Science Friday Presents: Science Diction
Science Diction is a bite-sized podcast about words—and the science stories behind them.
Science Diction is a bite-sized podcast about words—and the science stories behind them. Subscribe wherever you get your podcasts, and sign up for our newsletter.
From the people who make Science Friday, we bring you Science Diction, a bite-sized podcast about words—and the hidden science tucked inside them. Hosted by SciFri producer and self-proclaimed word nerd Johanna Mayer, each episode of Science Diction digs into the origin of a single word or phrase, and, with the help of historians, authors, etymologists, and scientists, reveals a surprising science connection.
Science Diction explores the strange journey that our words have taken: The word meme originally had more to do with evolutionary biology than the internet, and the element cobalt takes its name from a very cheeky goblin from German folklore. And who knew that the word cell was inspired not by microscopic life, but by the cloistered chambers of a monastery?
Fun, nosy, and nerdy, Science Diction takes a look at what we’re really saying when we use everyday words. Can’t wait to dive in? Sign up for our newsletter. Plus, Science Diction existed first as a written series, and you can take a peek at some previous articles below.
How Do You Solve A Problem Like Hydrox?
Before Oreo, there was a nearly identical cookie on the market. A much-loved cookie with a terrible name.
Guest Episode: How Did The ‘Cosmic Crisp’ Apple Get Its Name?
When it takes 20 years to develop a new apple, you better have a dazzling name to go with it. The Sporkful reports.
Episode 10: Restaurant
The first restaurants were for fancy French people who were trying not to eat.
Episode 9: Umami
It all started with MSG in a bottle.
Guest Episode: Communal Eating With ‘Gastropod’
The science behind why sharing a meal means so much.
Episode 8: Rocky Road
How linguistic tricks can influence your choices at the ice cream freezer.
Episode 7: Ketchup
It turns out the history of ketchup is rather fishy.
Episode 6: Spanish Flu
The Spanish Flu wasn’t Spanish at all.
Episode 5: Quarantine
Quarantine is on all our minds lately. But the word goes all the way back to the time of the Black Death.
Episode 4: Cobalt
‘Cobalt’ takes its name from a pesky goblin—and mischief is baked into its name.
Episode 3: Dinosaur
The origin of the word ‘dinosaur,’ and the story of its self-sabotaging inventor.
Episode 2: Vaccine
The origin of the word ‘vaccine’ stretches back to a disease, a test subject, and… a cow.
Episode 1: Meme
The word ‘meme’ has more to do with evolutionary biology than the internet.
The Origin Of The Word ‘Seaborgium’
For 20 years, it was known simply as “element 106.”
The Origin Of The Word ‘Mercury’
From ancient alchemists to Lewis and Clark, mercury has a storied history.
The Origin Of The Word ‘Helium’
Astronomers thought the element could only be found in the sun.
The Origin Of The Word ‘Cobalt’
It was deemed “the goblin of the mines”—and it revolutionized the world of art.
The Origin Of The Word ‘Emoji’
The word ’emoji’ has nothing to do with emotion.
The Origin Of The Word ‘Humor’
From pseudoscience to Shakespeare, it’s no laughing matter.
The Origin Of The Word ‘Vaccine’
This world-changing tool of immunization got its name from a cow virus.
The Origin Of The ‘Five-Second Rule’
It has to do with Genghis Khan and Julia Child.
The Origin Of The Word ‘Chocolate’
Every day, people around the word are speaking a tiny bit of the native language Nahuat.
The Origin Of The Word ‘Thermometer’
The term first appeared in an early “puzzle book” full of scientific brainteasers.
The Origin Of The Name ‘Spanish Flu’
It’s a misnomer that endured for a century.
The Origin Of The Word ‘Crater’
It has more to do with wine than lava.
The Origin Of The Word ‘Alcohol’
“The cause of (and solution to) all life’s problems” is derived from Arabic. But the word ‘alcohol’ originally referred to a method of manufacturing makeup, among other things.
The Origin Of The Word ‘Meme’
What does LOLcats have to do with evolutionary biology?
The Origin Of The Word ‘Tuberculosis’
Why did we stop calling the disease ‘consumption’?
The Origin Of The Word ‘Dinosaur’
Make no bones about the origin of this dinosaur story.
The Origin Of The Word ‘Quarantine’
‘Trentino’ just doesn’t have the same ring to it.
The Origin Of The Word ‘Cocaine’
It’s a tale of a leaf, a graduate student, and alkaloid science.
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The Origin Of The Word ‘Sun’
You’ve heard of “heliocentric.” So why don’t we call it the “helio?”
The Origin Of The Word ‘Umami’
There’s science behind deliciousness.
The Origin Of The Word ‘Cell’
It all started with a piece of cork…
The Origin Of The Word ‘Robot’
‘Robot’ was the brainchild of the Czech playwright Karel Čapek, who introduced it in a 1920 play.
The Origin Of The Word ‘Quark’
It’s a tale of particle physics, Aristotle, and James Joyce.
The Origin Of The Word ‘Zero’
There’s a lot to say about nothing.
Meet the Writer
About Johanna Mayer
@yohannamayerJohanna Mayer is the host of Science Diction from Science Friday. When she’s not working, she’s probably baking a fruit pie. Cherry’s her specialty, but she whips up a mean rhubarb streusel as well.