I personally have never been in a fight, so I can't say for sure what my fighting style would look like. But I can speculate. It would probably involve me taking a single girly swing at my opponent, jamming up a knuckle, and then starting to cry. The good news is that it might not be my fault I'm such a sissy. According to Harvard neuroscientist Edward Kravitz, there may be a genetic explanation. Or at least there would be if I were a fruit fly. Male and female fruit flies use very different fighting techniques, and Kravitz has discovered that by manipulating a single gene, he can transfer these gender-specific moves into the opposite sex.
I never know whether or not these scientists and I are going to agree on what's funny about their research. I certainly wouldn't blame them if they didn't find it funny at all—I mean, it is their job and everything. But let's face it, a fruit-fly Thunderdome is pretty hilarious, especially when you think about those poor little male fruit flies head-butting each other like a bunch of girls. Luckily, Edward Kravitz was very tolerant of my slightly goofy interview
approach. I could tell even before we got to the story about
accidental head-crushing. —Jonathan
Coulton
Hey Jonathan,
Are you still doing the show? I =really= enjoy them. You still up there on the moon or did you move a bit further away so it's taking longer to upload your podcasts? :D
Posted by: Todd | April 27, 2007 at 02:55 PM
What has happened to my precious PopSci Podcast From The Moon????? NASA budget cuts? Cold feet at PopSci? Jon Coulton is too busy for my own good?
The silence is ... well, silent.
Posted by: Brad Eleven | May 09, 2007 at 07:53 AM
Yeah, what happened? Is Jonathan busy? Did the podcast get canceled? It's a great show, and I'd hate to see it go!
Posted by: thatbaldguy | May 14, 2007 at 02:17 PM
Jonathan has indeed been a busy man, but never fear—some new episodes are on the way and should be posted soon.
Posted by: John Mahoney | May 14, 2007 at 04:18 PM
y did u want the world to know u r a girly fighter
Posted by: the true man | May 17, 2007 at 09:45 PM
What the heck happened to the popsci podcasts? Every hour I check to see if the podcast has been updated but have found nothing new! If coulton does not update the podcast soon, I may as well forget that this wonderful podcasts existed. Jonathan Coulton, PLEASE UPDATE YOUR PODCASTS!
Posted by: mad@coulton | August 10, 2007 at 02:30 PM
Hey guys,
I found out that Coulton is on vacation for a few weeks and will countinue the podcasts after his vacation! Yay!
Posted by: nice2coulton-postmad@coulton | August 10, 2007 at 02:39 PM
What is your favorite unusual fruit?
What do you do with it? Where does it come from and where do you find it and what makes it unusual?
Posted by: generic viagra | March 26, 2010 at 04:33 PM
Is Jonathan busy? Did the podcast get canceled? It's a great show, and I'd hate to see it go!
Posted by: generic viagra | March 31, 2010 at 01:56 PM
Did he factor in the fruit flies preparation and attitude?
Posted by: fighting techniques | June 12, 2011 at 04:05 PM