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This episode was recorded on April 3rd, 2026 at the Culture Center Theater in Charleston, WV. The lineup includes Chris Smither, Joan Shelley, Yarn, Calvin Arsenia, Hudost. ⁠https://bit.ly/4vsZEnH

After reading something that said her menstrual cycle changes her brain each month, Senior Correspondent Molly Webster goes on a reporting mission to see if that’s true, and, if so, how. This journey into sex hormones and the brain involves females and males, and exacting self-experimentation. It gets into PTSD, and ends with a new twist on self-care (hint: it’s biological). And, it starts to reveal a sneaky truth: that each one of us is at the mercy of a crashing sea of chemicals inside of us – those things we call hormones. Special thanks to Emily Jacobs, Laura Pritschet, Pavel Shapturenka, and Dr. Catherine Woolley.EPISODE CREDITS: Hosted by – Molly Webster Reported by – Molly Webster Produced by – Mona Madgavkar with help from – Molly Webster Fact-checking by – Diane A. Kelly EPISODE CITATIONS: Articles –  **The experiments we feature in this episode are called: 28andMe, 28andOC, and 28andHe, all of which took place at Emily Jacobs lab at the University of California, Santa Barbara.**  The 28 Project (https://zpr.io/CSx6MnwZjRvp), background from the Jacobs lab For more on how much variability there is between female and male animals, check out this “groundbreaking” study, referenced by Emily Jacobs in our episode Sex Bias in Neuroscience and Biomedical Research(https://zpr.io/ZRgKZzdNejUA),  by Beery AK, Zucker I., Neurosci Biobehav Rev. 2011 Dr. Catherine Woolley has revolutionized the field of neuroscience and sex hormones, here’s more about her work … Sex Differences in the Brain Get Down to the Molecular Level Sex (https://zpr.io/UNCLE9J782N5), by Stephanie DeMarco, PhD, The Scientist.com Hormonal Effects on the Brain (https://zpr.io/DvNM9EkXdtGG), by Woolley, C.S. and Schwartzkroin, P.A. Epilepsia Data sets – 28andMe and 28andOC (https://zpr.io/hbXVNTVp2Q7j): 28andHe (https://zpr.io/sZXhfMbMwKb7) Audio –  In the episode, we mention Dr. Russ Poldrack and the Midnight Scan Club, as inspo for self-experimentation The Midnight Scan Club (https://zpr.io/CLBhNQSxK844), by Science Friday.   Signup for our newsletter!! It includes short essays, recommendations, and details about other ways to interact with the show. Sign up (https://radiolab.org/newsletter)! Radiolab is supported by listeners like you. Support Radiolab by becoming a member of The Lab (https://members.radiolab.org/) today. Follow our show on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook @radiolab, and share your thoughts with us by emailing radiolab@wnyc.org. Leadership support for Radiolab’s science programming is provided by the Simons Foundation and the John Templeton Foundation. Foundational support for Radiolab was provided by the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

The year is almost halfway over, and there have already been so many incredible new releases. Hosts Jim DeRogatis and Greg Kot share their personal best albums of 2026 so far. Plus, they'll hear picks from the production staff.Join our Facebook Group: https://bit.ly/3sivr9TBecome a member on Patreon: https://bit.ly/3slWZvcSign up for our newsletter: https://bit.ly/4frcVZoMake a donation via PayPal: https://bit.ly/3dmt9lUSend us a Voice Memo: Desktop: bit.ly/2RyD5Ah  Mobile: sayhi.chat/soundops Featured Songs:Twisted Teens, "Circus Clown," Blame the Clown, Jazz Life/ Chain Smoking, 2026The Beatles, "With A Little Help From My Friends," Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band, Parlophone, 1967Courtney Barnett, "Sugar Plum," Creature of Habit, Mom + Pop, 2026Ora Cogan, "Bury Me," Hard Hearted Woman, Sacred Bones, 2026Lucinda Williams, "The World's Gone Wrong (feat. Brittney Spencer)," World's Gone Wrong, Highway 20 and Thirty Tigers, 2026Ye Vagabonds, "Mayfly V3," All Tied Together, River Lea, 2026Robyn, "Blow My Mind," Sexistential, Konichiwa and Young, 2026The Twilight Sad, "GET AWAY FROM IT ALL," It's the Long Goodbye, Rock Action, 2026Kacey Musgraves, "Everybody Wants To Be A Cowboy," Middle of Nowhere, Lost Highway, 2026Ratboys, "The World, So Madly," Singin' to an Empty Chair, New West, 2026Blood Sucking Maniacs, "Red Leg Boy," Blood Sucking Maniacs, Paradise of Bachelors, 2026Ora Cogan, "The Smoke," Hard Hearted Woman, Sacred Bones, 2026Squarepusher, "K7 Museum," Kammerkonzert, Warp, 2026Dry Cleaning, "Cruise Ship Designer," Secret Love, 4AD, 2026Genesis Owusu, "STAMPEDE," Redstar Wu & the Worldwide Scourge, Ourness, 2026Peaches, "Panna Cotta Delight," No Lube So Rude, Kill Rock Stars, 2026Jill Scott, "Right Here Right Now," To Whom This May Concern, Blues Babe, Human Re Sources, and The Orchard, 2026Golems of the Red Planet, "Hadrial," Surf Masala, Heyday Again, 2026See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Our clocks tick off a steady 24 hours per day. But if a sundial could record the time with the same accuracy, it would show that the length of the day changes. The difference is called the equation of time. Clocks measure the length of a day averaged over a full year – the Sun’s average motion across the sky. Sundials show the Sun’s true motion. Over the course of a year, the length of a solar day – the period from one local noon to the next – varies by almost a minute. And that adds up. In early February, a solar day lasts about 14 minutes less than 24 hours. In early November, it lasts about 16 and a half minutes more than 24 hours. The change has a couple of causes. Earth’s orbit is lopsided, so our planet travels at different speeds. When we’re closest to the Sun, we move faster than average; when we’re farthest, we move slower. But the rate at which Earth spins on its axis remains the same. The difference in those two motions causes the Sun to move a little faster or slower across the sky, changing the length of a solar day. And Earth’s axis is tilted, so the poles take turns dipping toward the Sun. Today is the June solstice, so the north pole is tilting sunward. The change in the Sun’s position as a result of that tilt adds to the complexity. The solar day is exactly 24 hours long around June 13th. So now, the equation of time is almost zero – a close match between the sundial and the clock. Script by Damond Benningfield

This week is an exploration of Blues music, Latino style.  Featured artists include Santana, Los Lonely Boys, Diamante Electrico, Bunbury, Andres Calamaro and many more.

We spend an hour in the last two minutes of the fourth quarter, behind and desperate, with people trying any damn thing they can think of. Visit thisamericanlife.org/lifepartners to sign up for our premium subscription.Prologue: Five years after Ora first started experiencing mysterious and debilitating health problems, she decides to try a treatment that she knows very well might kill her. Host Ira Glass talks to her about the experience. (9 minutes)Act One: Two lawyers have just three months to stop their client's execution. In Texas, where this story takes place, these kinds of appeals to get people off death row fail 94% of the time. (38 minutes)Act Two: At the Otay Mesa Detention Center in San Diego, migrants figured out an ingenious way to communicate with the activists gathered outside of the detention center’s walls. (13 minutes)Transcripts are available at thisamericanlife.orgThis American Life privacy policy.Learn more about sponsor message choices.