Legends of the fall: fallout shelters, dreams of falling, and autumnal vibes

It’s time to open our mailbag and answer your questions about fall – and not just the season. We’ve interpreted the theme to include everything from dreams about falling to fallout shelters and, um, tornadoes. Plus, we reveal the long-anticipated winner of our poll on best alternatives for replacing the term “leaf-peeping.” Question 1: Why do so many have recurring dreams about falling? Question 2: How do tornadoes figure in myths around the world? Question 3: How deep does a fallout shelter need to be? Question 4: Are berries ripening earlier because of climate change? Do you have a question about the natural world? Submit it to the Outside/Inbox! Send a voice memo to outsidein@nhpr.org or call our hotline: 1-844-GO-OTTER (844-466-8837). Don’t forget to leave a number so we can call you back. Featuring: Abhinav Singh, Nani Pybus, David Monteyne, Shaheen Dewji, Richard Primack, Nicole Herman-Mercer, Katie Spellman. SUPPORT Outside/In is made possible with listener support. Click here to become a sustaining member of Outside/In. Subscribe to our (free) newsletter. Follow Outside/In on Instagram or Twitter, or join our private discussion group on Facebook. LINKS On dreams

German chemist August Kekulé claimed to have pictured the ring structure of benzene, after dreaming of a snake eating its own tail

A study on the threat simulation theory of dreaming

On Fallout Shelters

Fallout Shelter: Designing for Civil Defense in the Cold War by David Monteyne

A calculator to estimate your personal annual radiation dose

Fallout Five Zero, a photographic chronicle of the Boston area’s now defunct shelters

On Berries

Walden Warming: Climate Change Comes to Thoreau’s Woods by Richard Primack

A study on Indigenous knowledge on climate-related changes to berry production in Alaska

CREDITS Host: Nate Hegyi Reported, produced and mixed by Felix Poon, Justine Paradis, Taylor Quimby, and Jessica Hunt Edited by Taylor Quimby and Justine Paradis. Executive producer: Rebecca Lavoie Music for this episode by Jharee, Thea Tyler, and Blue Dot Sessions. Our theme music is by Breakmaster Cylinder. Outside/In is a production of New Hampshire Public Radio.

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