Special Episode: Rachel Gross & Vagina Obscura

This Podcast Will Kill You

Exactly Right and iHeartPodcasts

Health & Fitness, Science

4.8 • 17.1K Ratings

🗓️ 4 March 2025

⏱️ 49 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

For much of history, female reproductive anatomy has been studied only in the context of or in comparison to male reproductive anatomy. This shows in clinical trial design, in healthcare disparities, in the research questions we ask (or fail to ask), it’s even apparent in our language - the word “vagina” means “sheath”, as if vaginas only exist to sheathe penises. Only recently have researchers begun to close this gap in our knowledge when it comes to half the humans on this planet. In Vagina Obscura: An Anatomical Voyage, award-winning journalist and author Rachel Gross takes readers through the origins of this information gap, examining how preconceived notions about sex and gender underlie the bias that still exists today. She then delves into the fascinating research that seeks to confront this bias and address the vast health inequities that limit care for so many. Tune in for a truly enlightening odyssey through the only recently charted world of female anatomy.

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Transcript

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0:00.0	This is exactly right.
0:03.0	This is exactly right. The
0:23.6	The Hi, I'm Erin Welsh, and this is, Podcast Will Kill You. Welcome back to another episode of the
0:57.5	TPWKY Book Club, where we interview some of the coolest people ever to ask them about the
1:03.4	amazing work they do and the fascinating books they've write. This is the last book club episode
1:10.1	for this season. Don't worry, there'll be more for next season.
1:13.5	And it is such a great one. I think you all are going to love it.
1:17.6	Over the course of this season, we've gotten to have some incredible conversations.
1:23.1	And if you would like to check out those books that we've already covered, head on over to our website.
1:28.0	This podcast will kill you.com, where you can find a link to our bookshop.org affiliate account,
1:32.9	which has all sorts of TPWKY related lists, including, of course, a list that contains the
1:39.3	Book Club books for this and last season. And if you still got room on your bookshelves, check out our other
1:45.4	bookshop lists, where we include the books that we use to research our regular episodes,
1:50.1	plus disease or epidemic-themed fiction books, which I feel like could be so much fun to use
1:55.1	as a starting point for another book club on how disease is used in fiction. Let me know what
2:00.3	you think. As always, we love hearing from you
2:02.7	about how you're enjoying these book club episodes, what questions you wish you could ask,
2:07.4	recommendations for future books to cover, just send your thoughts our way. The best way to do that
2:12.2	is through the contact us form on our website. And one last thing before I introduced this week's
2:17.3	book club selection,
2:18.2	the last one of the season. And that is a simple request to rate, review, and subscribe. It really
2:25.0	helps us out. Okay, enough podcast business. On to the business of books and the business of
	...

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