In this episode of Science et al., Daniel speaks with Carl Zimmer (@carlzimmer) about the intersection of science writing and communications, a subject that continues to be of local, national, and global importance. Carl writes the Matter column for the New York Times, and is the author of thirteen books about science. When we spoke, Carl was touring the world for his recent book, She Has Her Mother’s Laugh, which won the 2019 National Academies Communication Award. The Guardian named it the best science book of 2018. He’s a frequent guest on Radiolab and adjunct professor at Yale University. He is, to his knowledge, the only writer after whom a species of tapeworm has been named.