To start off the new season we’re getting into the science of one of the most controversial and taboo sex topics around. Squirting! For some people, it’s a major sex goal — but for others, it’s a source of major embarrassment. And it turns out that people have been writing or talking about squirting and female ejaculation for CENTURIES. So in this episode, we’re going to find out: what IS squirting (like, what is this fluid??), how common is it, and if you want to start doing it … how can you? We’ll hear from Sex Educator and World Record Holder, Lola Jean. As well as Professor Caroline Pukall, Dr. Nan Wise, Professor Helen O’Connell, and Dr. Samuel Salama. 

Find our transcript here: bit.ly/4iIVQcc

In this episode, we cover:

(00:00) Welcome to Cirque du Squirt

(08:26) History of female ejaculation

(13:18) Suspect 1: Vaginal lubrication

(15:55) Suspect 2: Pee

(24:41) Suspect 3: Chemical X?

(29:47) Female prostate

(36:00) Why does it feel like that?

(39:26) What about penises?

(42:03) Can you learn to squirt?

Credits:

This episode was produced by Ekedi Fausther-Keeys, with help from Blythe Terrell, Wendy Zukerman, Meryl Horn, Michelle Dang, and Rose Rimler. We’re edited by Blythe Terrell. Video editing, audio mix and graphics by Bobby Lord. Graphics help from Michelle Dang. Illustrations by Scarlette Baccini. Fact checking by Eva Dasher. Music by Bobby Lord, Peter Leonard, Bumi Hidaka, and So Wylie. Interpreting by Kana Hatakeyama, translation help from Ben Milam. 

Thanks also to Dr. Devon Hensel, and Dr. Leslie Rickey. Recording and logistics help from Michelle Kitchen, Spencer Howard and Nick Johnson. Recording help from Abi McNeil. Special thanks to Roland Campos. Thanks to Cameron Silzle and Arsonhouse Entertainment. Thanks to Lola Jean and everyone who spoke to us at Cirque du Squirt.

Science Vs is a Spotify Studios Original. Listen for free on Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts. Follow us and tap the bell for episode notifications.

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Have you been missing your weekly dose of science?? Well, we've got good news: Science Vs is BACK next week, and we’ll be tackling ADHD, squirting, creatine, the carnivore diet, bird flu, fluoride, meth, memory and much more. New episodes start March 27. Fact ya soon!

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U.S. science is in turmoil. Amid agency firings and confusion over federal funding, researchers are freaking out. Many can’t do their work, and they have no idea what the future holds. Plus, we’re hearing that all of this could jeopardize medical treatments for people in the U.S. and all over the world. So, what exactly is going on? And how bad is it? We speak with Nature reporter Max Kozlov and Science magazine reporter Jocelyn Kaiser.

Find our transcript here: bit.ly/ScienceVsWarOnScience 

In this episode, we cover:

(00:00) Scientists are freaked out

(02:40) The chaos on government science websites

(11:28) Firings and research funding freezes

(18:09) Flagging words like women, Black and Latinx in grants

(22:20) USAID cuts and vaccine concerns

(27:04) What could be the motivation for all this?

This episode was produced by Wendy Zukerman, with help from Meryl Horn, Rose Rimler, Michelle Dang and Ekedi Fausther-Keeys. We’re edited by Blythe Terrell. Mix and sound design by Bobby Lord. Music written by Emma Munger, Peter Leonard and Bobby Lord. Thanks to Lauren Silverman and Nimra Azmi. And thanks so much to all the scientists who shared their stories with us. We appreciate you.

Science Vs is a Spotify Studios Original. Listen for free on Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts. Follow us and tap the bell for episode notifications.

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The internet tells us that narcissists are everywhere — and that the problem is only getting worse. It’s like narcissism is oozing out of our celebrities, politicians, partners, parents, maybe even ourselves?? So today, we’re taking a long look in the mirror to find out: are we all a bunch of narcissists? And what should we do if we think someone in our life is a narcissist? We find out by talking to a real narcissist, Lee Hammock of the social media platform “The Self Aware Narcissist” as well as psychologists Prof. W. Keith Campbell, Prof. Kali Trzesniewski, and Dr. Craig Malkin. 

