Evolution keeps making crabs. In fact, it's happened so often that there's a special scientific term for an organism turning crab-like: carcinization. But how many times has it happened, and why? When did the very first crab originate? What about all the times crabs have been unmade? And does all this mean that we, too, will eventually become crabs? In this episode, host Emily Kwong chats with Javier Luque about crabs, carcinization and change.Want more paleontological science stories? Email us at [email protected] — we'd love to hear your thoughts!Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Patrick Anderson is widely recognized as the greatest wheelchair basketball player of all time. He's represented Canada at the Paralympics six times and led his team to win three gold — and one silver — medals. But since he first started playing in the 1990s, the sport has changed dramatically. He says that's due in part to the technological innovations in wheelchair athletics. In this episode, guest host Andrew Mambo chats with Patrick about the reasons for these changes. They also cover the origin of the sport, how the innovations that have changed gameplay and the rising popularity of wheelchair basketball around the world. Plus, the commonality between sport wheelchairs and stance cars.Interested in hearing more about the science behind sports? Email us at [email protected] — we'd love to hear your feedback!Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Hurricane season is heating up: Hurricane Francine hit Louisiana last week and dumped rain across the South, and forecasters expect more stormy activity in the Atlantic in the next few weeks. A big factor in this stormy weather is our extremely warm oceans. Scientists know climate change is the main culprit, but NPR climate correspondent Rebecca Hersher has been following the quest to figure out the other reasons. Hint: They may involve volcanoes and the sun. Read more of Rebecca's reporting on this topic.Questions about hurricanes or other weather disasters? Email us at [email protected] – we'd love to hear your ideas!Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

We close out Climate Solutions Week with a look at the final step in the food system: waste. Roughly 30-40% of all food produced globally gets thrown out — a huge problem when it comes to climate change. Shuggie's Trash Pie and Natural Wine has answers for what to do with all that waste – be it bruised fruit and wilted greens salad or meatballs made out of beef hearts. The San Francisco restaurant describes itself as a "climate-solutions restaurant" — and they're hoping you find these dishes appealing. Or at least, that you're willing to give them a try. Shuggie's is one of a growing number of eateries trying to address this problem. Interested in hearing more climate solutions? Email us at [email protected]. Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Climate change is contributing to erratic weather where cocoa beans are grown and threatening the global chocolate supply. Record rainfall last year led to fungal infections among cacao trees and dwindled supply of cocoa beans. Heat is also making it more difficult for cocoa beans to thrive. So, for day three of Climate Solutions Week, we look at one innovation in the food industry: chocolate substitutes. As big chocolate manufacturers rush to stockpile cocoa beans, some companies like Planet A Foods are looking for a more sustainable solution: an alternative that looks like chocolate, tastes like chocolate and feels like chocolate... without chocolate. You can read more of international correspondent Rob Schmitz's reporting here. Interested in hearing more climate solutions? Email us at [email protected] – we'd love to hear your ideas!Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Since the height of the pandemic, there has been a boom in the use of food delivery services. Day 2 of NPR's Climate Solutions Week is all about the environmental impacts of how we shop for our food. So in this episode, NPR correspondent Scott Neuman reports on a question we've all wanted to know the answer to: What is the impact of getting food delivered on our carbon footprint?Interested in hearing more climate solutions? Email us at [email protected] – we'd love to hear your ideas!Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

In California's Napa Valley, the nation's unofficial wine capital, one varietal reigns supreme: cabernet sauvignon. But climate change is threatening the small blue-black grapes for which cabernet sauvignon is named. Increasingly severe heat waves are taking a toll on the grape variety, especially in late summer during ripening.To kick off NPR's Climate Solutions Week, climate correspondent Lauren Sommer joins host Regina G. Barber for a deep dive into the innovations wineries are actualizing — and the ways that cabernet farmers and fans alike could learn to adapt.Climate change is affecting our food, and our food is affecting the climate. NPR is dedicating a week to stories and conversations about the search for solutions.Interested in hearing more climate solutions? Email us at [email protected] more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

In California's Napa Valley, the nation's unofficial wine capital, one varietal reigns supreme: cabernet sauvignon. But climate change is threatening the small blue-black grapes for which cabernet sauvignon is named. Increasingly severe heat waves are taking a toll on the grape variety, especially in late summer during ripening.To kick off NPR's Climate Solutions Week, climate correspondent Lauren Sommer joins host Regina G. Barber for a deep dive into the innovations wineries are actualizing — and the ways that cabernet farmers and fans alike could learn to adapt.Climate change is affecting our food, and our food is affecting the climate. NPR is dedicating a week to stories and conversations about the search for solutions.Interested in hearing more climate solutions? Email us at [email protected] more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Hey, Short Wavers! Today, we have a special present for all of you: An episode from our good friends at NPR's Body Electric podcast all a bout artificial intimacy! Thanks to advances in AI, chatbots can act as personalized therapists, companions and romantic partners. The apps offering these services have been downloaded millions of times. If these relationships relieve stress and make us feel better, does it matter that they're not "real"? On this episode of Body Electric, host Manoush Zomorodi talks to MIT sociologist and psychologist Sherry Turkle about her new research into what she calls "artificial intimacy" and its impact on our mental and physical health. Binge the whole Body Electric series here. Plus, sign up for the Body Electric Challenge and our newsletter here. Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Last year, a dog named Bunny went viral on TikTok for pressing buttons with words on them to "communicate" with her owner. But can dogs even understand those words on a soundboard in the first place? A new study in the journal PLOS One seeks answers. Host Regina G. Barber and producer Rachel Carlson break down that story and more of the week's news with the help of All Things Considered's Ari Shapiro. Have other viral headlines that you want us to put to the test for its scientific truth? Email us at [email protected] — we might cover it on a future episode! Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Short Wave producer Hannah Chinn has adult-onset eczema. They're not the only one. Up to ten percent of people in the United States have it, according to the National Eczema Association — and its prevalence is increasing. Despite its ubiquity, a lot about this skin condition remains a mystery. So today, Hannah's getting answers. They sat down with Raj Fadadu, a dermatologist at UC San Diego, to ask: What is eczema? What triggers it in the first place? And might climate change make it worse sometimes?If you liked this episode, check out our episode on the science of itchiness. Also, follow us! That way you never miss another Short Wave episode.Interested in hearing more about climate change and human health? Email us at [email protected] — we'd love to hear your feedback!Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Humans hallucinate. Algorithms lie. At least, that's one difference that Joy Buolamwini and Kyle Chayka want to make clear. When ChatGPT tells you that a book exists when it doesn't – or professes its undying love – that's often called a "hallucination." Buolamwini, a computer scientist, prefers to call it "spicy autocomplete." But not all algorithmic errors are as innocuous. So today's show, we get into: How do algorithms work? What are their impacts? And how can we speak up about changing them? This is a shortened version of Joy and Kyle's live interview, moderated by Regina G. Barber, at this year's Library of Congress National Book Festival.If you liked this episode, check out our other episodes on facial recognition in Gaza, why AI is not a silver bullet and tech companies limiting police use of facial recognition.Interested in hearing more technology stories? Email us at [email protected] — we'd love to consider your idea for a future episode!Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Just in time for the return of the school year, we're going "Back To School" by revisiting a classic at-home experiment that turns lemons into batteries — powerful enough to turn on a clock or a small lightbulb. But how does the science driving that process show up in household batteries we use daily? Host Emily Kwong and former host Maddie Sofia talk battery 101 with environmental engineer Jenelle Fortunato.Want us to cover more science basics? Email us your ideas at [email protected] — we might feature them on a future episode!Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

From Indonesia to Wisconsin, farmers all over the world struggle with a huge problem: pests. On top of that, it's tough for farmers to identify where exactly they have the pests and when. Reporter Lina Tran from NPR member station WUWM in Milwaukee joins host Emily Kwong to tell the story of how researchers in the Midwest are inventing new forms of pest detection that involve eavesdropping on the world of insects. Plus, hear what aphid slurping sounds like.If you liked this episode, check out behind-the-scenes photos of Insect Eavesdropper experiments in Lina's digital story!Interested in hearing more insect news? Email us at [email protected] more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

At first glance, the whole narrative of aquatic invasive species may seem straightforward: A bad non-native species comes into a new ecosystem and overruns good native species. But the truth? It's a little more complicated. To tear down everything we thought we knew about invasive species and construct a more nuanced picture, host Emily Kwong talks to experts Ian Pfingsten, who works on the United States Geological Survey's Nonindigenous Aquatic Species Database, and Nicholas Reo, a Canada Excellence Research Chair in Coastal Relationalities and Regeneration.Check out episode where we get into the annual python challenge we referenced in this episode. Have a favorite invasive species or one you really can't stand? Email us at [email protected] — we'd love to hear your take!Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Human beings are hardwired for social connection – so much so that we think of even the most basic objects as having feelings or experiences. (Yup, we're talking to you, Roomba owners!) Social robots add a layer to this. They're designed to make us feel like they're our friends. They can do things like care for children, the elderly or act as partners. But there's a darker side to them, too. They may encourage us to opt out of authentic, real-life connections, making us feel more isolated. Today on the show, host Regina G. Barber explores the duality of social robots with Eve Herold, author of the book Robots and the People Who Love Them. Curious about other innovations in technology? Email us at [email protected] more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

New York: The city that never sleeps, the concrete jungle where dreams are made of and more recently ... home to a mysterious ant spreading across the city — before continuing across metropolitan and even state lines. NPR science correspondent Nell Greenfieldboyce joins host Regina G. Barber to trace the MahattAnts' takeover, explain why they're an interesting invasive species case study. Plus, how everyday people can get involved in research efforts to learn more about these critters.Read more of Nell's ManhattAnt story here. And if you like this story, check out our story on ant amputation!Interested in hearing more animal news? Email us at [email protected]. Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Have you ever scrolled through a TikTok without finishing it? Switched between YouTube videos halfway through one or the other? Pressed "fast forward" on a Netflix episode that just wasn't holding your interest? That habit is called "digital switching" — and it might be causing the exact thing you're trying to avoid: boredom. Emily and Regina break that and more of the week's news down with the help of All Things Considered's Ailsa Chang.Read this study on digital switching and boredom in the Journal of Experimental Psychology.Interested in hearing more psychology news? Email us at [email protected] more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

U.S. health officials now say COVID-19 is an endemic disease. That means it's here to stay – circulating fairly regularly like the flu. Even though that changes how public health officials think about managing the virus, they say it doesn't mean being less cautious or vigilant during surges, like the current one this summer. COVID still poses significant risks for older individuals and those with underlying conditions — and anyone who gets COVID is at risk of developing long COVID. NPR science correspondent Rob Stein reported this story. Read Rob's full story here.Interested in hearing more COVID or health news? Email us at [email protected]. Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

All summer long, we've been on a 10-episode odyssey through the changing universe (check out the series). We've covered planets, stars, life in space and even the possible ends of the universe. But there was one big set of objects that we skipped over: moons. So now we're back, with a special guest appearance from Radiolab's Latif Nasser, to talk about yes, our moon — and the many moons and quasi-moons beyond it. Where did our Moon come from? How many moons are out there? What's this "quasi-moon" of which we speak and why is it "dancing" around space? Also, Latif tells us about Radiolab's contest to name a quasi-moon. Read all the details and submit a name here!Lunar questions or otherwise celestial musings you think we should cover? We'd love to hear about it! You can reach us by emailing [email protected] more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

For blind and low vision adults, the ability to read braille can be life-changing. Braille literacy is directly linked to higher rates of academic success and better employment outcomes for them. But there's a problem. The U.S. is facing a national shortage of qualified braille teachers and there's a lack of scientific research around braille overall. An interdisciplinary team led by linguist Robert Englebretson wants to change that.Read some of the team's work here:- Englebretson R, Holbrook MC, Fischer-Baum S. A position paper on researching braille in the cognitive sciences: decentering the sighted norm. Applied Psycholinguistics. 2023.- Englebretson, R., Holbrook, M.C., Treiman, R. et al. The primacy of morphology in English braille spelling: an analysis of bridging contractions. Morphology. 2024.Interested in hearing more linguistics stories? Email us at [email protected]. Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Some weapons used by the United States military are so powerful, they can pose a threat to the people who fire them — even in training. When weapons are fired, an invisible blast wave travels through the brains of anyone nearby. Exposure to lots of these blasts over time — even low level ones — has been shown to cause brain health problems for service members. If you liked this episode, consider checking out some more episodes on the brain, including its waste system, face blindness and the neuroscience of loneliness. Questions or ideas you want us to consider for a future episode? Email us at [email protected]. We'd love to hear from you!Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Over the next week, forecasts project extreme heat across much of the South, Midwest and parts of the West. So, this episode, health correspondent Pien Huang helps us take heat training cues from Olympians, many of whom spent weeks preparing for a sweltering Paris Olympics, by training in the heat to get their bodies used to hot, humid weather. But heat training is not just for competitive athletes. It's recommended for people in the military and those who work outdoors in hot weather — and it could even be useful for generally healthy members of the public. Plus, we get into some important caveats about who is best positioned to heat train — and why doing so doesn't minimize the problems of a warming climate.Check out more of Pien's reporting on heat training.And, if you liked this episode, consider checking out our episodes on the dew point, the power of sweat and coping with extreme heat.Questions or ideas you want us to consider for a future episode? Email us at [email protected]. We'd love to hear from you!Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Today, we're bringing you the final installment of our space summer series ... with the end ... of EVERYTHING. Will the universe end in a huge cosmic unraveling? A slow and lonely dissolution? Or a quantum-level transition that breaks the laws of physics? Theoretical astrophysicist Katie Mack breaks down three possible scenarios for how the universe as we know it will finally come to an end. To celebrate the end of our Space Camp series, we also made a QUIZ! Check it out at npr.org/spacecamp.Questions? Comments? Existential dread or excitement? Email us at [email protected] — we'd love to hear from you!Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Grizzly bears in the contiguous United States have been taken off — then put back on — the endangered species list twice since they were first labeled as threatened almost 50 years ago. Now, the issue is on the table again. Today, we get into the complicated science behind grizzly recovery, how humans have sliced up their habitat and what it will take to stitch that habitat back together again.Interested in more charismatic megafauna? Email [email protected]. We've love to consider covering your favorite on a future episode! Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

