Episode 29: Sneaky Spider Sex

Episode 29: Sneaky Spider Sex

Most of us have received a disappointing gift at some point, maybe an ugly sweater from a relative, or a beautifully wrapped package that turns out to be completely useless. Humans know this feeling well. But surprisingly, so do spiders. In this episode, our guest, Dr. Maria Albo, takes us into the world of nuptial gift-giving spiders, where males present females with carefully wrapped packages during courtship and many of those gifts are completely worthless.

Episode 28: Something Fishy: The Science of Sperm Parasitism

Imagine a species where females rely on males from another species to reproduce… but never use their genes. That’s not science fiction, that’s real biology, and we are here to tell you the story of the Amazon Molly. In this episode, Laura is joined by Sanaa Khan, a PhD Candidate at University of California, Davis who studies this incredible system. We will be talking about how the species reproduces, what it means for evolution, and what her research is uncovering.

Episode 27: Beauty is in the ear of the beholder: the science of mate choice in frogs

Ahhh, frogs calling. A sure sign of spring. But can you tell the difference between the songs of attractive and unattractive frogs? Our guest, Olivia Feagles, can. In this episode, Dr. Feagles explains how to measure the attractiveness of frog calls. In her studies, she found that female frogs vary in what they find attractive in a male song and how far they are willing to travel for their preferred mate. Finally, she discusses how the current state of science funding is affecting the future plans of early career scientists like her.

Episode 26: Longer penises, thicker vaginas, and other stories from the field of genital research

Welcome back to Season 5 of I Came For Science. We launch this season with an interview with Patty Brennan, the OG of genital co-evolution research and so much more. In this episode, we talk about her research, her science advocacy, and how her identity as a Latina in STEM has shaped her science and led to incredible new questions and discoveries that no one before her had thought to look into.

Episode 25: Masturbation: An Evolutionary Perspective

In the spirit of normalizing talking about topics related to sex, we give you "Masturbation: An Evolutionary Perspective". In this episode, Laura interviews evolutionary biologist Matilda Brindle about her research in which she uses evolutionary methods to test hypotheses about when and why masturbation evolved. Matilda shares with us how she came to this area of research, what is known about masturbation in other animal species, what her research has unveiled about the topic, and how her work has been received by colleagues and the general public. Happy listening!