Hi, Alex here,
This is SpeakEasy, turning small talk into smart talk β like conversational Red Bull! (minus the heart palpitations).
Today:
ποΈ The Sweet Spot: Sex science says once a week
π€ TMI Survival Guide: Escaping the βoversharer.β
π The Sex Spectrum: Vocab from doctors to Brits
πΈ Icon: Lennon at 85 (what could've been)
π³οΈ Poll: Is Sora 2 genius or nightmare?
β¦and more.
Words, wits & culture! π§
Pure communication fuel.
(First time reading? You can subscribe here for free.)
NEWS YOU CAN USE

π The Science of Satisfaction
I once saw a documentary about an African chief with eleven wives.
Eleven.
He looked like a broken manβ¦drained.
Like a squeezed-out teabag left out in the sun.
Not from the wives β no! (Letβs be clear: my own wife, who will definitely read this, is wonderful. An angel sent from heaven π )
No, the poor guy looked half-dead from the sex.
And it turns out, science agrees with him.
Researchers reviewed 279 studies and found the sweet spot for happiness is β brace yourself β once a week.
(And yes, you still have to find the sweet spot.)
Thatβs enough to feel connected. Not enough to need a defibrillator.
Any more than that, and satisfaction actually drops (or is that spelled droops? π)
Apparently, passion becomes routine, and routine becomes⦠a chore, with sweat.
But hereβs the real insight:
This isnβt really about sex.
Itβs about how terrible we are at predicting what makes us happy.
We assume more = better.
And science keeps proving us wrong.
So much for βthe more, the merrier.β
(Although tell that to the ancient Romansβ¦ or suburban couples in the β70s.)
π‘ PRO TIP: When a topic feels too taboo to touch, zoom out to the principle. This study may not be dinner-table material, but βthe sweet-spot ideaβ works anywhere, from work to workouts.
π¬ FOLLOW-UP: βI read this study showing that more isnβt always better when it comes to happiness. It made me rethink [work / exercise]. Where do you think we overdo it?β
β DONβT SAY: βSoβ¦ how often are you doing it?β (You will get uninvited. From everything. Forever.)
FAMOUS WORDS
βSex is emotion in motion.β
(Mae West, American actress and professional troublemaker, 1893β1980)

Giphy
π¬ Can you name the film?
ποΈ A deli. A sandwich. A performance.
Answer at the end π
WORD WISE
π Wordplay (Not Foreplay)
The full sex spectrum β hereβs how humans talk about doing it:
π For priests, academics, and doctors:
fornicate β’ copulate β’ coitus β’ intercourse
(When you need maximum clinical distance from whatβs actually happening.)
πΊπΈ Standard slang:
bang β’ bone β’ nail β’ screw β’ smash β’ hook up
(American directness at its finest.)
π¬π§ Very British:
shag β’ hanky-panky β’ rumpy-pumpy β’ a bit of slap and tickle
(The Brits really said, βLetβs make it sound like a childrenβs game.β)
π‘ PRO TIP: Match your language to your audience.
βIntercourseβ at brunch = serial-killer vibes.
βRumpy-pumpyβ in a work email = next stop, Job Centre.
TALK TOOLBOX

π The TMI Survival Guide
Weβve all been trapped by someone with no filterβsharing details that shouldβve stayed in their therapy session, diaryβ¦ or grave.
This will help. Know when to talk and when to walk.
When youβre stuck (coworker, family, no escapeβ¦):
π Set a boundary: βWhoa, thatβs pretty personal β not sure Iβm the right audience for that.β
π Or pivot: βThatβs a bit intense. Letβs change the topicβ¦β Most oversharers donβt realise theyβre doing it.
If they keep going:
π βIβm not comfortable talking about that.β Full stop. No βsorryβ needed.
When you can escape: βI need to grab another drink/check my phone/find the bathroom.β Then donβt come back.
π‘ PRO TIP: Chronic oversharing isnβt cluelessnessβitβs a choice. Protect your peace. Awkward beats traumatized.
RECOMMENDED
This is a great read! Everything you need for family life.
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BECAUSE THE ROBOTS ARE COMING
Last issue, we met the AI actress giving Hollywood heartburn.
Now, multiply that by ten β and say hello to Sam Altmanβs latest βgiftβ to humanity: Sora 2.
Think TikTok on AI steroids.
An AI video generator that turns simple text into full-blown cinema. It shot straight to the top of the U.S. App Store after launch (because we just can't resist our hi-def replacements.)
But while Germanyβs running 20-hr robot shifts in BMW factories, and Chinaβs boasting a 300,000-strong robot workforce, the US gives us this deranged madnessπ
The awful irony here? Stephen Hawking warned AI could end humanity.
Now itβs reanimated him for likes.
@ai.magico Ranking The Best Stephen Hawking Sora Edits #ai #sora #sora2 #chatgpt #olympics #stephenhawking #ufc #race #battlebots #football #fyp
π³οΈ POLL: Sora 2 can turn words into movies. Exciting or terrifying?
ICONIC

πΈ John Lennon
John Lennon would've turned 85 this week (October 9th) β but heβs frozen at 40, shot outside his New York apartment in 1980.
His influence? Incalculable. The Beatles rewired music. His solo work gave us Imagine β one of the most covered songs in history (not even ruined by Gal Gadot). He made activism into art and proved pop stars could think as well as sing.
Weird facts:
The FBI spied on him for years β Nixon saw him as a re-election threat.
His βBed-In for Peaceβ with Yoko: literally a week in bed with the press invited.
He was declared legally blind in 1970.
Yoko Ono kept his bloodstained glasses β still on display.
The legacy: peace signs, round specs, and the belief that "All you need is love."
π¬ YOUR TURN: Lennon or McCartney β whoβs the real genius? (WARNING: This question has ended friendships.)
ANSWER
π¬ ANSWER: When Harry Met Sally (1989)
Rob Reinerβs rom-com masterpiece asks if men and women can ever just be friends.
π Cultural Impact: The famous fake orgasm scene in the diner and βIβll have what sheβs havingβ (the actor β the directorβs mum.)
π§ Deep Dive: The quote is frequently ranked among the best in movie history and landed at #33 on the American Film Institute's 100 Greatest Movie Quotes.
π¬ YOUR TURN: Whatβs your favourite rom-com?
LAST WEEK
π³οΈ Would you scan your eye to prove youβre human?
(And get some $$$.)
A) ποΈ Yes β safer logins and some crypto? Why not! β 12%
B) π¬ Maybe β ask me again when everyone else is doing it β 38%
C) π« No way β my eyeballs arenβt for sale β 50%
π¬ Your Two Cents
M.M: βDo not trust these peopleβ
S.H: βFingerprints, facial recognition, ear shape, and now they want our eyeballs, DNA will be next on their wish-list. I just wish they'd think of more imaginative Turing Tests as whatever biometric they take it can always be copied or hacked in somewayβ
S.Y: βIn fairness our phones have been doing it for years"

π€£
THIS IS THE END
That's it for #39.
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