We at Short Wave have been following all things Olympics, from the medals and new records to the ugly accusations that two women boxers aren't really women. Last year, the boxers failed gender tests, according to the International Boxing Association. The IBA claims the women have a "hormonal imbalance" that gives them women an unfair advantage. The International Olympic Committee has condemned these claims and defended the boxers' right to compete in the women's category. But this Olympics is far from the first time the gender of athletes has been questioned.NPR's Embedded podcast has a new series called Tested that gets into this history of sex testing in elite sports – in particular, track and field. In this excerpt, host Rose Eveleth digs deep on a big question: What constitutes an "unfair" advantage on the track?Listen to the full Tested series now.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

How do you study unmapped areas of the ocean and identify critical habitat for an endangered species? You include the study animal in the scientific process! Researchers from the University of Adelaide fitted endangered Australian sea lions with cameras and tracking devices to better understand where they spent their time. The information could help scientists protect critical sea lion habitat and could give researchers a new tool for mapping the ocean. Interested in more underwater science? Email us at [email protected]. Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

In the last week, we've seen swimmers diving headfirst into the 2024 Paris Olympics pool, limbs gracefully slicing through the water. And yet, world and Olympic records weren't broken at quite the rate some expected, leading many on social media to speculate: Was the pool the culprit? With the help of NPR correspondents Bill Chappell and Brian Mann, we investigate.Read Bill Chappell's full story about this here. Want us to cover the science behind more Olympic sports? Email us at [email protected]. We'd love to hear from you!Listen to Short Wave on Spotify and Apple Podcasts.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

The Big Bang: The moment when our universe — everything in existence — began....Right? Turns out, it's not quite that simple. Today, when scientists talk about the Big Bang, they mean a period of time – closer to an era than to a specific moment. Host Regina Barber talks with two cosmologists about the cosmic microwave background, its implications for the universe's origins and the discovery that started it all. Interested in more space science? Email us at [email protected] more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Rates of depression and anxiety have risen among teens over the last decade. Amid this ongoing mental health crisis, the American Psychological Association issued guidelines for parents to increase protection for teens online. In this encore episode, NPR science correspondent Michaeleen Doucleff looks into the data on how that change has impacted the mental health of teenagers. In her reporting, she found that the seismic shift of smartphones and social media has re-defined how teens socialize, communicate and even sleep. In 2009, about half of teens said they were using social media daily, reported psychologist Jean Twenge. And by 2022, 95% of teens said they used some social media, and about a third said they use it constantly.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Another Olympics, another set of stellar performances by the U.S. women's artistic gymnastics team. Thursday, the team won two medals in the women's all-around final: a gold for Simone Biles and a bronze for Sunisa Lee. The medals add to the team's overall count, which also includes a gold for the women's team final. Simone and Suni are expected to lead the team to more medals in the coming days. Each day the gymnasts compete, we are left to pick our jaws off the floor and wonder: How do they do that? So we called up one of our favorite science communicators, Frederic Bertley, to explain just that. He's the CEO of the Center of Science and Industry and our gymnastics physics guide for the day.Follow NPR's 2024 Paris Olympics coverage.Want us to cover the science powering other Olympians? Email us at [email protected]. We'd love to hear from you!Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

The Rubik's Cube was created 50 years ago by Hungarian inventor Ernő Rubik. Since then, over 500 million of them have been sold. We dive into this global phenomenon that's captured the imagination of countless people around the world and inspired all kinds of competitions — even solving with your feet! But no matter the cube, the process of solving one involves math — specifically, algorithms. Roman Chavez loved Rubik's Cubes so much, he founded the Jr. Oakland Cubers in high school. Now a mathematics student at Cornell University, Roman talks to host Emily Kwong about how to solve the cube and what life lessons he's learned from the cube. Interested in more math episodes? Email us at [email protected] more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Black holes are one of the most mysterious cosmological phenomena out there. Astrophysicist Priya Natarajan calls them "the point where all known laws of physics break down."On the list of perplexing qualities: The origins of supermassive black holes. That story was only confirmed within the last year. Check out more of our series Space Camp on the weird and mysterious in space at npr.org/spacecamp.Interested in more space science? Email us at [email protected] to Short Wave on Spotify and Apple Podcasts.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Generally, we at Short Wave are open-minded to the creepies and the crawlies, but even we must admit that leeches are already the stuff of nightmares. They lurk in water. They drink blood. There are over 800 different species of them. And now, as scientists have confirmed ... at least some of them can jump!Interested in more critter science? Email us at [email protected] — we'd love to consider your animal of choice for a future episode!Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Chimpanzees are humans' closest living relatives. But does much of their communication resembles ours? According to a new study published earlier this week in the journal Current Biology, chimpanzees gesture back-and-forth in a similar way to how humans take turns speaking. The research presents an intriguing possibility that this style of communication may have evolved before humans split off from great apes, and tells researchers more about how turn-taking evolved. Interested in more science news? Email us at [email protected] to Short Wave on Spotify and Apple Podcasts.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

As a kid, Sabrina Imbler loved the ocean. They'd swim and snorkel, following around parrotfish in the water. Later, they tried to learn everything they could about the brightly-colored tropical fish – how some create a mucus cocoon at night to protect it from parasites, or how they help keep coral reefs healthy.As they got older, their fascination with sea creatures only grew. Imbler released a collection of essays in 2022 called How Far The Light Reaches: A Life In Ten Sea Creatures. Each chapter focuses on a different marine species – from yeti crabs near hydrothermal vents in the deep sea to the morphing abilities of cuttlefish. Often, these creatures act as a mirror for Imbler to explore parts of their own identity.Want more on the wonders of the deep sea? Email us at [email protected]. Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Lower gravity. Higher radiation. No ER access. These are just a few of the challenges that humans face in outer space. Emily and Regina talk to a NASA astronaut (and astronaut scientist) about the impact of spaceflight on the human body. Plus, we learn about telomeres (hint: They change in space)!Check out more of our series on space: https://www.npr.org/spacecampInterested in more space science? Email us at [email protected] more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Scientists have long studied the relationship between sleep and the brain, and why poor sleep is linked to neurological diseases like Alzheimer's. NPR science correspondent Jon Hamilton talks to host Regina G. Barber about the brain's washing system and the particular sound researchers have found that seems to turn it on in mice. Read Jon's full piece here.Interested in more science about the brain? Email us at [email protected] more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

More than a hundred years ago, a British engineer proposed linking two rivers in India to better irrigate the area and cheaply move goods. The link never happened, but the idea survived. Today, due to extreme flooding in some parts of the country mirrored by debilitating drought in others, India's National Water Development Agency plans to dig thirty links between rivers across the country. It's the largest project of its kind and will take decades to complete. But scientists are worried what moving that much water could do to the land, the people — and even the weather. Host Emily Kwong talks to journalist Sushmita Pathak about her recent story on the project. Read Sushmita's full story here.Interested in more science stories like this? Email us at [email protected] more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Every year for two weeks between mid-May and mid-June, Congaree National Park in South Carolina is home to a fairy-tale-like display of flashing lights. These rhythmic performances happen all because of thousands of fireflies, flashing their belly lanterns at exactly the same time. According to the National Park Service, there are just three types of these synchronous fireflies in North America, making the experience all the more magical for the lucky visitors who get the chance to see them. Firefly scientists and enthusiasts hope these displays in places like Congaree will inspire people to care about other kinds of fireflies, also known as lightning bugs, in the U.S., which are not as well-studied – or well-protected – as synchronous ones. Some community scientists are already taking on this mission with projects like the Firefly Atlas, where volunteers can help survey for fireflies and report sightings.This story was originally reported for NPR by science correspondent Pien Huang. Read Pien's full story here. Want more of the science behind wildlife wonders? Email us at [email protected] more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

The universe — everything in existence — is expanding every second! It's only been about a hundred years that humanity has known this, too — that most galaxies are traveling away from us and the universe is expanding. Just a few decades ago, in the late 1990s, scientists started to notice another peculiar thing: The expansion of the universe is speeding up over time. It's like an explosion where the debris gets faster instead of slowing down. The mysterious force pushing the universe outward faster and faster was named dark energy. Cosmologist Brian Nord joins host Regina G. Barber in a conversation that talks about what dark energy could be and what it implies about the end of our universe. Check out more of our series on space at https://www.npr.org/spacecamp.Curious about other happenings in our universe? Email us at [email protected] more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

The Human Genome Project was a massive undertaking that took more than a decade and billions of dollars to complete. For it, scientists collected DNA samples from anonymous volunteers who were told the final project would be a mosaic of DNA. Instead, over two-thirds of the DNA comes from one person: RP11. No one ever told him. Science journalist Ashley Smart talks to host Emily Kwong about his recent investigation into the decision to make RP11 the major donor — and why unearthing this history matters to genetics today.Read Ashley's full article in Undark Magazine here.Questions or ideas for future episodes? Email us at [email protected] more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

TikTok is fuel for many trends, including a skin care craze among teens, pre-teens — okay, and us. The "glass skin" trend calls for a multi-step routine, often involving pricey products. It's all in pursuit of dewy, seemingly poreless, glowing complexion – like glass. But some dermatologists say these attempts can backfire, irritating, burning and even peeling sensitive pre-teen skin. As teens and tweens have become major consumers of skin care products, dermatologists are seeing more of these cases and are cautioning against these elaborate routines.Want more science behind what's going viral? Email us at [email protected]. Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Some ants herd aphids. Some farm fungi. And now, scientists have realized that when an ant injures its leg, it sometimes will turn to a buddy to perform a lifesaving limb amputation. Not only that — some ants have probably been amputating limbs longer than humans! Today, thanks to the reporting of ant enthusiast and science correspondent Nell Greenfieldboyce, we behold the medical prowess of the ant.Want to hear more cool stories about the tiny critters among us? Email us at [email protected] — we'd love to know!Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

The universe is so much bigger than what people can see. Visible matter — the ground, the Sun, the screen you're reading this on — makes up only about 4 or 5 percent of our known universe. Dark matter makes up much more of the universe. It's all around us even though we can't see it. So what is it? What's it made out of? How do we even know it exists? Host Emily Kwong and Rebecca Ramirez try to find out with the help of astrophysicist Priyamvada Natarajan. This episode is part of our series Space Camp, all about the weird and mysterious depths of our universe. Check out the full series: https://www.npr.org/spacecamp.Our team would love to hear your episode ideas. Email us at [email protected] more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

It's that time of the year again: Shark Week. The TV program is so long-running that if you're under 37, you've never known a life without it. In honor of this oft misunderstood critter, we revisit our conversation with shark scientist Melissa Christina Marquez. She explains just how important sharks are to keeping the oceans healthy, including their role in mitigating climate change. Plus, there may be some talk about shark poop.Have another animal with a bad rap you want us to clear the reputation of? Email the show at [email protected] — we'd love to hear from you!Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

When's the last time you were in a place that was quiet — really quiet? No roadway noise, construction work or even the hum of a refrigerator. Our world is full of sounds, some of which are harming our health. The World Health Organization says "noise is an underestimated threat." Today, host Emily Kwong talks to health reporter Joanne Silberner about those health costs, what is too loud and some of the history of legislation to limit noise pollution in the United States.Read Joanne's full article in Undark Magazine here.Curious about other health stories? Email us at [email protected] more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Black Americans have been underrepresented in most genomic studies of neurological disorders. As a result, scientists don't know much about whether African ancestry affects a person's risk for these disorders or their response to a particular treatment. To help close this gap, the Lieber Institute for Brain Development, African American community leaders in Baltimore, and researchers from Duke University and Morgan State University created the African Ancestry Neuroscience Research Initiative in 2019. The team found that genes associated with African ancestry appear to affect certain brain cells in ways that could increase the risk of Alzheimer's disease and stroke. Read science correspondent Jon Hamilton's full story here. Curious about brain science? Email us at [email protected] more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Before the '3 Body Problem' became a bestselling book and a smash TV show ... it was a physics concept, with big implications for how we understand planetary orbits. In this episode, we learn about the science behind the screen. Plus, why it's plausible a nearby, mysterious planet could hold life.This story is part of Short Wave's Space Camp series about all the weird, wonderful things happening in the universe —check out the full series. Curious about other science behind the things you love? Email us at [email protected] more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Perfecting your grilling technique ahead of the Fourth of July? Chefs will tell you that cooking is not just an art — it's a science. And the spirit of summer barbecues, NPR science correspondent Sydney Lupkin brings us this encore piece about how understanding the chemistry of cooking meat can help you perfect your barbeque. It's all about low and slow cooking. This story was originally reported for NPR by Gisele Grayson. Read her reporting.Curious about other science powering the things you love? Email us at [email protected] more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

A brand new species of ceratops, or horned dinosaur, was recently discovered in northern Montana. The dinosaur is called Lokiceratops rangiformis, after the Norse god Loki, and is believed to have lived roughly eighty million years ago. The bones of the plant-eating dinosaur were found on private land in an area well known for its large amount of fossils, and at first, researchers thought the bones belonged to another species of dinosaur! Want to hear more about dinosaurs or other paleontological discoveries? Email us at [email protected] to let us know. We'd love to hear from you!Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Humans are hardwired to see faces — even in inanimate objects. We have a lima bean-shaped part of our brains dedicated to facial recognition. But this process isn't always straightforward. Science journalist Sadie Dingfelder is one of 10 million Americans who are face blind, or struggle to recognize the faces of people they know. In her new book, Do I Know You? she dives into this, as well as the science of memory and imagination. Want more episodes on the wonder of the human brain? Email us at [email protected] more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

