'Real’ or ’synthetic’? 'Authentic' or ‘lab-grown’? 'Bloodstained' or ‘green’? The highly-regulated words that describe diamonds define their narrative — and maybe even their value. We take you to New York’s Diamond District to meet some of its most engaging characters as they struggle to come to terms with the new lexicon of diamonds.

Music in this episode by Podington Bear and Blue Dot Sessions. Photo by Alina Simone. Read a transcript of this episode here.

Are you repelled by certain words? Do you get that fingernails-on-chalkboard feeling when someone says 'moist,' 'dollop' or 'fascia'? In this week's episode Kavita Pillay, who has some word aversions of her own, seeks answers from linguists who study this phenomenon.

Music in the podcast by Podington Bear, Kikoru and Blue Dot Sessions. Photo by Sauli Pillay. Read a transcript of this episode here.

Want to say or write something anonymously? Or pretend you're someone else? Good luck. Linguists like Robert Leonard of Hofstra University are using evermore sophisticated means to figure out who you really are. In this episode we trace the rise of forensic linguistics, from identifying the Unabomber to the case of the Trump Administration's 'lodestar' insider.

Read more about forensic linguist Robert Leonard here and here.

Music in the podcast by Podington Bear, Blue Dot Sessions and T. Morri. Photo by Marco Verch/Flickr Creative Commons. Read a transcript of this episode here.