Volume 48 number 1 (2020)
(Abstract only) I will review the surprising new insights into the nature of classical Cepheid variables that have been enabled by radial velocity measurements precise enough to measure the speed of a human walking. Following a brief overview of Cepheid properties, I will focus on two celebrities: first on the prototype, δ Cephei, and its secret companion that can only be detected indirectly, and then on α UMi (the North Star, Polaris), which is both the nearest Cepheid variable and whose detailed astrophysical explanation remains a mystery.