Twenty Thousand Hertz

Why do bugs make the sounds they do? And how do they make them? In this episode, we explore the un-bee-lievable world of insect sounds, including crickets who craft tools to make themselves louder, and moths who can jam the natural sonar of bats. By the time it’s over, you’ll never hear these buzzes and chirps the same way again. Featuring entomologists Natasha Mhatre and Nancy Mioreli. Watch our video shorts on Youtube, Instagram, and TikTok. Follow us on Reddit, Twitter, and Facebook. Sign up for Twenty Thousand Hertz+ to get our entire catalog ad-free. If you know what this week's mystery sound is, tell us at mystery.20k.org For more amazing bug facts, subscribe to Nancy’s Youtube channel, SciBugs. Follow Natasha’s research on insect communication at Mhatre Lab. Subscribe to Tumble, the science podcast for kids. Get your very own Clarett+ 2Pre audio interface from Focusrite. Check out headspace.com/20KHERTZ and use promo code 20KHERTZ60 to try Headspace free for 60 days. Get up to 35% off for Mother's Day at masterclass.com/20k. Visit shopify.com/20k and sign up for a one-dollar-per-month trial period. Episode transcript, music, and credits can be found here: https://www.20k.org/episodes/songbugs Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In honor of Mental Health Awareness month, we’ve revamped one of the most personal episodes we’ve ever worked on. To create it, Dallas worked with the team from Meditative Story to tell a story from his former life as a musician. It’s about losing the thing that had defined his life for more than a decade, and finding something entirely different in the process. This remix concludes with an all-new segment where Dallas reflects on what it was like to finally share this story. Check out our new store at 20k.org/shop. Watch our video shorts on Youtube, Instagram, and TikTok. Follow us on Reddit, Twitter, and Facebook. Sign up for Twenty Thousand Hertz+ to get our entire catalog ad-free. If you know what this week's mystery sound is, tell us at mystery.20k.org Go to indeed.com/hertz to start hiring today. Find the right doctor, right now with at zocdoc.com/20k. Subscribe to Meditative Story wherever you get your podcasts. Episode transcript, music, and credits can be found here: https://www.20k.org/episodes/breathedeep Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In the 1960s, stereo sound revolutionized the music industry. But it turns out, a pioneering engineer named Alan Blumlein had actually invented stereo a full three decades earlier. Due to tragic events in World War II, his innovations were forgotten for decades. In this episode, we worked with OnePlus to tell the story of how audio has evolved from mono, to stereo, to quadraphonic, to surround sound and beyond. Today, we even have immersive, three-dimensional systems that can simulate 128 speakers using just two. Featuring Alan Blumlein’s son Simon Blumlein, and sound engineer Robin Reumers from the Abbey Road Institute. Watch our video shorts on Youtube, Instagram, and TikTok. Follow us on Reddit, Twitter, and Facebook. Sign up for Twenty Thousand Hertz+ to support the show & get our entire catalog ad-free. If you know what this week's mystery sound is, tell us at mystery.20k.org Improve your personal sound world at oneplus.com. Episode transcript, music, and credits can be found here: https://www.20k.org/episodes/thespatialrace Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Have you ever seen something so cute that you just wanted to squeeze it? Have you ever felt sleepy after a big meal? Or enjoyed bouncing on a puffy cushion? There are words for all of these, just not in English. In this game show episode, 20K producer and resident linguist Grace East cooks up an “untranslatable” words quiz for Dallas and fellow producer Andrew Anderson. How many words can you guess? Watch our video shorts on Youtube, Instagram, and TikTok. Follow us on Reddit, Twitter, and Facebook. Sign up for Twenty Thousand Hertz+ to get our entire catalog ad-free. If you know what this week's mystery sound is, tell us at mystery.20k.org Improve your personal sound world at oneplus.com. Check out headspace.com/20KHERTZ and use promo code 20KHERTZ to try Headspace free for 30 days. Visit shopify.com/20k and sign up for a one-dollar-per-month trial period. Episode transcript, music, and credits can be found here: https://www.20k.org/episodes/foundintranslation Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

For decades, the jingle was king. But in the last twenty years, jingles have nearly gone extinct. Many brands have now dropped their melodic earworms in favor of spoken word slogans. Today, there’s just one industry where jingles are still as common as ever: insurance. The question is, why? Featuring Jeanna Isham of the Sound in Marketing podcast, audio branding expert Colleen Fahey, and Brand Manager Sergio Trujillo. Snag a $20 super soft tee at shop.20k.org. Watch our video shorts on Youtube, Instagram, and TikTok. Follow us on Reddit, Twitter, and Facebook. Sign up for Twenty Thousand Hertz+ to get our entire catalog ad-free. If you know what this week's mystery sound is, tell us at mystery.20k.org To learn more about sonic branding, subscribe to Jeanna’s podcast, Sound in Marketing, and buy Colleen’s book, Audio Branding: Using Sound to Build your Brand. Go to indeed.com/hertz to start hiring today. Find the right doctor, right now with at zocdoc.com/20k. Visit shopify.com/20k and sign up for a one-dollar-per-month trial period. Episode transcript, music, and credits can be found here: https://www.20k.org/episodes/insurancejingles Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

