Hey there, it's Flora Lickman, and you're listening to Science Friday.

March Madness is around the corner, and of course that means a lot of this.

What is the science behind that signature sound? Look, if you're tempted to tag out, don't, because it turns out the

physics is sticky and surprising and involves lightning bolts and earthquakes. I'm not kidding.

So lace up, get your mind off the bench, because joining me now to talk about this is the lead

author on a new paper in nature that

investigates the squeak. Dr. Adele Joluli is an experimental physicist at Harvard.

Adele, why this question? Thank you for having me, Flora. Well, the reason why I ask myself this is because most of my projects are curiosity driven.

I learned through my training during my PhD that even the most simple questions can be deceptive.

So when I first arrived to the U.S., one of the first things that you do as an immigrant is to get accustomed with the local people is that you go to their sports events.

And let me tell you that Boston people and Bustonians are very much fans of their different sports.

We know.

We know and know.

And so I went to a Celtics game for the NBA.

And, you know, there are two things that strike you.

The first thing is how enthusiastic the crowd is.

And the second one is this omnipresent sound

that never leaves your ears when you're in the stadium,

which is the squeaking of basketball shoes

when players are sliding, right?

And so for me, it was why, simple question, why do basketball shoes

squeak? Okay, so run me through your setup. How did you figure this out? Well, one of my interns

...