Biologist Nathan Lents joins Science Quickly to explore the vast sexual diversity found across the animal kingdom. His new book, <a href="https://www.harpercollins.com/products/the-sexual-evolution-nathan-h-lents?variant=42608579608610">The Sexual Evolution: How 500 Million Years of Sex, Gender, and Mating Shape Modern Relationships</a>, challenges the binary framework that has long shaped biological research, arguing for a more accurate and inclusive view of sex and gender. From alternative reproductive strategies to overlapping traits, this episode reveals how nature defies neat categories—and why science should, too.
Recommended Reading
<a href="https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/heres-why-human-sex-is-not-binary/">Here’s Why Human Sex Is Not Binary</a>
<a href="https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/a-backyard-bird-offers-a-new-way-of-thinking-about-sexes/">This Backyard Bird Has a Lot to Teach Us about Sex Variability</a>
<a href="https://www.harpercollins.com/products/the-sexual-evolution-nathan-h-lents?variant=42608579608610">The Sexual Evolution: How 500 Million Years of Sex, Gender, and Mating Shape Modern Relationships, by Nathan Lents. Mariner Books, 2025</a>
Join the #SciAmInTheWild photography challenge for a chance to win a one-year Unlimited subscription to Scientific American—plus an exclusive bundle of gadgets and gear to level up your next adventure. <a href="https://www.scientificamerican.com/anniversary-contest-official-rules/">See the rules for entry here</a>.
E-mail us at <a href="mailto:sciencequickly@sciam.com">sciencequickly@sciam.com</a> if you have any questions, comments or ideas for stories we should cover!
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Science Quickly is produced by Rachel Feltman, Fonda Mwangi, Kelso Harper and Jeff DelViscio. This episode was edited by Alex Sugiura. Shayna Posses and Aaron Shattuck fact-check this show. The theme music was composed by Dominic Smith.
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