This summer, scientists have their eyes and telescopes trained on the small constellation system T Coronae Borealis. They think it will explode as part of a periodic nova — a once-in-a-lifetime event according to NASA scientists. And so, with the help of astrophysicist Sarafina El-Badry Nance, we continue our journey farther and deeper into spacetime with a look at the stars: How they're born and how they die. Sarafina has always been drawn to one particular star: Betelgeuse, a red supergiant in the shoulder of the constellation Orion that is nearing the end of its life. What stages of life did Betelgeuse — or any star — go through before it reached this moment? This episode is part of our series Space Camp — all abut the weird, wonderful phenomena in our universe. Check it out here: https://npr.org/spacecampCurious about the night sky? Email us at [email protected] — we'd love to hear from you!Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

About ten years ago, science writer Ferris Jabr started contemplating Earth as a living planet rather than a planet with life on it. It began when he learned that the Amazon rainforest doesn't simply receive the rain that defines it; rather, it helps generate that rain. The Amazon does that by launching bits of biological confetti into the atmosphere that, in turn, seed clouds. After learning this, he began looking for other ways life changes its environment. That led to his new book Becoming Earth: How Our Planet Came to Life. He talks to host Regina G. Barber about examples of life transforming the planet — from changing the color of the sky to altering the weather. Have a story about the environment you'd like us to cover? Email us at [email protected] more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration is predicting a record number of hurricanes this season, which began on June 1 and runs through Nov. They're forecasting anywhere from 17 to 25 storms in the Atlantic basin, including at least four major hurricanes. Scientists think this storm activity could be due to strong winds, warmer ocean temperatures and a scientific mystery unfolding in the Atlantic. Questions about hurricanes or other weather disasters? Email us at [email protected] — we'd love to consider it for a future episode! Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Pixar's new movie, Inside Out 2 came out Friday. It's the sequel to the 2015 movie Inside Out, which follows the life of 11-year-old Riley and her family as they move to San Francisco. In Inside Out 2, Riley is 13 and thriving in her new city. She has friends and is a star on her hockey team. But when puberty hits one night, four new emotions come into play: Envy, Ennui, Embarrassment and most of all, Anxiety. Clinical psychologist and Inside Out 2 consultant Lisa Damour says the movie is surprisingly accurate when it comes to experiencing anxiety and puberty. Plus, she offers some guidance to help make the most of our anxiety. Have other pop culture science you want us to decode? Email us at [email protected] — we'd love to consider it for a future episode!Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Pluto hasn't been a planet for almost 20 years. In the early 2000s, scientists discovered several objects of a similar size to Pluto. So, during the summer of 2006, members of the International Astronomical Union convened in Prague to reconsider what counts as a planet in our solar system. IAU members decided that there were three criteria to be a planet — and Pluto did meet all of them. But planetary scientist Wladymir Lyra says that even though it was downgraded to a dwarf planet, Pluto still has much to teach us about planet formation. This episode, he also lays out his case for Pluto — and many other objects in the solar system — to be considered a planet.This episode is part of Short Wave's space camp series about all the weird, wonderful things happening in the universe. Check out the full series.Questions about the state of our universe or smaller happenings here on planet Earth? Email us at [email protected] — we'd love to consider it for a future episode! Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

To a lot of people, mosquito bites are annoying. But to the rare Hawaiian honeycreepers, they're deadly. Scientists in Maui are racing against time to save them ... and discovering some pretty crazy innovations along the way. Like, releasing-mosquitos-incapable-of-breeding level innovations.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Hey, Short Wavers! Today, we're sharing a portion of Inheriting, an 8-part limited series hosted by Emily Kwong about Asian American and Pacific Islander family history. In this excerpt, we follow the story of Leah Bash. Leah is an avid runner, a dog mom, a wife – and there's a part of her family's history she can't stop thinking about. Both sides of her family were incarcerated during WWII, alongside 125,000 other Japanese Americans. After Leah learns about her father's struggles with panic attacks and is herself diagnosed with bipolar disorder, she starts to wonder: Could those experiences at camp have far-reaching consequences decades later? Listen to Inheriting and check out the show's resource guide for more information on getting personal with the past.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Joro spiders are spreading across the east coast. They are an invasive species that most likely arrived in shipping containers from eastern Asia. Today, we look into why some people find them scary, why to not panic about them and what their trajectory illustrates about the wider issue of invasive species.Questions? You can also email those to [email protected] more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Right now, there's a "heat dome" lingering over the southwestern U.S. – a high pressure system that pushes hot air down and traps it, raising the temperature. Heat is becoming increasingly lethal as climate change causes more extreme heat. So in today's encore episode, we're exploring heat. NPR climate correspondent Lauren Sommer talks with Short Wave host Regina G. Barber about how the human body copes with extended extreme heat and how today's heat warning systems could better protect the public. With scientists predicting a very hot summer, if you can, stay cool out there, dear Short Wavers.What science story do you want to hear next on Short Wave? Email us at [email protected] more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

It feels like this is the summer of space launches. So, it's only appropriate that we kick off our new series Space Camp with a look at space launches. Throughout the series, Regina and Emily will plumb our universe to uncover the strange, wonderful things happening all around us. This episode, that entails answering a series of questions about getting to space: What does hurtling into space feel like? What physics are involved? And what's the "junk" in Earth's orbit? Space Camp episodes drop every Tuesday in the Short Wave feed in addition to our regular episodes happening every Monday, Wednesday and Friday. For a full explainer of Newton's third law of motion, g-forces and visuals on his cannonball thought experiment, check out our digital story.Have a particular aspect of space you want us to cover in a future episode? Email us at [email protected] — we'd love to hear from you!Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Wildlife trafficking is one of the largest and most profitable crime sectors in the world. The illegal trade estimated to be a multi-billion dollar industry. On a high level, that illegal trade causes problems for everything from global biodiversity to local economies and the balance of entire ecosystems. And on the immediate level, authorities are tasked with caring for confiscated animals and placing them in long-term care facilities. One network launched last year by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the Association for Zoos and Aquariums hopes to help. And with wildlife trafficking surging globally, the organizations are now in talks to expand the program to other parts of the country. Read more about illegal wildlife trafficking and check out more photos in climate correspondent Nate Rott's full story.Have other wildlife stories you want us to cover? Email us at [email protected] more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Kyne Santos was a student at the University of Waterloo when she began her math and her drag careers. She compares her double life to Hannah Montana, doing math equations at school by day and drag at night. You may already know Kyne from TikTok, where she makes educational videos about math, science, history and drag. And now, in her new book Math in Drag, Kyne explores the connections between math and drag: How both can be creative, beautiful and most of all, fun. Want to hear us cover more math? Email us at [email protected]. Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

June 6, 1944 the Allied Forces stormed the beaches of Normandy and took the Nazis by surprise in the largest sea-to-land invasion in history. This would be remembered as D-Day and would ultimately lead to the end of World War II in Europe. However, this planned attack wouldn't have been possible without deep knowledge of ocean tides! We get into the whole story, including why tides sit at the intersection of astronomy and marine ecology — and why understanding tides are key to a greener future.Want to hear us cover more science history? Email us at [email protected]. Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

People with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) may soon have a new treatment option: MDMA, the chemical found in ecstasy. In August, the Food and Drug Administration plans to decide whether MDMA-assisted therapy for PTSD will be approved for market based on years of research. But serious allegations of research misconduct may derail the approval timeline. NPR science reporter Will Stone talks to host Emily Kwong about the clinical trials on MDMA-assisted therapy research and a recent report questioning the validity of the results. Read Will's full story here. Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

A silky shark named Genie traveled from the Galapagos Islands out to the open ocean and back – over 17,000 miles – over the course of a year and a half. That's an average of 31 miles per day, making Genie's journey the longest recorded migration for a silky shark. Marine scientist Pelayo Salinas de León and his team named Genie in honor of the late marine biologist Eugenie Clark – also known as "The Shark Lady." She devoted her life to the study of sharks and to improving their reputation. Have another story you want us to cover? Email us at [email protected] more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Humans rely on our symbiotic relationship with good microbes—in the gut, the skin and ... the vagina. Fatima Aysha Hussain studies what makes a healthy vaginal microbiome. She talks to host Emily Kwong about her long-term transplant study that asks the question: Can one vagina help another through a microbe donation?Have a human body question? Email us at [email protected]. Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Each year 84,000 people in the U.S. are diagnosed with melanoma. About 90% of these skin cancers are linked to the ultraviolet radiation from the sun. Sunscreen does protect the skin, but dermatologists have found six very common mistakes people make when it comes to using it. NPR science correspondent Allison Aubrey talks to host Regina G. Barber about the science behind sunscreen and how to avoid making these mistakes this summer. They also get into which sunscreens may be better than others.Have other science stories you want us to cover? Email us at [email protected] more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

After the Hamas attack of Oct. 7 triggered Israel's invasion of the Gaza Strip, hundreds of thousands of Palestinians began fleeing from the North of Gaza to the South. As they fled, many Palestinians reported passing through checkpoints with cameras. Israel had previously used facial recognition software in the West Bank, and some Palestinians reached out to The New York Times reporter Sheera Frenkel to investigate whether the same was happening in Gaza. Science correspondent Geoff Brumfiel talks to Frenkel about how Israel launched this facial recognition system in Gaza late last year with the help of private companies and Google photos. Read Frenkel's full article.Want to hear us cover more stories about AI? Email us at [email protected]. Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Fibroids are benign uterine tumors. So why does it matter that the majority of people with a uterus will have one before they are 50 years old? Physician Rachell Bervell, founder of the Black OBGYN Project, explains that when symptoms arise, they can be quite serious — from extreme menstrual bleeding to fertility problems. Plus, why they're very likely to affect you or a loved one. Curious about other health issues? Email us at [email protected] more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Scientists are testing the limits of artificial intelligence when it comes to language learning. One recent challenge? Learning ... whale! Researchers are using machine learning to analyze and decode whale sounds — and it's just as complicated as it seems. Curious about other mysteries of nature? Email us at [email protected] more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Baobabs are sometimes called the "tree of life" with their thick trunks, crown of branches and flowers that only open at twilight. But theories about their geographic origin was divided among three places: the savannas of sub-Saharan Africa, the Kimberley region of western Australia and the dry forests of the island nation of Madagascar. To solve this mystery, a global research team led by scientists at the Wuhan Botanical Garden at the Chinese Academy of Sciences examined high-quality genomic data from all eight baobab species. Have another origin story you want us to cover? Email us at [email protected] more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Chocolate may never be the same. The majority of chocolate is made in just two countries and erratic weather from climate change is decreasing cocoa production. A handful of extreme weather events—from drought to heavy rainfall—could have lasting effects on the chocolate industry. Yasmin Tayag, a food, health and science writer at The Atlantic, talks to host Emily Kwong about the cocoa shortage: What's causing it, how it's linked to poor farming conditions and potential solutions. Plus, they enjoy a chocolate alternative taste test. Read Yasmin's full article. Have a food science story you want us to cover? Email us at [email protected] more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

As artificial intelligence seeps into some realms of society, it rushes into others. One area it's making a big difference is protein science — as in the "building blocks of life," proteins! Producer Berly McCoy talks to host Emily Kwong about the newest advance in protein science: AlphaFold3, an AI program from Google DeepMind. Plus, they talk about the wider field of AI protein science and why researchers hope it will solve a range of problems, from disease to the climate.Have other aspects of AI you want us to cover? Email us at [email protected] more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Scientists at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration observed a cluster of sunspots on the surface of the sun this week. With them came solar flares that kicked off a severe geomagnetic storm. That storm is expected to last throughout the weekend as at least five coronal mass ejections — chunks of the sun — are flung out into space, towards Earth! NOAA uses a five point scale to rate these storms, and this weekend's storm is a G4. It's expected to produce auroras as far south as Alabama. To contextualize this storm, we are looking back at the largest solar storm on record: the Carrington Event. Want us to cover more about the sun? Email us at [email protected] more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Sam and John Fetters, 19, are identical twins on different ends of the autism spectrum. Sam is a sophomore at Amherst College and runs marathons in his free time. John attends a school for people with special needs and loves to watch Sesame Street in his free time. Identical twins like Sam and John pose an important question for scientists: How can a disorder that is known to be highly genetic look so different in siblings who share the same genome? Check out more of NPR's series on the Science of Siblings.More science questions? Email us at [email protected] more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Emily gets super nerdy with former host Maddie Sofia get as they dive into the incredible world of nudibranchs in this encore episode. Not only are these sea slugs eye-catching for their colors, some of them have evolved to "steal" abilities from other organisms — from the power of photosynthesis to the stinging cells of their venomous predators. These sea slugs are going to blow your mind!You can email Short Wave at [email protected] more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

It's not unusual for siblings to quibble over ownership of something — a cherished toy, a coveted seat in the car — or whose fault something is. If you're Mercedes Sheen, you not only spent your childhood squabbling with your sister over your memories, you then turn it into your research career. Mercedes studies disputed memories, where it's unclear who an event happened to. It turns out these memories can tell us a lot about people — they tend to be self-aggrandizing — and how the human brain remembers things.Check out more of NPR's series on the Science of Siblings.Curious about more science about memories? Email us at [email protected] more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Wildlife ecologists have seen white-tailed deer expanding their range in North America over many decades. And since the early-2000s these deer have moved north into the boreal forests of western Canada. These forests are full of spruce and pine trees, sandy soil and freezing winters with lots of snow. They can be a harsh winter wonderland. And ecologists haven't known whether a warmer climate in these forests or human land development might be driving the deer north. A recent study tries to disentangle these factors – and finds that a warming climate seems to play the most significant role in the movement of deer. Read more in the journal Global Change Biology. Curious about more wildlife news? Email us at [email protected] more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

