Bonnie Bassler, a molecular biologist at Princeton University, helped to revolutionize views on the sociability of bacteria by showing that they choreograph their collective actions through nuanced chemical conversations. In this discussion with host Steven Strogatz, Bassler describes how exquisitely sophisticated these conversations are, how bacteria wait to act until the numbers are on their side, and how viruses eavesdrop on the chatter. This episode was produced by Dana Bialek. Read more at https://www.quantamagazine.org/bonnie-bassler-on-talkative-bacteria-and-eavesdropping-viruses-20210308/. Production and original music by Story Mechanics.