We want to hear your ideas for new episodes of Science Vs! Tell us via:

Instagram at science_vs

X at @sciencevs 

Bluesky at sciencevs

Email at [email protected]

Voicemail at +1(774) 481-1238‬ 

This episode does mention depression. Here are some crisis hotlines: 

United States: US National Suicide Prevention Lifeline Dial 988 (Online chat available); US Crisis Text Line Text “HOME” to 741741

Australia: Lifeline 13 11 14 (Online chat available)

Canada: Canadian Association for Suicide Prevention (See link for phone numbers listed by province)

United Kingdom: Samaritans 116 123 (UK and ROI)

Full list of international hotlines here 

Find our transcript here: https://bit.ly/ScienceVsNarcissism 

In this episode, we cover:

(00:00) Lee’s Ratatouille Moment

(07:06) The Narcissism Test

(15:53) Are We In a Narcissism Epidemic?

(25:41) It Kind of Sucks to be a Narcissist 

(31:55) Narcissists in Therapy

(35:11) How to Deal With a Narcissist in Your Life

This episode was produced by Rose Rimler, with help from Wendy Zukerman, Michelle Dang, Meryl Horn, and Ekedi Fausther-Keeys. We’re edited by Blythe Terrell. Mix and sound design by Sam Bair. Fact checking by Erica Akiko Howard. Music written by Peter Leonard, Emma Munger, So Wylie, Bumi Hidaka, and Bobby Lord.Thanks to all the researchers we spoke to for this episode, including Dr. Igor Weinberg,  Dr. April Ilkmen, Dr. Jennifer Gerlach, Dr. Betsy Edershile, Prof. Brad Bushman, Prof. Brent Donnellan, Prof. Chris Barry,  Dr. Glenn Geher, and Winkie Ma. Special thanks to Rachel Humphries for editing help. And big thanks to everyone who helped us this season! Jack Weinstein, Hunter, Chris Suter, Oscar, Elise, Dylan, the Zukerman family and Joseph Lavelle Willson.

Science Vs is a Spotify Studios Original. Listen for free on Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts. Follow us and tap the bell for episode notifications.

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People say that lowering inflammation is the key to boosting your mental and physical health. And there are all these claims about the best way to do it: add “anti-inflammatory foods,” like blueberries or turmeric, and absolutely don’t do certain kinds of exercise. We’ll find out how you can really lower your inflammation, and what this can do for your body and mind. We talk to neuroscientist Dr. Caroline Ménard, nutrition scientist Dr. Rosa Casas, and exercise physiologist Dr. Grace Rose. 

This episode does discuss depression and suicide a little bit. Here are some resources:

Find our transcript here: https://bit.ly/sciencevsinflammation 

In this episode, we cover:

(00:00) Chapter 1: Everybody is talking about inflammation

(03:23) Chapter 2: How inflammation can affect our bodies and minds

(16:04) Chapter 3: Can we fix inflammation by cutting out nightshades?

(19:48) Chapter 4: How to really lower your inflammation through your diet

(28:44) Chapter 5: Does working out too hard raise chronic inflammation? 

This episode was produced by Meryl Horn with help from Wendy Zukerman, along with Michelle Dang, Rose Rimler and Ekedi Fausther-Keeys. We’re edited by Blythe Terrell. Mix and sound design by Sam Bair. Fact checking by Diane Kelly. Music written by Bobby Lord, Emma Munger, So Wylie, Bumi Hidaka and Peter Leonard. Thanks to all the researchers we spoke with for this episode, including Professor Suzanne Segerstrom, Professor Andre Nel, Dr. Hannah Mayr, Professor Zhaoping Li, Dr. Jennifer Felger, Professor Andreas Michalsen, Professor Charles Serhan, Professor Heather Zwickey, Dr. Jian Tan and Professor Philip Calder.

Science Vs is a Spotify Studios Original. Listen for free on Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts. Follow us and tap the bell for episode notifications. 

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[VIDEO available on Spotify.] Imagine a vagina. You might be thinking of a passive tube, patiently waiting for a penis to shoot out sperm — and you wouldn't be alone. From Aristotle to Darwin, tons of prominent nerds classified males as the active sexual players: They're coercing, manipulating and harassing to reproduce, while the females are passive, coy, chaste. But animal ecologist Dr. Tiana Pirtle is here to give us the real story.

