Radiolab – "Gravitational Anarchy"

Release Date: November 29, 2010
Hosts: Jad Abumrad, Robert Krulwich
Guest Contributions: Actress Hope Davis (as Rosemary Morton), Neil deGrasse Tyson, David Quammen, Jack

Episode Overview

This episode of Radiolab explores our tacit trust in gravity and the ways it can be disrupted—both in the human mind and in the seemingly miraculous physics of cats. It begins with the haunting story of a woman whose relationship with gravity unravels, leading to intense, novel perceptions that science can only partially explain. The show then pivots to an investigative, humorous debate about why cats tend to survive even when falling from great heights, drawing in physicists, science writers, and the show's characteristic playful sound design.

Major Segments & Discussion Points

1. Revisiting 'Falling' and Introducing Gravity (01:48–02:41)

• The hosts recall a previous episode focused on various types of falling.
• Jad Abumrad: "You and gravity have an agreement. Yes. But we're going to start off with this tale that we ran into. Amazing tale of a woman who lost that agreement." (02:32)

2. Rosemary Morton's Story: Gravitational Anarchy (03:04–14:33)

a. A Sudden Disruption of Gravity (03:34–07:34)

• Hope Davis (reading Rosemary): A woman describes minor tremors in the floor—first at home, then in her workplace—and a mounting sensitivity in her sense of touch.
• As her sensations intensify, the room seems to shift beneath her feet. The world becomes unstable, "like snow," and she feels herself sink or rise unpredictably.
• Quote: "Sometimes it was as if I were sinking into the floor. The room would tilt and I'd take a step and the floor was like snow. It would give under my foot and I would sink." (06:40)

b. Doctors' Reassurance and Escalation (07:34–12:31)

• Rosemary's doctors provide no explanation: "Essentially normal." (07:46)

  • Quote: "It sounds so reassuring, so comforting. But it isn't. At least, it wasn't to me. It was terrifying." (07:51)

• Her experiences become even more surreal:

  • Faces existential dread but also senses a new vividness in music and urgency in life.
  • Extreme distortions in her body perception: limbs lengthen or shrink unpredictably.
  • Feelings of being directly aligned with the Earth's rotation, as if some external force is winding her body.

• Quote: "My legs, my arms, my face, my whole body felt different. It had no permanent shape. It changed by the minute. I seemed to be completely at the mercy of some outside force, some atmospheric pressure." (11:28)

c. Diagnosis and Resolution (12:38–14:37)

• After months, Rosemary finally receives a diagnosis: labyrinthitis, a disturbance of the inner ear, also known as vertigo.
• Quote: "My trouble was a disturbance of the internal ear called labyrinthitis... the meaning of labyrinthitis as a word was simply an inflammation of the oral labyrinth." (12:46)
• Hosts reflect on how her experience was far deeper than the usual pop culture concept of "vertigo."
  • Jad Abumrad: "At some point in the essay, she actually refers to her situation as a case of gravitational anarchy." (13:41)
• Abrupt and unexplained, Rosemary’s symptoms disappear: "Her vertigo just went away. Poof." (14:33)

3. The Physics of Falling Cats (15:07–21:49)

a. Veterinarians’ Observations (15:22–16:06)

• David Quammen: Cites a study where cats falling from the 5th to 9th floors get hurt worse than those falling from the highest stories or the lowest.
• Jad Abumrad: "Why would a cat falling 42 floors not get hurt more than a cat falling 9 floors? Just doesn't make any sense." (16:06)

b. Bias in Cat-Falling Data (16:10–17:14)

• Enter Neil deGrasse Tyson, who immediately scrutinizes the statistical evidence: only cats who survive and receive treatment are in the data; many might have simply died and never made it to the vet.
• Jack (Tyson): "You started with a completely biased sample. So I try not to spend much brain power analyzing flawed data." (17:14)

c. Terminal Velocity and the Relaxed Cat Theory (17:41–20:22)

• The hosts propose an explanation: After reaching terminal velocity (around 9 floors), cats may relax and spread out, akin to flying squirrels, reducing injuries.
• Jad Abumrad: "After the cats hit terminal velocity... they relaxed. They sort of stretch out like a flying squirrel." (19:44)
• Tyson counters that weightlessness occurs throughout free fall; acceleration isn’t physically felt by the animal, so relaxation at terminal velocity is unconvincing.
• Jack (Tyson): "There's no obvious reason to me why a cat at terminal velocity is more relaxed than a cat in free fall. You're essentially in free fall. You're weightless." (20:08)

d. Behavioral vs. Physical Explanations (20:22–21:42)

• Hosts consider whether Tyson, as a physicist, can understand cat behavior better than cat owners.
• Conclude it’s "a tricky, opaque, intractable question." (21:54)

e. The Cat and Jelly Toast Paradox (22:12–23:03)

• For comic relief, Jack recounts the famed "cat jelly toast" experiment from the Journal of Irreproducible Results: When a cat (which always lands on its feet) is strapped with jelly toast (which always lands jelly-side down), the combination causes it to hover—unable to resolve the paradox.
• Jack: "There’s a research paper… the cat with the jelly toast strapped on its back... it stops and then it hovers above the ground." (22:27–22:45)

Notable Quotes & Moments

• Jad Abumrad: "Some things just don't have explanations, Robert, but they have wonderful sound design, and that's Radiolab. No explanations, pretty sounds." (14:41)
• Hope Davis as Rosemary: "I was amorphous. My left leg would seem to lengthen, or my right arm or my neck, or one whole side of me would double or treble in size. And yet that doesn't fully describe it." (11:28)
• Robert Krulwich: "So what is wrong with her?" (12:35)
• Jack (Neil deGrasse Tyson): "You started with a completely biased sample. So I try not to spend much brain power analyzing flawed data." (17:14)
• Jack: "Do you know the famous cat jelly toast experiment?" (22:12)

Timestamps for Key Segments

| Timestamp | Segment | |------------|--------------------------------------------------------| | 01:48 | Introduction & recalling "falling" episode | | 03:34 | Start of Hope Davis' reading (Rosemary's story) | | 07:34 | Doctors' diagnosis: "essentially normal" | | 12:46 | Diagnosis: labyrinthitis (vertigo) | | 14:33 | Resolution: Rosemary recovers | | 15:22 | Cat-falling data presented (Quammen) | | 16:10 | Data bias and Tyson's entrance | | 19:38 | Terminal velocity argument explained | | 20:08 | Tyson critiques 'relaxed cat' reasoning | | 22:12 | Cat jelly toast paradox recounted |

Tone & Style

The episode balances a sense of awe, curiosity, and playfulness—capturing both the existential unease of losing trust in gravity and the comic mystery of how cats defy injury in violent falls. There's banter, skepticism, and delight in inquiry, often undercut by the hosts' appreciation for the limits of science and statistics.

Conclusion

“Gravitational Anarchy” is quintessential Radiolab—an imaginative foray into phenomena we take for granted, told with literary flair, rich storytelling, and lively skeptical debate. Whether examining the inner ear’s rebellion or the feline knack for survival, the episode probes the curious edges of sense, physics, and the mind.