No matter what you're doing right now – sitting, standing, walking – you're moving. First, because Earth is spinning around on its axis. This rotation is the reason we have days. Second, because Earth and other planets in our solar system are orbiting the sun. That's why we have years. Third, you're moving because the sun and the rest of our solar system is orbiting the center of the Milky Way galaxy at over 500,000 miles per hour. If all of that isn't nauseating enough, everything in the entire universe is expanding outward. All the time. But in the 1970s, astrophysicists noticed something strange about our galactic neighborhood, or Local Group. The whole clump of neighboring galaxies was being pulled off course at over one million miles per hour, towards something we couldn't see — the "Great Attractor." This Great Attractor sits in the "Zone of Avoidance," an area of space that is blocked from view by the stars and gas of the Milky Way. Today on the show, host Regina G. Barber talks to astrophysicist Jorge Moreno about this mysterious phenomenon: What it might be and what will happen when we eventually reach it. Curious about other cosmic mysteries? Email us at [email protected] more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Today, we're going full nerd to talk about a new board game — Catan: New Energies. The game's goal is simple: Build and develop a modern-day island without catastrophically polluting it. Although the concept mirrors the effects of climate change, those words don't actually appear in the game. NPR correspondent Nate Rott talks to Emily about the thinking behind the new game and how the developers hope it can start conversations around energy use and pollution. Have questions or comments for us to consider for a future episode? Email us at [email protected] — we'd love to hear from you!Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Ten years ago, Flint, Mich. switched water sources to the Flint River. The lack of corrosion control in the pipes caused lead to leach into the water supply of tens of thousands of residents. Pediatrician Mona Hanna-Attisha recognized a public health crisis in the making and gathered data proving the negative health impact on Flint's young children. In doing so, she and community organizers in Flint sparked a national conversation about lead in the U.S. water system that persists today. Today on the show, host Emily Kwong and science correspondent Pien Huang talk about the state of Flint and other cities with lead pipes. Efforts to replace these pipes hinge on proposed changes to the EPA's Lead and Copper Rule. Have questions or comments for us to consider for a future episode? Email us at [email protected] — we'd love to hear from you!Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

NPR's Tom Dreisbach is back in the host chair for a day. This time, he reports on a story very close to home: The years-long battle his parents have been locked in with the local wild beaver population. Each night, the beavers would dam the culverts along the Dreisbachs' property, threatening to make their home inaccessible. Each morning, Tom's parents deconstructed those dams — until the annual winter freeze hit and left them all in a temporary stalemate.As beaver populations have increased, so have these kinds of conflicts with people...like Tom's parents. But the solution may not be to chase away the beavers. They're a keystone species that scientists believe could play an important role in cleaning water supplies, creating healthy ecosystems and alleviating some of the effects of climate change. So, today, Tom calls up Jakob Shockey, the executive director of the non-profit Project Beaver. Jakob offers a bit of perspective to Tom and his parents, and the Dreisbachs contemplate what a peaceful coexistence with these furry neighbors might look like.Have questions or comments for us to consider for a future episode? Email us at [email protected] — we'd love to hear from you!Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Roughly 196 million tons of fish were harvested in 2020, according to the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. The organization also notes that the number of overfished stocks worldwide has tripled in the last century. All of this overfishing has led to the decline of entire species, like Atlantic cod. Enter the Monterey Bay Aquarium's Seafood Watch. It and other free guides give consumers an overview of the world of fish and seafood, helping people to figure out the most sustainable fish available to them. With the help of Life Kit's Clare Marie Schneider, we figure out how to make informed decisions about what we eating – whether that's at a restaurant or the local supermarket.Check out more from Life Kit on sustainable seafood.Have questions or comments for us to consider for a future episode? Email us at [email protected] — we'd love to hear from you!Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

When the dinosaurs walked the Earth, massive marine reptiles swam. Among them, a species of Ichthyosaur that measured over 80 feet long. Today, we look into how a chance discovery by a father-daughter duo of fossil hunters furthered paleontologist's understanding of the "giant fish lizard of the Severn." Currently, it is the largest marine reptile known to scientists.Read more about this specimen in the study published in the journal PLOS One. Have another ancient animal or scientific revelation you want us to cover? Email us at [email protected] — we might talk about it on a future episode!Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

500 million years ago, the world was a very different place. During this period of time, known as the Cambrian period, basically all life was in the water. The ocean was brimming with animals that looked pretty different from the ones we recognize today — including a group of predatory worms with a throat covered in teeth and spines. Researchers thought these tiny terrors died out at the end of the Cambrian period. But a paper published recently in the journal Biology Letters showed examples of a new species of this worm in the fossil record 25 million years after scientists thought they'd vanished from the Earth. One of the authors of the paper, Karma Nanglu, tells us how this finding may change how scientists understand the boundaries of time. Curious about other weird wonders of the ancient Earth? Email us at [email protected] more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

We've all been there: You sit down for one episode of a reality TV show, and six hours later you're sitting guiltily on the couch, blinking the screen-induced crust off your eyeballs. Okay. Maybe you haven't been there like our team has. But it's likely you have at least one guilty pleasure, whether it's playing video games, reading romance novels or getting swept into obscure corners of TikTok. It turns out that experiencing – and studying – pleasure is not as straightforward as it might seem. And yet, pleasure is quite literally key to the survival of humanity. So today on the show, we explore the pleasure cycle: What it is, where it lives in the brain and how to have a healthier relationship with the things that make us feel good. Want more on the brain? Email us the neuroscience you want us to talk about at [email protected]! (Also please email us if you would like to gush about any of the books you've been loving — romantasy or otherwise!)Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Wednesday the Environmental Protection Agency announced new drinking water standards to limit people's exposure to some PFAS chemicals. For decades, PFAS have been used to waterproof and stain-proof a variety of consumer products. These "forever chemicals" in a host of products — everything from raincoats and the Teflon of nonstick pans to makeup to furniture and firefighting foam. Because PFAS take a very long time to break down, they can accumulate in humans and the environment. Now, a growing body of research is linking them to human health problems like serious illness, some cancers, lower fertility and liver damage. Science correspondent Pien Huang joins the show today to talk through this new EPA rule — what the threshold for safe levels of PFAS in tap water is, why the rule is happening now and how the federal standards will be implemented.Read more of Pien's reporting on the EPA's first ever rule on PFAS in drinking water.Want to hear more about health and human safety? Email us at [email protected] — we might cover your question on a future episode!Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

It's National Siblings Day! To mark the occasion, guest host Selena Simmons-Duffin is exploring a detail very personal to her: How the number of older brothers a person has can influence their sexuality. Scientific research on sexuality has a dark history, with long-lasting harmful effects on queer communities. Much of the early research has also been debunked over time. But not this "fraternal birth order effect." The fact that a person's likelihood of being gay increases with each older brother has been found all over the world – from Turkey to North America, Brazil, the Netherlands and beyond. Today, Selena gets into all the details: What this effect is, how it's been studied and what it can (and can't) explain about sexuality.Interested in reading more about the science surrounding some of our closest relatives? Check out more stories in NPR's series on The Science of Siblings. Email us at [email protected] — we'd love to hear from you.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

It's baseball season! And when we here at Short Wave think of baseball, we naturally think of physics. To get the inside scoop on the physics of baseball, like how to hit a home run, we talk to Frederic Bertley, CEO and President of the Center of Science and Industry, a science museum in Columbus, Ohio. He also talks to host Regina G. Barber about how climate change is affecting the game. Interested in the science of other sports? Email us at [email protected] — we'd love to hear from you.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Tiny, black-capped chickadees have big memories. They stash food in hundreds to thousands of locations in the wild – and then come back to these stashes when other food sources are low. Now, researchers at Columbia University's Zuckerman Institute think neural activity that works like a barcode may be to thank for this impressive feat — and that it might be a clue for how memories work across species. Curious about other animal behavior mysteries? Email us at [email protected] more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

On April 8, the moon will slip in front of the sun, blocking its light and creating an eerie twilight in the middle of the day. Stars will come out, the air will get cold, colors will dance around the horizon. It's a full-body experience born from the total solar eclipse that will be visible from North America. Today on the show, Regina G. Barber talks to NPR science correspondent Nell Greenfieldboyce about why some people say this experience is one of the most beautiful celestial events you can see – and how to prepare for it. Want more ways to enjoy the eclipse? Check out Regina's interview with an eclipse chaser on NPR's Life Kit podcast. Share your eclipse stories with us at [email protected]! We'd love to see it!Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

For Guyana the potential wealth from oil development was irresistible — even as the country faces rising seas. Today on the show, host Emily Kwong talks to reporter Camila Domonoske about her 2021 trip to Guyana and how the country is grappling with its role as a victim of climate change while it moves forward with drilling more oil. (encore)For more of Camila's reporting and pictures from her visit, check out "Guyana is a poor country that was a green champion. Then Exxon discovered oil."Want to more about how countries around the world are grappling with climate change? Write us at [email protected] to let us know — your suggestion might become a future episode! Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Historic numbers of animals across the globe have become endangered or pushed to extinction. But some of these species sit in limbo — not definitively extinct yet missing from the scientific record. Rediscovering a "lost" species is not easy. It can require trips to remote areas and canvassing a large area in search of only a handful of animals. But new technology and stronger partnerships with local communities have helped these hidden, "uncharismatic" creatures come to light. Have other scientific gray areas you want us to cover in a future episode? Email us at [email protected]!Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

According to the CDC, about one in four adults has a fear of needles. Many of those people say the phobia started when they were kids. For some people, the fear of needles is strong enough that they avoid getting important treatments, vaccines or tests. That poses a serious problem for public health. Researchers have helped develop a five step plan to help prevent what they call "needless pain" for kids getting injections or their blood drawn. Guest host Tom Dreisbach talks with Dr. Stefan Friedrichsdorf of UCSF Benioff Children's Hospitals, who works with a team to implement the plan at his own hospital. Friedrichsdorf told us some of the most important research on eliminating pain has come from researchers in Canada. Learn more about their work here. This episode was inspired by the reporting of our colleague April Dembosky, a journalist at member station KQED and KFF Health News. Read her digital story here.Got another question for a doctor? Email us at [email protected] more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Few humans have had the opportunity to see Earth from space, much less live in space. We got to talk to one of these lucky people — NASA astronaut Loral O'Hara. She will soon conclude her nearly seven month stay on the International Space Station. Transmitting from space to your ears, Loral talks to host Regina G. Barber about her dreams in microgravity, and her research on the ISS: 3D-printing human heart tissue, how the human brain and body adapt to microgravity, and how space changes the immune systems of plants. Have questions you want us to send to outers pace? Email us at [email protected]!Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Across the animal kingdom, menopause is something of an evolutionary blip. We humans are one of the few animals to experience it. But Sam Ellis, a researcher in animal behavior, argues that this isn't so surprising. "The best way to propagate your genes is to get as many offspring as possible into the next generation," says Ellis. "The best way to do that is almost always to reproduce your whole life." So how did menopause evolve? The answer may lie in whales. Ellis and his team at the University of Exeter recently published a study in the journal Nature that studies the evolution of menopause in the undersea animals most known for it. What they uncovered may even help explain menopause in humans. Curious about other animal behavior mysteries? Email us at [email protected] more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

The number of newborns born with syphilis – a serious sexually transmitted infection – has skyrocketed 755% from 2012 to 2021. These babies have congenital syphilis, which is when the infection is passed from mother to baby during pregnancy. It can have dire consequences if left untreated. The surge has left medical professionals and public health leaders scrambling for solutions to stop the spread. Today on the show, Chicago based journalist Indira Khera talks to Emily Kwong about what's behind this mysterious public health crisis – and brings us inside Illinois' Perinatal Syphilis Warmline.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

When Shohini Ghose was studying physics as a kid, she heard certain names repeated over and over. "Einstein, Newton, Schrodinger ... they're all men." Shohini wanted to change that — so she decided to write a book about some of the women scientists missing from her grade school physics textbooks. It's called Her Space, Her Time: How Trailblazing Women Scientists Decoded the Hidden Universe. This episode, she talks to Short Wave host Regina G. Barber about uncovering the women physicists she admires — and how their stories have led her to reflect on her own. Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Nuclear fusion could one day change the world by producing energy at lower costs than we generate it now — without greenhouse gas emissions or long-term nuclear waste. If we can get it to work. People have been promising nuclear fusion as a new, clean source of power for decades without much tangible success. But lately, billions of dollars from venture capitalists and tech entrepreneurs have flowed into the field. Science correspondent Geoff Brumfiel shares his reporting on some of the companies racing towards what could be the world's first commercial fusion power plants.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

"Long COVID has affected every part of my life," said Virginia resident Rachel Beale said at a recent Senate hearing. "I wake up every day feeling tired, nauseous and dizzy. I immediately start planning when I can lay down again." Beale is far from alone. Many of her experiences have been echoed by others dealing with long COVID. It's a constellation of debilitating symptoms that range from brain fog and intense physical fatigue to depression and anxiety. But there's new, promising research that sheds light onto some symptoms. NPR health correspondent Will Stone talks with Short Wave host Regina G. Barber about the state of long COVID research — what we know, what we don't and when we can expect treatments or even cures for it. Have more COVID questions you want us to cover? Email us at [email protected] — we'd love to hear from you.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Coming down from the buzz of the Oscars, we're taking a look at Christopher Nolan's award-winning film 'Oppenheimer.' It chronicles the life and legacy of J. Robert Oppenheimer, the first director of Los Alamos National Laboratory and the so-called "Father of the Atomic Bomb." The movie does not shy away from science — and neither do we. We talked to current scientists at Los Alamos about the past and present science of nuclear weapons like the atomic bomb.Read more about the Manhattan Project.Have other historical science or science in pop culture you want us to cover? Email us at [email protected] — we'd love to hear from you!Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Neuroscientist Nathan Sawtell has spent a lot of time studying the electric elephantnose fish. These fish send and decipher weak electric signals, which Sawtell hopes will eventually help neuroscientists better understand how the brain filters sensory information about the outside world. As Sawtell has studied these electric critters, he's had a lingering question: why do they always seem to organize themselves in a particular orientation. At first, he couldn't figure out why, but a new study released this week in Nature may have an answer: the fish are creating an electrical network larger than any field a single fish can muster alone, and providing collective knowledge about potential dangers in the surrounding water. Want to hear us cover more animal news? Email the show at [email protected] to let us know!Listen to Short Wave on Spotify, Apple Podcasts and Google Podcasts.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

The Voyager 1 space probe is the farthest human-made object in space. It launched in 1977 with a golden record on board that carried assorted sounds of our home planet: greetings in many different languages, dogs barking, and the sound of two people kissing, to name but a few examples. The idea with this record was that someday, Voyager 1 might be our emissary to alien life – an audible time capsule of Earth's beings. Since its launch, it also managed to complete missions to Jupiter and Saturn. In 2012, it crossed into interstellar space. But a few months ago, the probe encountered a problem. "It's an elderly spacecraft," says NPR science correspondent Nell Greenfieldboyce, "and it had some kind of electronic stroke." Greenfieldboyce talks to Short Wave Host Regina G. Barber about the precarious status of Voyager 1 – the glitch threatening its mission, and the increasingly risky measures NASA is taking to try and restore it. What interstellar adventure should we cover next? Email the show at [email protected] more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Recently, the US Food and Drug Administration approved a first-of-its-kind cancer therapy to treat aggresive forms of skin cancer. It has us thinking of the long history of cancer. One of the first recorded mentions of cancer appears in an ancient Egyptian text from around 3000 B.C. And although we now know much more about how cancer begins — as a series of mutations in someone's DNA — it's a disease people are still grappling with how to cure cancers today. This episode, cancer epidemiologist Mariana Stern talks about cancer history and treatment today — plus, why some people are more prone to certain cancers and why that might matter for curing them.Want to hear about advances in medicine? Email the show at [email protected] more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

The sci-fi film Dune: Part Two is out in theaters now. The movie takes place on the harsh desert planet, Arrakis, where water is scarce and giant, killer sandworms lurk just beneath the surface. But what do planetary scientists and biologists think about the science of these worms, Arrakis and our other favorite sci-fi planets? Today on the show, Regina G. Barber talks to biologist (and Star Trek consultant!) Mohamed Noor and planetary scientist Michael Wong about Dune, habitable planets and how to make fantasy seem more realistic. Want more of the science behind your favorite fictional worlds? Email us at [email protected]. Listen to Short Wave on Spotify, Apple Podcasts and Google Podcasts. Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

According to the United Nations, about ten percent of the world is undernourished. It's a daunting statistic — unless your name is Hannah Ritchie. She's the data scientist behind the new book Not the End of the World: How We Can Be the First Generation to Build a Sustainable Planet. It's a seriously big thought experiment: How do we feed everyone on Earth sustainably? And because it's just as much an economically pressing question as it is a scientific one, Darian Woods of The Indicator from Planet Money joins us. With Hannah's help, Darian unpacks how to meet the needs of billions of people without destroying the planet.Questions or ideas for a future show? Email us at [email protected] more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

An Alabama Supreme Court ruling that frozen embryos can be considered "extrauterine children" under state law has major implications for how in vitro fertilization, commonly called IVF, is performed. Since the first successful in vitro fertilization pregnancy and live birth in 1978, nearly half a million babies have been born using IVF in the United States. Reproductive endocrinologist Amanda Adeleye explains the science behind IVF, the barriers to accessing it and her concerns about fertility treatment in the post-Roe landscape.Read more about the science of IVF.Questions or ideas for a future episode of Short Wave? Email us at [email protected] — we'd love to hear from you!Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

In the green tree canopies of forested areas in Myanmar, you might wake up to the sounds of gibbons singing love songs. Gibbons start their day with passionate duets and, though these love songs may sound a little different than the ones in your playlists, they just helped researchers figure out that Myanmar has the largest population of an endangered gibbon species on Earth. They're called skywalker gibbons, and until recently, scientists thought there were fewer than 200 of them – all living in southwestern China. Want to hear us cover more animal news? Email the show at [email protected] to let us know!Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

We are at the height of the Sun's activity in its eleven year cycle, known to astronomers as the solar maximum. This means that over the next several months there's going to be a lot of solar activity. It's got us thinking back to 1859. That's when astronomer Richard Carrington was studying the Sun when he witnessed the most intense geomagnetic storm recorded in history. The storm, triggered by a giant solar flare, sent brilliant auroral displays across the globe causing electrical sparking and fires in telegraph stations. This encore episode, Regina talks to solar physicist Dr. Samaiyah Farid about what's now known as the Carrington event and about what may happen the next time a massive solar storm hits Earth.Want to hear us cover other parts of the solar system? Email the show at [email protected] to let us know!Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Lately, paleoecologist Audrey Rowe has been a bit preoccupied with a girl named Elma. That's because Elma is ... a woolly mammoth. And 14,000 years ago, when Elma was alive, her habitat in interior Alaska was rapidly changing. The Ice Age was coming to a close and human hunters were starting early settlements. Which leads to an intriguing question: Who, or what, killed her? In the search for answers, Audrey traces Elma's life and journey through — get this — a single tusk. Today, she shares her insights on what the mammoth extinction from thousands of years ago can teach us about megafauna extinctions today with guest host Nate Rott. Thoughts on other ancient animal stories we should tell? Email us at [email protected] and we might make a future episode about it!Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Every year, billions of animals across the globe embark on journeys. They fly, crawl, walk or slither – often across thousands of miles of land or water – to find better food, more agreeable weather or a place to breed. Think monarch butterflies, penguins, wild Pacific salmon. These species are crucial to the world as we know it. But until this week, there has never been an official assessment of the world's migratory animals. So today on the show, correspondent Nate Rott shares the first-ever report on state of the world's migratory animals – the threats facing them and what can be done to help. Are you afraid of needles or shots? Send us a voice memo with your story at [email protected]. We'd love to hear about it for an upcoming episode. Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

In a Valentine's Day exclusive report, NPR has learned there is currently a gay anteater couple at Smithsonian's National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute in Washington D.C.But this couple is just the tip of the proverbial iceberg when it comes to queerness in the animal world – it's been documented in hundreds of species. We spoke with wildlife ecologist Christine Wilkinson of the "Queer is Natural" TikTok series to uncover the wildest, queerest animals of the bunch. Questions, comments or thoughts on queer animal love? Email us at [email protected] and we might feature it on a future episode!Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Happy Lunar New Year! According to the Chinese lunisolar calendar, the new year began Saturday. For many, like our host Regina G. Barber, this calendar and its cultural holidays can feel completely detached from the Gregorian calendar. Growing up, she associated the former with the Spring Festival and getting money in red envelopes from relatives, and the other with more American traditions. But the Chinese calendar has a deep, centuries-long shared history with the Gregorian calendar. To learn more about this shared history, Gina talks to scientists and historians, who spill the tea about the science behind calendars, and how both calendars and the Chinese Lunar New Year celebration played a key role in the rise and fall of empires. Email us [email protected] for more science history. Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

At least, that's what a group of researchers at the Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology Graduate University thinks. The team recently published a study in the journal Experimental Biology suggesting that Amphiphrion ocellaris, or clown anemonefish, may be counting. Specifically, the authors think the fish may be looking at the number of vertical white stripes on each other as well as other anemonefish as a way to identify their own species. Not only that — the researchers think that the fish are noticing the minutiae of other anemonefish's looks because of some fishy marine geopolitics. Questions, comments or thoughts on another marine sea creature you want to hear us cover? Email us at [email protected] and we might feature it on a future episode!Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

If you've ever watched part of a professional football game, you've probably seen a tight spiral pass. Those perfect throws where the football leaves the player's hand and neatly spins as it arcs through the air. But those passes? They seem to defy fundamental physics. And for a long time, scientists couldn't figure out exactly why — until experimental atomic physicist Tim Gay cracked the case just a few years ago. His answer comes after two decades of hobby research and more than a couple late night shouting matches with two other physicists over Zoom.Today on Short Wave, host Regina G. Barber talks to Tim about this football mystery — and the physics behind the game.Listen to Short Wave on Spotify, Apple Podcasts and Google Podcasts.

In 1986 the Chernobyl nuclear power plant exploded, releasing radioactive material into northern Ukraine and Belarus. It was the most serious nuclear accident in history. Over one hundred thousand people were evacuated from the surrounding area. But local gray wolves never left — and their population has grown over the years. It's seven times denser than populations in protected lands elsewhere in Belarus. This fact has led scientists to wonder whether the wolves are genetically either resistant or resilient to cancer — or if the wolves are simply thriving because humans aren't interfering with them. This episode, researchers Shane Campbell-Staton and Cara Love talk through what might be causing this population boom. Plus, why researchers in the field of human cancer are eager to collaborate with them.Want to hear about other ways humans are impacting the planet? Email us at [email protected].

Back in the day, many of us heard that the appendix is a vestigial organ — at best, a body part that lost its purpose all those many years ago. At worst, an unnecessary clinger-on to the human body that, when ruptured, could be life threatening. But what if that narrative is wrong?Heather Smith became obsessed with the appendix after hers was removed at age 12. After years of anatomy research, she's found that the appendix is not, in fact, useless. Reporter Selena Simmons-Duffin is in the host chair today to get the scoop on all things appendix. Think it's time to give another part of the human body its due? Email us at [email protected] — we'd love to hear about it!

An all-out "naked mole rat war" has broken out at Smithsonian's National Zoo, after the queen of the colony was mortally wounded by one of her own children. Short Wave's Pien Huang and Margaret Cirino visit the battleground – a series of deceptively calm-looking plexiglass enclosures at the Zoo's Small Mammal House. There, the typically harmonious, eusocial rodents are now fighting their siblings with their big front teeth to determine who will become the new queen. Pien and Marge talk with zookeeper Kenton Kerns about what led to this violent succession drama, the stress he feels in witnessing his first naked mole rat war and how he hopes it will resolve. NOTE: This episode contains some detailed descriptions of animals fighting each other, so be warned. Check out the Smithsonian National Zoo's naked mole rat live cam.Pondering the implications of other monarchies and social hierarchies? Email us at [email protected].

Every year, lightning is estimated to cause up to 24,000 deaths globally. It starts forest fires, burns buildings and crops, and causes disruptive power outages. The best, most practical technology available to deflect lightning is the simple lightning rod, created by Benjamin Franklin more than 250 years ago. But lightning rods protect only a very limited area proportional to their height. In today's encore episode, we explore why a group of European researchers are hoping the 21 century upgrade is a high-powered laser. Plus: Regina makes incremental progress on conquering her irrational fear of lightning.Struck by other illuminating scientific research? Email us at [email protected].

When the U.S. government and state of Florida unveiled a new plan to save the Everglades in 2000, the sprawling blueprint to restore the wetlands became the largest hydrological restoration effort in the nation's history. Two decades later, only one project is complete, the effort is $15 billion over budget and the Everglades is still dying. The new podcast Bright Lit Place from WLRN and NPR heads into the swamp to meet its first inhabitants, the scientists who study it and the warring sides struggling to find a way out of the muck. Today, we hear an excerpt as environment reporter Jenny Staletovich tags along with wetlands ecologist Evelyn Gaiser to the remotest part of the swamp.

At the Ol Pejeta Conservancy, a wildlife preserve in central Kenya, lions and cheetahs mingle with zebras and elephants across many miles of savannah – grasslands with "whistling thorn" acacia trees dotting the landscape here and there. Twenty years ago, the savanna was littered with them. Then came invasive big-headed ants that killed native ants — and left the acacia trees vulnerable. Over time, elephants have knocked down many of the trees. That has altered the landscape — and the diets of other animals in the local food web.Curious about other science news? Email us at [email protected].

Scientists know that Black people are at a greater risk for health problems like heart disease, diabetes and Alzheimer's disease than white people. A growing body of research shows that racism–in health systems and the effects of experiencing racial discrimination–contributes to these long-standing health disparities for Black communities. Now, some researchers are asking whether part of the explanation involves how racism changes the brain. Today on the show, science correspondent Jon Hamilton speaks with Nate Harnett, an assistant professor of psychiatry at Harvard Medical School, and Negar Fani, a clinical neuroscientist at Emory University about how experiencing racism may change the brain. Listen to Short Wave on Spotify, Apple Podcasts and Google Podcasts.

Honeyguides are wild birds that team up with humans and then lead them to honey. Researchers recently found that the calls these birds respond to are unique and tied to their location. NPR science correspondent Nell Greenfieldboyce talks about this relationship and shares how researchers followed honeyguides to learn about their call behaviors. Read Nell's full story here. Hear about an amazing wildlife phenomenon? Email us at [email protected].

At least one in four women — and a much smaller proportion of men — experiences intimate partner violence in their lifetime. For people in violent relationships, brain injuries are unfortunately common. But little is known about what exactly happens inside the brains of people dealing with domestic violence — and how these kinds of traumatic brain injuries may be different from those that come out of contact sports like football. Host Regina G. Barber talks with NPR brain correspondent Jon Hamilton about new research on the connection between domestic violence and traumatic brain injuries – and what makes these injuries unique. Questions? Email us at [email protected].