“Soundalikes,” also called “voice doubles,” are voice actors who perform as characters that were originally played by someone else. They’re used extensively by studios like Disney and Pixar, in order to keep their iconic characters consistent across games, rides, toys, and TV shows. In live action movies, soundalikes fill in for the leads, and record lines for the film’s many rough cuts. But being a great voice double is about much more than just being a good impressionist. Featuring Rick Dempsey, Holly Dorff, and a surprise guest… Snag a $20 super soft tee at shop.20k.org. Watch our video shorts on Youtube, Instagram, and TikTok. Follow us on Reddit, Twitter, and Facebook. Sign up for Twenty Thousand Hertz+ to support the show & get our entire catalog ad-free. If you know what this week's mystery sound is, tell us at mystery.20k.org Check out headspace.com/20KHERTZ and use promo code 20KHERTZ to try Headspace free for 30 days. Go to hellofresh.com/hertz60 and use code HERTZ60 for 60% off plus free shipping. Episode transcript, music, and credits can be found here: https://www.20k.org/episodes/soundalikes Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In a noisy, tumultuous world, how can we find inner peace? This episode features two stories about the transformative power of silence. In the first, the Lieutenant Governor of Washington State abandons politics to become a Jesuit novice, and takes a temporary vow of silence. In the second, a death row inmate at San Quentin discovers Buddhist practices that help to calm his mind, and embrace compassion. Featuring Cyrus Habib, Jarvis Masters, Leigh Marz, and Justin Zorn. Snag a $20 super soft tee at shop.20k.org. Follow us on Youtube, Instagram, TikTok, Reddit, Twitter, & Facebook. Sign up for Twenty Thousand Hertz+ to support the show & get our entire catalog ad-free. If you know what this week's mystery sound is, tell us at mystery.20k.org Purchase Golden: The Power of Silence in a World of Noise, by Justin Zorn & Leigh Marz. To learn more about Jarvis Masters, read the story and timeline of his case, and subscribe to the Dear Governor podcast. Go to indeed.com/hertz to start hiring today. Find the right doctor, right now with at zocdoc.com/20k. Visit shopify.com/20k and sign up for a one-dollar-per-month trial period. Episode transcript, music, and credits can be found here: https://www.20k.org/episodes/golden Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The voices inside our navigation systems are with us nearly every day. They frustrate us when they lead us astray, and guide us through our most memorable adventures. But who are the people behind those voices? In this episode, an Australian musician discovers she is the voice inside millions of GPS units, and the Polish voice of Google Maps goes head to head with a robot. Featuring “The GPS Girl” Karen Jacobsen and “Głos Google Maps” Jarosław Juszkiewicz. Watch our new video shorts on YouTube, Instagram, and TikTok. Follow the show on Twitter, Facebook, & Reddit. Sign up for Twenty Thousand Hertz+ to support the show & get our entire catalog ad-free. If you know what this week's mystery sound is, tell us at mystery.20k.org. Watch Jarek’s farewell video that inspired the online protest. To learn more about Karen's work, visit thegpsgirl.com. Find the right doctor, right now with at zocdoc.com/20k. Visit shopify.com/20k and sign up for a one-dollar-per-month trial period. Episode transcript, music, and credits can be found here: https://www.20k.org/episodes/recalculating Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In our third annual Mystery Sound Game Show, the crew from Endless Thread compete to guess the most sounds from this year’s batch. Get ready to listen along and test your knowledge of classic sci-fi movies, strange animal calls, video game themes, UI sounds, and more. One thing is certain: It’s gonna get toasty. Watch our new video shorts on YouTube, Instagram, and TikTok! Vote for Twenty Thousand Hertz in the Listener’s Choice Signal Awards! Follow the show on Twitter, Facebook, & Reddit. Sign up for Twenty Thousand Hertz+ to support the show & get our entire catalog ad-free. If you know what this week's mystery sound is, tell us at mystery.20k.org. Use promo code 20k to get $20 off your next purchase over $100 at American Musical Supply. Find the right doctor, right now with at zocdoc.com/20k. Visit shopify.com/20k to get a free 14-day trial with Shopify’s entire suite of features. Episode transcript, music, and credits can be found here: https://www.20k.org/episodes/endlesshertz Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

After months of speculation, the person behind TikTok’s current text-to-speech voice reveals her true identity. This is an update to episode #155, TikTalk. Follow the show on Twitter, Facebook, & Reddit. Subscribe to our Youtube channel. Sign up for Twenty Thousand Hertz+ to get our entire catalog ad-free + our bonus show MicroHertz! Visit shopify.com/20k to get a free 14-day trial with Shopify’s entire suite of features. Episode transcript, music, and credits can be found here: https://www.20k.org/episodes/tiktalk Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices