brilliant and dazzling Helen Zaltzman pops in with some new asides in this encore episode of Ologies. Helen, host of the podcasts The Allusionist, Veronica Mars Investigations and Answer Me This, and a person who technically for a living researches the origins of language ... Show More
1h 6m
Jan 2023
Laryngology Part 1 (VOICE BOXES) with Ronda Alexander
<p>Voices! Singing! Anxiety busters! Breathing! The absolutely magnetic, charismatic Laryngologist and surgeon Dr. Ronda Alexander makes her long-awaited Ologies debut to chat about why we sound the way we do, hormones and voices, Elvis accents, opera singing, kid voices, turning ... Show More
1h 1m
Feb 2019
Love, Hate, and Sex from the History of Science
<p>This Valentine's Day we could have just brought you some sappy love stories from science's past. But instead we offer you three tales of lust, loneliness, betrayal, pettiness, and not one, but two beheadings.</p> <h2>Credits</h2> <p>Hosts: <a href="file:///profile/alexis-j-ped ... Show More
38m 34s
Sep 2019
Personalities Associated with Certain Names, Working Less to Save the Earth, and Superbolts
Learn about the big impact we could have on our planet by cutting work hours; the strange behavior of superbolts of lightning; and, which personalities people associate with the sounds of certain names.Please support our sponsors! Get 10% off your first order from Saturday Mornin ... Show More
8m 47s
May 2021
Episode 34: Lost and Found
On today's episode: Home recordings, people recording their friends, neighbors, and strangers — for a look at how we live, and who we are, by listening closely. Featuring a 5-year-old Sofia Coppola, and Patti Smith before she recorded her first album.
Lost & Found Sound is the wo ... Show More
47m 8s