Winter is upon us – and with the holiday travel and time spent indoors comes a triple threat of respiratory diseases: RSV, flu and COVID-19. Most of the country has been experiencing high or very high respiratory virus levels, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Host Regina G. Barber talks with NPR health correspondent Pien Huang about the annual 'tripledemic': what makes this winter different from winters past, who's most at risk and whether or not we're over the seasonal surge. Want to hear about another health story making headlines? Email us about it at [email protected] — we might cover it on a future episode!

Time is a concept so central to our daily lives. Yet, the closer scientists look at it, the more it seems to fall apart. Time ticks by differently at sea level than it does on a mountaintop. The universe's expansion slows time's passage. "And some scientists think time might not even be 'real' — or at least not fundamental," says NPR science correspondent Geoff Brumfiel. In this encore episode, Geoff joins Short Wave Scientist in Residence Regina G. Barber to bend our brains with his learnings about the true nature of time. Along the way, we visit the atomic clocks at the National Institute of Standards and Technology, consider distant exploding stars and parse the remains of subatomic collisions. Want to know more about fundamental physics? Email [email protected].

If you work at home or in an office, you might spend a lot of your day sitting down and staring at a computer screen. That can have lots of negative effects – but it's hard to carve out significant time in the day to counteract that.Our friends at NPR's TED Radio Hour wanted to know if small, frequent movement breaks might do the trick instead. Along with Columbia University Medical Center, they conducted a study of over 20,000 listeners and asked them to incorporate these movement breaks into their day. Today on the show, TED Radio Hour's Manoush Zomorodi digs into the surprising preliminary results with Columbia University researcher Keith Diaz. Ideas to get moving? We want to hear them! Get in touch at [email protected].

Since they were discovered in 2019, strange, glowing circles of light in space have mystified researchers. Now called odd radio circles, or ORCs, these rings of light sit in the radio portion of the electromagnetic spectrum. They pulse out of the centers of some galaxies – and until now, no one knew why.In this episode, host Regina G. Barber talks to Alison Coil, a professor of astronomy and astrophysics at University of California San Diego, about her latest research. They break down what ORCs are, where they come from and what they might reveal about how galaxies evolve over billions of years.Wondering about other happenings across the universe? Email us at [email protected] – we'd love to hear about it!

Human beings are hardwired for social connection – so much so that we think of even the most basic objects as having feelings or experiences. (Yup, we're talking to you, Roomba owners!) Social robots add a layer to this. They're designed to make us feel like they're our friends. They can do things like care for children, the elderly or act as partners. But there's a darker side to them, too. They may encourage us to opt out of authentic, real-life connections, making us feel more isolated. Today on the show, host Regina G. Barber explores the duality of social robots with Eve Herold, author of the new book Robots and the People Who Love Them: Holding on to Our Humanity in an Age of Social Robots. Curious about other innovations in technology? Email us at [email protected].

A winter storm brought heavy rain and snow to parts of the East Coast this weekend, which got us thinking about snowflakes. Those intricate, whimsical crystals are a staple of magical wintry scenes, but how big can they really get? Well, according to the Guinness World Record keepers, the "largest snowflake" ever recorded was a whopping 15 inches in diameter. It was spotted near Missoula, Montana in 1887. But Kenneth Libbrecht, a physicist at Caltech, has long been skeptical of that record. So he set out to find what makes a snowflake a snowflake and whether that 1887 record is scientifically possible. You can read more about what he discovered here.Want to share the snowflakes you've spotted this winter? Email us a photo at [email protected].

The winter is usually when insects die or go into a state of paused development, but for tiny specks on the white snow called snow flies, it's time to run around, find a lover and make baby snow flies. Neuroscientist John Tuthill has been studying these creatures since he first came across them in 2016. He's found that not only can they survive in the cold, but if one of their limbs starts to freeze, they can self-amputate and pop it right off. That buys the snow fly time to find a mate and make sweet, sweet snow fly love.Interested in other winter biology? Email us at [email protected] — we'd love to hear from you!

In celebration of our 1000th episode, we're wrapping our heads around big numbers. Educational neuroscientist Elizabeth Toomarian talks about why humans' evolutionarily-old brains are so bad at comprehending large quantities–like the national debt and the size of the universe–and how to better equip ourselves to understand important issues like our finances and the impacts of climate change.Interested in other ways our brains make sense of the world? Email us at [email protected].

Ever gotten a scarlet, hot face after drinking? Or know someone who has? Many people felt it as they ring in the New Year with champagne toasts. That's because this condition, commonly called "Asian flush" or "Asian glow," affects an estimated half a BILLION people, who can't break down aldehyde toxins that build up in their bodies. But what if there's a benefit to having Asian glow? Katie Wu, a staff writer for The Atlantic, has looked into the research a theory as to why the condition might have been a powerful tool for some of our ancestors to survive disease. Read Katie's article to learn more.Questions about other potential tradeoffs for our genetics? Email us at [email protected]. We've love to hear from you and we might cover it in a future episode!

2023 was filled with scientific innovation, exploration and new discoveries. A few of the biggest threads we saw unraveling this year came from the James Webb Space Telescope, the changing climate and artificial intelligence. Today, host Regina G. Barber wraps up these three areas of science news with the help of correspondent Geoff Brumfiel and All Things Considered host Ari Shapiro. Got more science news? Email us at [email protected]. Listen to Short Wave on Spotify, Apple Podcasts and Google Podcasts.

As 2023 comes to a close, Short Wave teamed up with our friends at All Things Considered to round up some of our favorite stories of the year — this time, about the science behind music. First, science correspondent Rob Stein talks to researchers (and Phish's Mike Gordon) about what happens to our brains on music. Then, All Things Considered host Juana Summers and investigations correspondent Sacha Pfeiffer share a study about why lead singers, like Jeff Beck, have gotten quieter over the years. And finally, All Things Considered hosts Ailsa Chang and Ari Shapiro explore research that says some animals might be able to perceive melody and rhythm, too.Have other questions about the science behind music? What have you observed about how your favorite songs make you feel? Email us at [email protected].

Are people ever satisfied? Two social psychologists, Ethan Ludwin-Peery and Adam Mastroianni, fell down a research rabbit hole accidentally answering a version of this very question. After conducting several studies, the pair found that when asked how things could be different, people tend to give one kind of answer, regardless of how the question is asked or how good life felt when they were asked. Short Wave's Scientist in Residence Regina G. Barber digs into the research—and how it might reveal a fundamental law of psychology about human satisfaction. (encore)

Would you survive as a doctor in The Sims 4? What's an appropriate amount of free food to take from a public sample station before it's greedy? And how much do clock towers affect sleep? These are the types of questions answered in the Christmas issue of The BMJ — one of the journal's most highly anticipated issues each year. And we find out the answers in this very episode. So, sit back, relax and prepare to be amused by this ghost of Christmas Past (encore).Check out what's been published so far in the 2023 issue. (We particularly like the research about the associated health risks and benefits of various Great British Bakeoff Ingredients.)

LED light bulbs are the future. They're better for the environment and the pocket book. But for some people, certain LEDs lights — particularly holiday lights—are also a problem. They flicker in a way that causes headaches, nausea and other discomfort. Today, we visit the "Flicker Queen" to learn why LEDs flicker — and what you can do about it.Wondering about other quirks of lighting and engineering? Email us at [email protected] – we might cover it on a future episode!

Millions of people in the U.S. are bird watchers. But a couple of years ago a satirical conspiracy theory gained popularity because of an absurd claim: That those birds were also watching people. Now, rather than being the stuff of internet memes, some engineers are, in fact, trying to reverse engineer how birds fly to eventually take what they learn to create more efficient bird-like drones. Today on the show, host Regina G. Barber talks to reporter Anil Oza about how scientists are using real birds to make fake ones. Want to learn more about innovations in science? Email us at [email protected].

For the first time in its history, the United Nations climate conference concluded with a call to transition away from fossil fuels. But not all of the nearly 200 countries present at the meeting, known as COP28, were happy with the final agreement. Critics of the agreement had instead called for a clear path towards phasing out fossil fuels and pointed out a "litany of loopholes" in the final text. This episode, we look at the tensions and breakthroughs of the conference — and how far behind we are in limiting the devastating impacts that could be on the way.

Does thinking about the trajectory of the climate make you have a panic spiral? If so, we have the perfect podcast for you: The Anti-Dread Climate Podcast from NPR member station KCRW. The whole conceit of the show is to move away from climate anxiety and into incremental ways you can better the planet. Today, Caleigh Wells, one of the hosts of the show, helps Regina do just that by talking through some quick tips for being greener this holiday season and then walking through how to compost year-round. If you want even more climate solutions goodness, check out The Anti-Dread Climate Podcast Newsletter at kcrw.com/climate.As always, you can reach us Short Wavers by emailing [email protected]. We love hearing what's on your science-curious minds!

A team of conservation biologists from Italy recently found that current emoji options are sorely lacking when it comes to life outside of vertebrates in the animal kingdom. Sure, there are multiple dog and cat options to choose from. But when it comes to fungi, for example, the choices are limited ... to one. The study was published this week in the journal iScience argues that our emoji lexicon is in dire need of some biodiversity – which could have a real impact on the way people communicate about conservation.

Artificial intelligence is increasingly being used throughout the world to predict the future. Banks use it to predict whether customers will pay back a loan, hospitals use it to predict which patients are at greatest risk of disease and auto insurance companies use it determine rates by predicting how likely a customer is to get in an accident. But issues like data leakage and sampling bias can cause AI to give faulty predictions, to sometimes disastrous effects. That's what we get into today: the hazards of AI.Want to hear more of the latest research on AI? Email us at [email protected] — we might answer your question on a future episode!

Malls are designed to overwhelm our brains. Add the stress of holiday shopping, and a quick trip to pick up presents could turn into an hours-long shopping spree thanks to all the ways stores use research from fields like consumer neuroscience and neuromarketing to entice you. Retailers create urgency and scarcity to push you to give into the emotional part of your brain, motivated by the release of dopamine. But we've got your back! With the help of NPR business correspondent Alina Selyukh, we get into the psychology of sales and discounts: Why it's SO hard to resist the tricks stores use — and some tips to outsmart them. Read Alina's full story here. Questions about the science driving the world around you? Email us at [email protected].

Glaciers like the ones in Greenland are melting due to climate change, causing global sea levels to rise. That we know. But these glaciers are also moving. What we don't know is just how these two processes – melting and movement – interact and ultimately impact how quickly sea levels will rise. This encore episode, Jessica Mejía, a postdoctoral researcher in glaciology at the University of Buffalo, explains what it's like to live on a glacier for a month and what her research could mean for coastal communities all over the world.Curious about other research happening around the globe? Email us at [email protected] — we'd love to hear from you!

The U.S. is in the midst of a loneliness epidemic. And for a lot of people, the feeling is even more pronounced during the holidays. In addition to its emotional impact, chronic loneliness and social isolation have some dramatic health consequences: increased risk of heart disease and stroke, infections, cancer, even premature death. Recent research also suggests that loneliness can change the way people process the world. So today on the show, host Regina G. Barber talks to Rachel Carlson about the neuroscience of loneliness.

Soon after the sun sets on winter nights, if you live in the northern hemisphere you can look into the sky and find the Orion constellation near the eastern horizon. Astrophysicist Sarafina El-Badry Nance has always been drawn to a particular star in Orion: Betelgeuse, a red supergiant nearing the end of it's life on the hunter's left shoulder. But what stages of life did Betelgeuse — or any star — go through before it reached this moment? Regina G. Barber talks to Sarafina about three winter constellations, and journey through the life cycle of a star. Curious about the night sky? Email us at [email protected] — we'd love to hear from you!

It's easy to overlook the soil beneath our feet, or to think of it as just dirt to be cleaned up. But soil wraps the world in an envelope of life: It grows our food, regulates the climate and makes the planet habitable. "What stands between life and lifelessness on our planet Earth is this thin layer of soil that exists on the Earth's surface," says Asmeret Asefaw Berhe, a soil scientist at the University of California-Merced. In honor of World Soil Day tomorrow, we're revisiting our conversation with Prof. Berhe, who is also serving as Director of the U. S. Dept. of Energy's Office of Science. She talks to Aaron about the hidden majesty of soil and why it's crucial to tackling the climate crisis.

Sleep. It's an essential biological function that has long intrigued scientists. Researchers have studied everything from mice to fruit flies in the lab to get a better understanding of what happens when animals sleep — and why so many do it. This week, scientists finally added one piece to the elusive sleep puzzle: How wild chinstrap penguins sleep amid their noisy colony. Turns out, they do it over 10,000 times in seconds-long bursts throughout the day — totaling 11 hours when all is said and done.

In which we meet the pioneers of one of the most exciting — and controversial — fields of biomedical research: in vitro gametogenesis, or IVG. The goal of IVG is to make unlimited supplies of what Hayashi calls "artificial" eggs and sperm from any cell in the human body. That could let anyone — older, infertile, single, gay, trans — have their own genetically related babies. As such, the field opens up a slew of ethical concerns. But that isn't stopping researchers from pressing forward. So, this episode NPR science correspondent Rob Stein gives us a glimpse into the global race to create the first artificial human embryos to see how the competition is unfolding. Want to hear more cutting-edge technology? Email the show at [email protected].

As kids, some of us dream of multiple careers: being an astronaut AND the next president. Or digging up dinosaurs AND selling out concert stadiums. As we get older, there's pressure to pick one path. But what if we didn't have to? After all, John Urschel didn't. He's a mathematician and professor at MIT. But before that, he played football for the Baltimore Ravens. Today on the show, Monday night football! Host Regina G. Barber talks to Urschel about linear algebra and following his dream of becoming a mathematician while living the dream as a NFL player.