Because once scientists started investigating what really goes on in the vaginas of the animal queendom, they realized that — far from being docile tubes — vaginas are packed with their own weaponry, tools and secret chambers. It turns out that both penises and vaginas were allowed to fight in the evolutionary arms race. Pirtle breaks open a box filled with animal vaginas to tell us all about it.  

Find our transcript here: https://bit.ly/ScienceVsWhenVaginasAttack

In this episode, we cover:

(00:00) A Box Full of Vaginas

(02:42) The 'Chaste' Female is Born

(06:51) The Duck Vagina that Launched a Thousand Ships

(11:06) Hyenas and their Pseudo Penises

(13:23) Water Striders and their Genital Shields

(16:53) Snakes and their Two Vaginas?! 

(20:28) Alpacas and their Regal Vaginas

(25:31) The Rainbow of Vaginas

This episode was produced by Wendy Zukerman with help from Michelle Dang, Rose Rimler, Meryl Horn, and Ekedi Fauster-Keeys. We’re edited by Blythe Terrell. Fact checking by Michelle Dang. Video Editing Kait Plum. Additional editing help from Alex Button. Mix and sound design by Sam Bair. Thanks to Dr. Patricia Brennan, Dr. Andy Flies, Dr. Chang Han, Prof. Christine Drea, Samuel Cox and Nick Johnson. We first heard about Tiana's show at Beaker Street Festival in Tasmania. Also a big thanks to the Zukerman Family and Joseph Lavelle Wilson.

Science Vs is a Spotify Studios Original. Listen for free on Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts. If you are listening on Spotify, follow us and tap the bell for episode notifications. And if you like the show - please give us a five star review – it really helps new people find the show.

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It’s the 1990s at a medical center in California, and patients are dying. At first, this doesn’t seem strange — it’s a hospital, and deaths happen. But then rumors start to circulate about a particular health care worker: Difficult or needy patients in his care are ending up dead. The cops get involved, but there’s a huge problem: There’s no hard evidence. Until the so-called “Lab of Last Resort” steps in. Crime Junkie host Ashley Flowers joins us as we speak to analytical chemist Armando Alcaraz, former Detective Sergeant John McKillop and Dr. Ian Musgrave. 

Find our transcript here: https://bit.ly/ScienceVsSerialKiller

In this episode we cover: 

(00:00) Deaths at a California Hospital

(05:20) Meet Efren Saldivar

(10:51) A Shocking Confession

(15:40) Pavulon and Succinylcholine

(21:00) Searching for Suspicious Cases

(25:09) The Lab of Last Resort 

(34:21) Testing the Bodies

(39:30) The Story Ends 

Credits:

This episode was produced by Joel Werner and Ekedi Fausther-Keeys, with help from Wendy Zukerman, along with Meryl Horn, Rose Rimler and Michelle Dang. We’re edited by Blythe Terrell. Mix and sound design by Sam Bair. Fact checking by Diane Kelly. Music written by So Wylie, Bobby Lord and Bumi Hidaka. Thanks to Roland Campos, Steve Wampler, Audrey Williams, the audiochuck team, Jasmine Kingston, Connor Sampson, Stupid Old Studios, and Penny Greenhalgh. Special thanks to the LA times staff whose very thorough reporting we used to research this episode. 

Science Vs is a Spotify Studios Original. Listen for free on Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts. Follow us and tap the bell for episode notifications. 

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For decades, taking the birth control pill to prevent pregnancy was seen as a no-brainer. But lately, people are saying that it’s actually a brain-changer. They say that the pill can affect who you’re attracted to, that it can tank your libido, and that it can make you depressed. Instead, some influencers are telling us to try an amazing, hormone-free method — where all you have to do is listen to your body. So … are they right?? We’re tackling these birth control claims and more, with psychologist Dr. Julia Stern, biologist Madita Zetzsche, neuroscientist Dr. Caitlin Taylor, and ob-gyn Dr. Jasmine Patel. 

This episode does mention depression. Here are some crisis hotlines: 

United States: US National Suicide Prevention Lifeline Dial 988 (Online chat available); US Crisis Text Line Text “HOME” to 741741

Australia: Lifeline 13 11 14 (Online chat available)

Canada: Canadian Association for Suicide Prevention (See link for phone numbers listed by province)

United Kingdom: Samaritans 116 123 (UK and ROI)

Full list of international hotlines here 

Find our transcript here: https://bit.ly/ScienceVsThePill

In this episode, we cover:

(00:00) The Pill Under Fire

(04:08) Does The Pill change who you’re attracted to?

