What's So Special About Human Screams? Ask a Screamologist

WIRED Science: Space, Health, Biotech, and More

• Episode: What's So Special About Human Screams? Ask a Screamologist
• Website: WIRED Science: Space, Health, Biotech, and More
• Feed URL: http://api.spokenlayer.com/feed/channel/v1-wired-science-ext/3c9929b72538c12bd92ac6762f8d798b9d4e8cdca7692ea74f466061d01816cb
• Duration: 00:06:28
• Published: 2019-05-16 13:12

I scream, you scream, we all scream. For ice cream, sure, but also for fear, excitement, sexual pleasure, pain, anger, and—if online commenters are to be believed—memes 😱. Screaming is exhibited by many animals, but no species uses this extreme vocalization in as many different contexts as humans. Though we're pretty good at recognizing a scream when we hear one, the wide variety of screams makes it difficult to pin down what defines them.