Walking into Karen Chin's office at the University of Colorado, Boulder, one of the first things you might notice is that petrified poops are everywhere. They're in shallow boxes covering every surface and filling up shelves, cabinets and drawers. She's a leading expert in the fossils, known as coprolites. They delight her because of all they reveal about the ancient eating habits and food webs of dinosaurs — rare insights for the paleontology world. This episode, she talks with Short Wave co-host Aaron Scott about the lessons scientists can learn from ancient poopetrators.Interested in learning more ancient or scatological mysteries of science? Email us at [email protected] — we might cover it on a future episode!

Turkey is the usual centerpiece of the Thanksgiving dinner, but it's all too easy to end up with a dry, tough, flavorless bird. For NPR science correspondent Maria Godoy, it got so bad that several years ago, her family decided to abandon the turkey tradition altogether. Can science help her make a better bird this year? That's what she hopes as she seeks expert advice from food science writers and cookbook authors Nik Sharma and Kenji López-Alt. Want to know what other delectable food secrets science has to offer? Email [email protected] and we just might find out for you!

Every five years, the United States government releases the National Climate Assessment, a comprehensive analysis of how climate change is affecting the country. The fifth assessment was recently released. It's the first to include includes standalone chapters about climate change's toll on the U.S. economy, as well as the complex social factors driving climate change and the nation's responses. Climate reporters Rebecca Hersher and Alejandra Borunda walk us through three major takeaways from the report: the economics, the negative human health effects and the unequal burden people face. Plus, a silver lining: All the ways the U.S. is making progress to slow the effects of climate change. Read Rebecca and Alejandra's full piece here.Want to hear a climate story? Email us at [email protected].

How much salt is too much salt? Most likely, the amount you're consuming. A new study published this week in the journal JAMA found that cutting one teaspoon of salt a day results in a decline in blood pressure comparable to taking medication. Plus, other science news from this week, like the oldest confirmed black hole and how climate change and pollution are causing a big imbalance in the sexes of turtles. Got other science news for us to consider? Email us at [email protected].

Saturday, the entire coastal town of Grindavik, Iceland was evacuated. That's because over the weekend, the country experienced nearly 2,000 earthquakes within 48 hours. And they've kept coming since then – in swarms. Scientists think the quakes are indicative of magma moving closer to the surface in the country's southwestern peninsula and that a local volcano could erupt at any moment. Today on the show, host Regina G. Barber talks to volcanologist Diana Roman about the science behind these earthquakes. Got science to share? Email us at [email protected].

In the 18th century the world was focused on Venus. Expeditions were launched in pursuit of exact measurements of Venus as it passed between Earth and the Sun. By viewing its journey and location on the Sun's surface, scientists hoped to make a massive leap in scientific knowledge. With a little help from math, Scientist in Residence Regina G. Barber recounts how humanity came closer to understanding our cosmic address — and relative distances to other planets — in the solar system. Want to get in touch with story ideas or to share some science that delighted you? Email us at [email protected]!

AI is popping up everywhere nowadays. From medicine to science to the Hollywood strikes. Today, with computer scientist and AI pioneer Fei-Fei Li, we dig deeper into the history of the field, how machines really learn and how computer scientists take inspiration from the human brain in their work. Li's new memoir The Worlds I See traces the history of her move to the U.S. from China as a high school student and her coming-of-age with AI. Host Regina G. Barber talks to Li about her memoir, where the field may be going and the importance of centering humans in the development of new technology. Got science to share? Email us at [email protected].

If you've ever looked up at the clouds and wondered where they came from, you're not alone. Atmospheric researcher Lubna Dada is fascinated by the mystery of how clouds form and what role they play in our climate. Today, host Aaron Scott talks to Dada about a recent study on the role of trees in cloud formation, and how this data will improve our current climate models. Want more stories on the environment or climate change? Email us at [email protected].

Scientists have mapped less than 25% of the world's seafloor. Experts say that getting that number up to 100% would improve everything from tsunami warnings to the Internet and renewable energy. That's why there's currently a global effort to create a full, detailed map of the seabed by 2030. Today, we talk to Dawn Wright, a marine geographer and chief scientist at the Environmental Systems Research Institute about this effort.Curious about ocean science? Email us at [email protected].

What your parents didn't tell you about pulling an all-nighter? It just might ease depression for several days. At least, that's what researchers found happens to mice in a study published in the journal Neuron Thursday. Most people who've stayed up all night know the "tired and wired" feeling they get the next day. Scientists know this feeling can have a strong antidepressant effect in people that lasts for several days, even after the other changes wear off. But this new study may help researchers figure out why sleeplessness causes this effect. Plus, we get into some other science headlines we can't stop talking about: Turning a centuries-old debate over starfish on its head and record lows for Antarctica's sea ice. Got science to share? Email us at [email protected].

Every year, the USDA drops millions of oral rabies vaccines across fourteen states, mostly along the eastern seaboard. In urban and suburban areas, they use vehicles, but in rural areas, they drop the vaccines from planes. Host Regina G. Barber talkes to USDA wildlife biologist Jordona Kirby about the agency's goal to wipe out rabies in one population in particular: raccoons.

Antibiotics have changed the world. They've made it possible to treat diseases that used to mean anything from discomfort to death. But no new classes of antibiotics have made it to the market since the 1980s. What if humans' closest, ancient relatives held the answer to antibiotic resistance? Some scientists want to discover new antibiotics using machine learning ... and some very, very old relatives of humans. Host Aaron Scott talks to César de la Fuente about using computers to discover the first therapeutic molecules in extinct organisms. Have a question? Email us at [email protected].

The human brain has more than 170 billion cells. A newly published atlas offers the most detailed maps yet of the location, structure and, in some cases, function of more than 3,000 types of brain cells. The atlas could help scientists understand what makes humans unique in the animal kingdom and the roles different brain cells play in disease. Science correspondent Jon Hamilton talks to host Regina G. Barber about the findings from this new map, a product of the NIH's BRAIN initiative. Plus, what the heck splatter neurons have to do with all of this!Read Jon's full story here. Science question on your brain? Email us at [email protected].

Some people keep dogs in their backyards. In the Florida Keys, some residents have deer the size of a golden retriever in their yards. As sea levels rise and salt water climbs higher on the islands, it's shrinking habitat for this deer — which already has an estimated population of at most 1,000. Today, host Regina G. Barber hears from reporters Nate Rott and Ryan Kellman about the Key deer, and how rising sea levels are forcing wildlife managers to ask big questions about the future of the subspecies.

As a kid, host Aaron Scott would dress up for Halloween as an older version of himself — complete with a cane, a set of polyester britches and painted gray hair. These days, that costume is becoming a bit more of a day-to-day reality. At least, the gray hair is. So today, in honor of all you out there flirting with gray hair, whether for a witch costume or just that exciting and terrifying thing called aging, we're digging into why hair turns gray.

We're about to hit peak Orionid meteor shower! According to NASA, it's one of the most beautiful showers of the year. The Orionids are known for their brightness and speed — they streak through the sky at 41 km/s! And today, we learn all about them — where they come from, what makes a meteor a meteor and how to get the best view of them this weekend.Have a cosmic question? Email us at [email protected].

That spider you squished? It could have been used for science! Today, we're bringing you Halloween a little early – Short Wave style! Host Regina G. Barber talks to Anil Oza about the scientists reanimating dead spiders: How they do it and why this might one day become a cheap, green way to do delicate science. Listen to Short Wave on Spotify, Apple Podcasts and Google Podcasts.

Artificial intelligence can code computer programs, draw pictures and even take notes for doctors. Now, researchers are excited about the possibility that AI speeds up the scientific process — from quicker drug design to someday developing new hypotheses. Science correspondent Geoff Brumfiel talks about his visit to one protein lab already seeing promising results. Have an AI query? Send us your questions to [email protected].

Microbiologist Monsi Roman joined NASA in 1989 to help design the International Space Station. As the chief microbiologist for life support systems on the ISS, Roman was tasked with building air and water systems to support crews in space. That meant predicting how microbes would behave and preventing them from disrupting missions. And so, on today's show, host Aaron Scott talks to Roman about microbes in space: the risks they pose and where they might take us in the future of space travel. Questions about the science happening around you? Email [email protected] — we'd love to hear about it!

Coral reefs in Florida have lost an estimated 90 percent of their corals in the last 40 years. And this summer, a record hot marine heat wave hit Florida's coral reefs, exacerbating that problem. Scientists are still assessing the damage as water temperatures cool. And one researcher is taking coral survival a step further: Buffing up corals in a "gym" in his lab. Reporter Kate Furby went down to South Florida to see the coral reefs up close and talk to the innovative scientists working to save them. Questions about the science happening around you? Email [email protected] — we'd love to hear about it!

Ever read those Choose Your Own Adventure books of the '80s and '90s? As a kid, mathematician Pamela Harris was hooked on them. Years later she realized how much those books have in common with her field, combinatorics, the branch of math concerned with counting. It, too, depends on thinking through endless, branching possibilities. So, she and several of her students set out to write a scholarly paper in the style of Choose Your Own Adventure books. In this encore episode, Dr. Harris tells host Regina G. Barber all about how the project began, how it gets complicated when you throw in wormholes and clowns, and why math is fundamentally a creative act.

Being inside, hunching in front of a computer screen for hours at a time – these things take a toll on our minds and our bodies. Today on the show, TED Radio Hour's Manoush Zomorodi brings their new series Body Electric to Short Wave's Regina G. Barber. We learn about the negative side effects of our sedentary lifestyles and ask what scientifically-backed steps (and how many) it may take to combat them. Join NPR's study with Columbia University here. Movement hacks? Ways to sit less? We want them all! Get in touch at [email protected].

Ya'all, it's the most wonderful time of the year: Fat Bear Week! Brown bears in Katmai National Park and Preserve are putting on the pounds before they hibernate. During this time, their metabolism, heart and breathing rate slow way down and they recycle their waste internally. Today, we look at the cool (and peculiar) biological processes taking place during hibernation. Plus, we talk through some other science headlines we're obsessing over, including the light pollution from satellites and how gravity affects antimatter.Read a science headline you want to know more about? Email us at [email protected].

Here on Short Wave, we're getting into the Halloween spirit a little early with a look at the world's oldest mummies. They're found in modern-day northern Chile. The mummies are well-preserved, so over the past 7,000 years, some have been exhumed for scientific study. But recently, something startling happened: Some of the mummies started to decompose. Today on the show, Regina G. Barber talks to archeologist Marcela Sepulveda about the civilization that made these mummies: the Chinchorro people. We dig into the science behind their mummification techniques and how the changing planet is affecting archeologists' ability to study the past. Fascinated by a science mystery? Send us your tales — we're at [email protected].

A new robot is designed to sink sargassum before the stinky seaweed comes ashore. Blooms of sargassum, a leafy brown seaweed, have increased in size and number over the past decade. As the blooms have grown, so too has their impact on coastal communities. The stinky seaweed can wreck local economies and ecosystems — and even threaten human health, some research suggests. But the creators of the AlgaRay say that their robot might do more than halt this damage. It could also fight climate change.This week NPR is doing something new — dedicating an entire week to stories and conversations about the search for climate solutions. Head to npr.org/climateweek for more stories of solutions.Have a science query? Email us at [email protected] — we'd love to know!

A tiny worm that regenerates entire organs. A South American snail that can regrow its eyes. A killifish that suspends animation in dry weather and reanimates in water. These are the organisms at the heart of regeneration science. But exactly how they do these things is still a mystery to scientists. Today on the show, Regina G. Barber talks to microbiologist Alejandro Sánchez Alvarado about this mystery. They get into what regeneration looks like, why humans can't do it (yet) and where the science may lead us in the decades to come. Listen to Short Wave on Spotify, Apple Podcasts and Google Podcasts.Have a science mystery? Send us your questions to [email protected].

In 2016, NASA launched a spacecraft to do something rarely attempted before: Collect space rocks from a potentially dangerous asteroid. The mission, named OSIRIS-REx, was successful. Tuesday, scientists opened a sealed canister containing the samples from the asteroid Bennu. Science correspondent Nell Greenfieledboyce talks to host Regina G. Barber about the mission's close calls and what NASA might learn from these space rocks that are older than our planet. Listen to Short Wave on Spotify, Apple Podcasts and Google Podcasts.Have a space mystery? Send us your questions to [email protected].

Ever had an itch you can't scratch? It can be maddening. And even though itch has a purpose — it's one of our bodies' alert systems — it can also go very wrong. Dermatologist Dr. Shawn Kwatra talks to host Regina G. Barber about the science of why and how we get itchy, the mysteries behind chronic itch and how his own experience with eczema, hives and seasonal allergies helps him connect with his patients.

Today on the show, All Things Considered co-host Mary Louise Kelly joins Regina G. Barber and Maria Godoy for our bi-weekly science roundup. They talk through some of the latest eye-catching science news, including the percussion-intensive mating life of cockatoos, what pink diamonds today tell us about the breakup of the ancient supercontinent Nuna and the latest on the Nipah outbreak in India.

The last several decades have taken a toll on the oceans: Some fish populations are collapsing, plastic is an increasing problem and climate change is leading to coral bleaching — as well as a host of other problems. But marine biologist and World Economic Forum programme lead Alfredo Giron says there's room to hope for the seas. He works to create systems that governments and the fishing industry can use to make sure fishing is legal and sustainable so oceans thrive for years to come. In this encore episode, he talks to host Aaron Scott about his work and how managing the ocean is a lot about managing people.We spoke to Alfredo Giron about his research and thoughts, the episode is not meant to reflect the World Economic Forum's positions.Have questions about the world around you? Email us at [email protected].