(13:00) Could The Pill turn off your ovulation scent?

(18:59) How bad is The Pill for our sex drive and mental health? 

(21:10) Does The Pill really change your brain?

(24:40) Does The Pill make you gain weight? 

(26:16) So how dangerous is The Pill — really? 

(27:10) Fertility Awareness Methods — are they too good to be true??

(31:32) Can pre-cum get you pregnant?

Credits: 

This episode was produced by Rose Rimler, with help from Wendy Zukerman, along with Michelle Dang, Ekedi Fausther-Keeys, and Meryl Horn. We’re edited by Blythe Terrell. Fact checking by Eva Dasher. Recording assistance from Emile B Klein. Mix and sound design by Sam Bair. Music written by Bobby Lord, Bumi Hidaka, Peter Leonard, and Emma Munger. Thanks to all the researchers we spoke with for this episode, including Dr. Adriene Beltz, Prof. Alison Edelman, Dr. Emily Pfender, Prof. Jayashri Kulkarni, Dr. Jill Krapf, Dr. Rachel Urrutia, and Dr. Therese Johansson. Special thanks to Miah Foster. 

Science Vs is a Spotify Studios Original. Listen for free on Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts. Follow us and tap the bell for episode notifications.

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Some people can control their dreams. While they're fast asleep: they fly, create new worlds, live other lives. But Wendy isn't one of them. So in today's episode, Wendy and the Science Vs team find a scientifically approved method to try to lucid dream. We test it out — and bizarre things start happening. We also explore how scientists are trying to harness the strange powers of lucid dreaming to help people, as well as to crack huge scientific mysteries, like: What is consciousness? And what exactly goes on in all of our heads when we're asleep? To do all this and more, we talk to psychologists Dr. Denholm Adventure-Heart and Dr. Brigitte Holzinger, as well as cognitive neuroscientist Dr. Başak Türker.

Find our transcript here: https://bit.ly/ScienceVsLucidDreaming

In this episode, we cover:

(00:00) Let's Fly!

(04:24) Does Reality Testing Work?

(11:30) Does the MILD Technique work?

(14:10) Wendy and the Team Try to Lucid Dream

(17:37) Can Drugs or Masks Help You Lucid Dream?

(19:28) Inside the Mind of a Lucid Dreamer

(26:24) Strange Windows of Consciousness 

(27:58) The Lucid Dreaming Brain

(34:53) Can We Use Lucid Dreaming to Help Us?

(38:32) Did the Science Vs team have a Lucid Dream?

This episode was produced by Wendy Zukerman, with help from Rose Rimler, Michelle Dang, Joel Werner, Meryl Horn and Ekedi Fauster-Keeys. We’re edited by Blythe Terrell. Fact checking by Erica Akiko Howard. Mix and sound design by Sam Bair. Music written by Bobby Lord, Bumi Hidaka, So Wiley, Peter Leonard and Emma Munger. Thanks to all the researchers we spoke to including Dr Karen Konkoly, Dr Benjamin Baird, and Professor Ken Paller. Also thanks to the Zukerman Family and Joseph Lavelle Wilson.

Science Vs is a Spotify Studios Original. Listen for free on Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts. Follow us and tap the bell for episode notifications. 

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This week's episode comes to us from our friends at Radiolab! Close your eyes and imagine a red apple. What do you see? Turns out there’s a whole spectrum of answers to that question, and producer Sindhu Gnanasambandan is on one far end. In this episode, she explores what it means to see — and not see — in your mind.

This episode was reported and produced by Sindhu Gnanasambandan with help from Annie McEwen. Original music and sound design contributed by Dylan Keefe. Mixing help from Jeremy Bloom and Arianne Wack. Mixing for Science Vs by Sam Bair. Fact-checking by Natalie Middleton. Edited by Pat Walters. 

Special thanks to Kim Nederveen Pieterse, Nathan Peereboom, Lizzie Peabody, Kristin Lin, Jo Eidman, Mark Nakhla, Andrew Leland, Brian Radcliffe, Adam Zeman, John Green, Craig Venter, Dustin Grinnell, and Soraya Shockley.

Science Vs is a Spotify Studios Original. Listen for free on Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts. Follow us and tap the bell for episode notifications.

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