Why we’re still obsessed with vampires

In this Halloween special episode of Science Quickly, host Rachel Feltman explores why our fascination with vampires refuses to die. We dive into the spooky history of vampires—from tuberculosis outbreaks in the 18th and 19th centuries to sexy pop culture icons—and examine what our collective obsession with them says about us. Recommended Reading: Exhumed: Unearthing the History of the American Vampire. Aaron Mahnke. Running Press Adult, 2026 Recreational Fear Lab, co-directed by Mathias Clasen, at Aarhus University in Denmark “Monsters and Posttraumatic Stress: An Experiential-Processing Model of Monster Imagery in Psychological Therapy, Film and Television,” by Jenny Hamilton, in Humanities and Social Sciences Communications, Vol. 7, Article No. 142. Published online November 5, 2020 E-mail us at sciencequickly@sciam.com if you have any questions, comments or ideas for stories we should cover! Discover something new every day: subscribe to Scientific American and sign up for Today in Science, our daily newsletter. Science Quickly is produced by Rachel Feltman, Fonda Mwangi, Sushmita Pathak, Allison Rodgers and Jeff DelViscio. This episode was edited by Alex Sugiura, with fact-checking by Marielle Issa and Aaron Shattuck. Our theme music was composed by Dominic Smith. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices