Before we start, I have news. We now have a phone number. If you have a word that you want us to cover, you can call in, leave us a message, and we might play out on the show.

Call 929-499 Word. That's 929-49-999-9-9-9-6-7-3.

Okay, on to the show.

It didn't really taste like anything, but it just sort of coated my teeth in this really unpleasant way.

Today, we're talking about this thing that for centuries, rich people coveted, rubbed on their necks,

and ate all without having any idea what it actually was. If they had known, they might have put

their forks right down. From Science Friday, this is Science Diction. I'm Johanna Mayer. Today, we're talking about

Ambergris.

We recently got this email from a listener that we want to share with you.

We present Letter from Ben, dramatized by Charles Bergquist, Science Friday Director.

Subject. Science Diction Suggestion.

Hello, Johanna. I've listened to almost all of the science diction podcasts with plans to finish them all, of course, and I love the show.

It's right up my alley, mixing an interest in linguistics, science, human nature, and the odd little corners of our collective history.

It's great. I heard in one of the episodes that you take suggestions.

I have a good one, I think, and it starts like this. When I was around 11 or 12, I was flipping through the dictionary and reading about random words, yes, proud word nerd here,

and I came across the word ambergris. The definition sparked my imagination, wonder, and it had enough of the

what gross factor that I memorized the definition.

And to this day, I'm now over 40.

I can recite it as a party discussion starter, for it is loaded with story.

And then Ben gives us the definition, ambergris.

A grayish, waxy substance found floating in tropical seas,

believed to originate in the intestines of a sperm whale,

...