Science Friday

Nightmare on Nerd Street is back for 2026! Enter Science Friday’s Halloween costume contest for a chance to win a SciFri merch gift bag filled with surprises and a chance to chat with Flora on the show. Go to our website to enter! www.sciencefriday.com/articles/sci...

Kazuo Ishiguro is the author of the novel “Klara and the Sun,” which has recently been adapted into a movie. The story is set in the future and is narrated by Klara, a robotic “Artificial Friend,” whose job is to be a companion to a sick teenage girl.

In the 5 years since the release of the novel, AI has changed immensely. Flora talked to Kazuo about the rapid evolution of artificial intelligence, the intersection of art and science, and the need for public conversations as we move forward with AI.

How do you make a billion-dollar space telescope? 🔭 Image credits: Slide 1 & 5: NASA/JPL-Caltech Slide 2: NASA ESA CSA STScI Slide 3: NASA/JPL-Caltech and NASA, ESA, CSA, STScI; Image Processing: Alyssa Pagan (STScI) Slide 4: NASA/ESA/STScI Slide 6: ESA/Webb, NASA & CSA, L. Furtak, S. Fujimoto

Astronomer Jason Glenn has been working on PRIMA (PRobe far-Infrared Mission for Astrophysics) for the past 10 years. Last month, NASA selected it to advance to the next phase where the team will plan every nut and bolt of the telescope before building can begin.

Our #PictureOfTheWeek takes you inside the stomach of a sperm whale. In the new movie “Whalefall,” a scuba diver has a very bad day. He gets caught up in a battle between a giant squid and sperm whale, and accidentally gets swallowed. Images courtesy of 20th Century Studios.

The question mark in “What if we get it right?” is huge for Dr. Ayana Elizabeth Johnson (@ayanaeliza.bsky.social). At Climate Week NYC, Grist @grist.org hosted a live Science Friday taping. Flora and Ayana chatted about the climate movement, climate solutions, and how Ayana became a climate leader.

Could a sperm whale really swallow a person? Well sperm whales probably have the largest esophagus of any whale, about 12 to 16 inches across. They need it to gulp down giant squid. So with a really big sperm whale and a tiny person, it could be possible. Footage courtesy of 20th Century Studios.

Flora talked with Dr. Shane Gero, sperm whale researcher and biology lead for @projectceti.bsky.social and director Brian Duffield (@brianduffield.bsky.social) about the science behind Brian's new movie “Whalefall.”

Striving to be scientifically accurate made everything so much worse for actor Austin Abrams. Director Brian Duffield’s new movie “Whalefall” takes you through the stomachs of a sperm whale, as a scuba diver gets accidentally swallowed with a giant squid. Footage courtesy of 20th Century Studios

Flora chatted with Brian @brianduffield.bsky.social and Shane Gero, sperm whale researcher and biology lead for @projectceti.bsky.social, about the making of the film and the science behind it all.

Is your most secure relationship with your pet? Neuroscientist Amir Levine joined Flora to dig into the science of attachment styles. They chatted about what we’re getting wrong about them and whether they can actually change.

Enter for your chance to win a free book! donate.sciencefriday.com/October2026g... Science Friday’s Book Club, in partnership with Spiegel & Grau, is giving away 10 free copies of "The Comfort of Crows" by Margaret Renkl.

This giveaway will close at 10:00 a.m. ET on Monday, October 19. Winners will be notified via email no later than October 20. Please note that we can only send books to U.S. addresses and not P.O. boxes.

Our #PictureOfTheWeek is musician, artist, and Talking Heads lead singer David Byrne. Flora sat down with him recently to talk about his new book “Sleeping Beauties: Why Good Ideas Go Dormant and How They Wake Up.” David shared his favorite stories from the book and the ideas he hope will reawaken.

It feels like everyone is talking about attachment styles online. But where does your attachment style come from? Do you have more than one? Can it change? And is everything on social media about it true? Flora talked with neuroscientist Amir Levine to dive deeper into the science behind it all.

Which one did you get? Let us know below! ⬇️ 🦑 Today is the last day of Cephalopod Week, but all our cephalopod stories, games, and activities live on our website year round. Check out our community tab to dive in!

Science Friday’s staff had a blast playing our card game during Cephalopod Week, so grab some friends and join in on the fun! Thank you to Grand Gamers Guild (@grandgamersguild.bsky.social) for teaming up with us to make a game all about the chambered nautilus.

From their three hearts to their doughnut-shaped brains, octopuses are fascinating creatures that are also biologically wired to die after they reproduce. We spoke with cephalopod expert Z. Yan Wang to learn more about octopus death spirals and to answer listener questions for Cephalopod Week!

Listen to our podcast episode "The punk rock life of cephalopods" or hear it on your local public radio station this Friday. www.sciencefriday.com/segments/pun...

Cephalopods are having a Hollywood glow-up. 🎬🐙 From monsters to villains to teachers, their on-screen roles have been changing as people understand them more.

We explore the different movies cephalopods have starred in with our latest Science Goes To The Movies newsletter. Check out the article on our website and dive into our other cephalopod content that we’re dropping all week long. www.sciencefriday.com/articles/cep...

David Byrne is no stranger to bringing extraordinary ideas to life. But what about ideas that are ahead of their time? How do we reawaken them? Flora chatted with David about his new book “Sleeping Beauties: Why Good Ideas Go Dormant and How They Wake Up,” and which ideas resonated with him most.

Join SciFri Educate on October 8th for a Cephalopod Week live Q&A! When: Thursday, October 8 at 1 pm ET / 10 am PT Where: Science Friday’s YouTube channel ⤵️ www.youtube.com/live/O4X5kdv... Tickets: Free! RSVP for reminders below ⤵️ www.sciencefriday.com/articles/dis...

It’s Cephalopod Week! All week long we’ll be celebrating our favorite cephalopods with stories, games, educational activities, virtual events, and lots more! Dive in on our website at sciencefriday.com/cephalopodweek. We’re kicking it off with a nautilus as our #PictureOfTheWeek.

People have claimed the nautilus shell is an example of the golden ratio, but is that true? The golden ratio is a number associated with spirals, art, architecture, and patterns in nature. So Christopher Bartlett, an art professor from Towson University, put the nautilus shell to the test.