We're entering a new era of astrophysics. The James Webb Space Telescope is helping scientists test existing ideas and models of how the universe was created—on a whole new level. This telescope is sending back images of galaxies forming under a billion years after the Big Bang—way earlier than astronomers had previously expected. Not only that, scientists had anticipated that later—but still very early—galaxies would be small, barely formed blobs; instead, the galaxies in these images have spiral arms. So, today's show is all about GALACTIC CONTROVERSY! Computational astrophysicist Jorge Moreno talks with fellow astronomer and Short Wave's Scientist in Residence Regina G. Barber about how these new findings are stirring up controversy in the scientific community and the lessons we can learn from galaxies. Questions or controversies? Email us at [email protected].

This week, the Food and Drug Administration approved new COVID vaccines this week. It comes at a time when COVID cases, hospitalizations and deaths are on the rise. It's also the first time that the federal government is not paying for the vaccines. Given this confluence of events, we huddled with our colleagues, intrepid health correspondents Maria Godoy and Rob Stein. They gave us the lowdown on the CDC's recommendations for who should get it, how protective the booster is, how to access it regardless of your insurance status—and even how time this booster with other vaccines that may be on your radar.Check out Rob and Maria's full COVID booster Q&A here. Have health question? Email us at [email protected].

40 million miles of road unite us. They also cause mass destruction for many species. Today, environmental journalist Ben Goldfarb and host Aaron Scott go on a tour of that destruction — the subject of Ben's new book Crossings: How Road Ecology Is Shaping the Future of Our Planet. But don't worry, it's not all grim! Along the way, we learn why fewer insects are hitting our windshields, talk about the breakthrough that is highway overpasses, and how at least one bird has adapted to avoid 18-wheel semi-trucks. Listen to Short Wave on Spotify, Apple Podcasts and Google Podcasts.

More than 5,000 square miles of central California coast could soon become the newest national marine sanctuary in the United States. It could also make history as one of the first federal sanctuaries to be initiated by a Native American tribe—the Chumash—and become part of a growing movement to give tribes a say over the lands and waters that were once theirs. NPR climate reporter Lauren Sommer dives into the details with host Regina G. Barber, touching on ocean science, heritage and what's in a name. Listen to Short Wave on Spotify, Apple Podcasts and Google Podcasts.Hear about some science news we haven't? Email us at [email protected].

Today on the show, All Things Considered co-host Ari Shapiro joins Aaron Scott and Regina G. Barber for our science roundup. They talk about how antibiotic resistance may spread through particulate air pollution, magnetically halted black holes and how diversified farms are boosting biodiversity in Costa Rica.

Have frequent, burning pee? Cramping or the urge to pee even though you just went? If you haven't yet, you probably will eventually—along with an estimated 60% of women and 10% of men. That's the large slice of the population that experiences a urinary tract infections (UTI) at least once. Many people avoid talking about these infections, but about one in four women experience recurring UTIs. No matter what they do, the infections come back, again and again. So today on the show, Regina G. Barber takes producer Rachel Carlson on a tour of the urinary tract. We zoom into what recurring UTIs may have to do with changes on the DNA of our bladder cells and the hidden bacterial houses in our bladder walls. Read more about the latest research into recurring UTIs in this article from our colleagues at NPR's global health blog, Goats and Soda.Got questions about the big and small of our universe? Email us at [email protected].

This year, the hottest July ever was recorded — and parts of the country were hit with heat waves that lasted for weeks. Heat is becoming increasingly lethal as climate change causes more extreme heat. So in today's encore episode, we're exploring heat. NPR climate correspondent Lauren Sommer talks with Short Wave host Regina G. Barber about how the human body copes with extended extreme heat and how today's heat warning systems could better protect the public. If you can, stay cool out there this Labor Day, dear Short Wavers.What science story do you want to hear next on Short Wave? Email us at [email protected].

Food allergies have risen in the United States over the last few decades. Research suggests that 40 years ago the actual prevalence of food allergies was less than 1%. But this year, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) released data showing that almost 6% of U.S. adults and children have a food allergy. But this trend is not present in all countries — and what people are allergic to varies globally. Today, we dive into the complex world of food allergies with Dr. Waheeda Samady. She's the Director of Clinical Research at Northwestern University's Center for Food Allergy and Asthma Research.Have a science question? Email us at [email protected].

Smallpox is a deadly virus. At one point, it killed almost 1 in 3 people who had it. Almost 300 million of those deaths were in the 20th century alone. It was extremely painful, highly contagious and many people thought it would be impossible to wipe out—until it was. On May 8, 1980. the 33rd World Health Assembly declared the world free of smallpox. This marked the first—and only—time a human disease was eradicated globally. Epidemiologist and host of the podcast Epidemic: Eradicating Smallpox Céline Gounder has been looking into this history. Today, she shares the intense journey to eradicate smallpox in Bangladesh (spoiler alert: there are literal speedboats) and reflects on what this history tells us about the importance of healthcare that meets the needs of individuals and communities today. Click here to check out the second season of Céline's podcast from NPR partner KFF Health News. What science story do you want to hear next on Short Wave? Email us at [email protected].

Workers in Japan started releasing treated radioactive water from the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant into the Pacific Ocean on Thursday. Reactors at the plant began melting down after a 2011 earthquake and tsunami that hit the area. To stop the meltdown, plant workers flooded the reactors with water. But even now, when the plant is offline, the reactors need to be cooled. All that water—about 350 million gallons—is being stored on-site in over 1,000 tanks. And now, these tanks are almost full. Today on the show, host Regina G. Barber talks to NPR reporters Geoff Brumfiel and Kat Lonsdorf about the official plan for the radioactive wastewater, the science behind the release and why some are unhappy about it. What science story do you want to hear next on Short Wave? Email us at [email protected].

A journey through some of the latest science stories catching our eyes. This time, we consider the Russian and Indian lunar landing attempts, how scientists are reconstructing music from people's brains and lessons from wildfires that contributed to a mass extinction of North American land mammals 13,000 years ago.

One name has been on millions of minds — and all over the news — in the past week: Hilary.It's been decades since a storm like this has hit Southern California, so even some scientists were shocked when they heard it was coming. In today's episode, Regina Barber talks to Jill Trepanier, who studies extreme climatic events — like hurricanes and climate change — at Louisiana State University. She tells us how we use science to predict events like this, and what Hilary and future storms may or may not tell us about the changing climate. Have an interesting science story to share? Email us at [email protected].

It's no secret that our electric grid is a flaming hot mess — and in order to reduce emissions, the U.S. needs to get a lot more renewables onto the grid. But there's a problem: Our electric grid is too old and outdated to handle this new technology. In fact, many of the copper wires on transmission lines are using technology from as far back as the early 1900s! Because of this, thousands of wind and solar projects are waiting for years to get online. The Inflation Reduction Act is incentivizing a big transition to things like electric cars, heat pumps and other devices, which means we'll need even more electricity that will further push the limits of existing infrastructure. Now more than ever, we need this new power. With this in mind, some tech companies are finding solutions to make the existing grid work better. Aaron Scott talks with NPR's climate solutions reporter Julia Simon about these solutions and how they might be a whole lot quicker — and cheaper — than you'd think.

Today we enter into the plot of a summer blockbuster adventure movie. Regina talks to NPR reporter Emily Olson about the recently uncovered ancient Maya city, Ocomtun. The large site, which researchers found using LiDAR technology, even seems to have "suburbs," flipping their expectations about how robust the Maya civilization was — and where it was. Read Emily's full story here.Have a science mystery to share? Email us at [email protected].

Kids ask, "Why?" all the time. Why does 1+1=2? Why do we memorize multiplication tables? Many of us eventually stop asking these questions. But mathematician Dr. Eugenia Cheng says they're key to uncovering the beauty behind math. So today, we celebrate endless curiosity and creativity — the driving forces of mathematicians. Regina G. Barber and Eugenia talk imaginary numbers, how to go beyond simply right and wrong and yes, Eugenia answers the question, "Is math real?"Eugenia's new book Is Math Real? is out now.Have a science story to share? Email us at [email protected].

There's the birds and the bees. And then there's what happens after. The process that leads to the beginning of pregnancy has a lot more twists and turns than a happenstance meeting. Today on Short Wave, NPR health reporter Selena Simmons-Duffin talks about the science of the very first week of pregnancy.Read Selena's full explainer by clicking this link. Or download and print it here. Have an incredible science story to share? Email us at [email protected].

All Things Considered host Juana Summers joins Regina G. Barber and Berly McCoy to nerd-out on some of the latest science news buzzing around in our brains. They talk NASA shouting across billions of miles of space to reconnect with Voyager 2, the sneaky tactics trumpetfish use to catch their prey and how climate change is fueling big waves along California's coast. What science story do you want to hear next on Short Wave? Email us at [email protected].

How do we really get happier? In a new review in the journal Nature Human Behavior, researchers Elizabeth Dunn and Dunigan Folk found that many common strategies for increasing our happiness may not be supported by strong evidence. In today's Short Wave episode, Dunn tells co-host Aaron Scott about changes in the way scientists are conducting research, and how these changes led her team to re-examine previous work in the field of psychology. Want to hear Dunn read the paper? Check it out here. Questions? Email us at [email protected].

The ability to create wrought iron cheaply has been called one of the most significant innovations in the British Industrial Revolution. It's known today as the Cort process, named after British banker Henry Cort, who patented the technique. But Dr. Jenny Bulstrode, a historian at University College London (UCL), found that Cort stole the innovation from 76 Black enslaved ironworkers in Jamaica.

Ever felt like you were watching yourself and the rest of the world from outside of your body? Or floating above yourself? Well, scientists finally know what part of your brain is causing that sensation. NPR science correspondent Jon Hamilton shares the tale of the discovery with host Aaron Scott. Plus, they talk about why it may be helpful to occasionally venture outside of your bodily self.

For decades, humans have harvested the blood of horseshoe crabs, which is used to test whether many of our vaccines and medicines are contaminated with harmful bacterial toxins. But the horseshoe crab harvesting industry has few regulations and a lot of secrecy. NPR investigative reporter Chiara Eisner talks to us about expansion of this industry and why synthetic alternatives to the blood aren't being widely used in the United States.

Would you survive as a doctor in The Sims 4? What's the appropriate amount of free food to take from a public sample station before it's considered greedy? And how much of an impact do clock towers have on sleep? These are the hard-hitting questions that researchers ask and answer in the Christmas issue of The BMJ, formerly known as the British Medical Journal. What started in 1982 as an experimental roundup of fun research for the holidays has since grown into one of The BMJ's most highly anticipated issues each year. In honor of the July 31 research submission deadline, Short Wave talks to two of its editors about what makes the cut. What science story do you want to hear next on Short Wave? Email us at [email protected] — we'd love to know!

In this special episode, we hear from the high school grand prize winner of NPR's Student Podcast Challenge: Georgianna McKenny. A rising senior at the Mississippi School for Mathematics and Science, the 17-year-old rings an alarm on the water crisis in Jackson, through the lens of young people. Emily, who was one of the judges of this year's contest, talks to Georgianna about her winning podcast and their shared love for storytelling.

For most infants, introducing peanuts early can help prevent allergies later on — but a new study reveals most caregivers don't know that. Why? Plus — some summertime advice for keeping pets cool in the heat, and avoiding beaches contaminated with poop. (A lot of them are.) All Things Considered host Mary Louise Kelly joins Regina G. Barber and Aaron Scott to discuss those stories in our science news roundup.Have questions about science in the news? Email us at [email protected].

In which we metaphorically enter the UCLA Language Acquisistion Lab's recording castle, guided by linguistics researcher Dr. Megha Sundara. NPR science correspondent Sydney Lupkin temporarily takes over the host chair to talk to Sundara about all things baby babble. Along the way, we learn why babies babble, how that babbling can change with exposure to new languages — and if there are any lessons for adults. Questions about other ways we develop? Email us at [email protected] and we might answer it in a future episode!

Scorpions: They're found pretty much everywhere, and new species are being identified all the time. Arachnologist Lauren Esposito says there's a lot to love about this oft-misunderstood creature. Most are harmless — they can't even jump — and they play a critical role in their diverse ecosystems as a top invertebrate predator. (encore)Want to hear us talk about other newly identified animal species? We'd love to know! We're at [email protected].

Christopher Nolan's new film 'Oppenheimer' chronicles the life and legacy of J. Robert Oppenheimer, the first director of Los Alamos National Laboratory and so-called "Father of the Atomic Bomb." The movie does not shy away from science — and neither do we. We talked to current scientists at Los Alamos about the past and present science of nuclear weapons like the atomic bomb.Read more about the Manhattan Project.Want us to cover other historical science or science in pop culture? Email us at [email protected] — we'd love to hear from you!

For people with endometriosis—a mysterious disease where endometrial tissue grows outside of the uterus—medical visits can be especially frustrating. It takes some patients years (on average, ten years) to get a diagnosis and treatment options are limited. There are currently no cures. One researcher, Dr. Kate Lawrenson, is trying to change that. She and her team of researchers have created a cellular atlas of the disease and hope this cell-by-cell approach will open up doors for faster diagnosis options and better ways of managing it. In the meantime, she hopes that more people will learn about the disease in the first place.Want us to break down the science underpinning your health? Email us at [email protected]!

Trash from humans is constantly spilling into the ocean — so much so that there are five gigantic garbage patches in the seas. They hang out at the nexus of the world's ocean currents, changing shape with the waves. The largest is the Great Pacific Garbage Patch. These areas were long thought to have been uninhabited, the plastics and fishing gear too harmful to marine life. But researchers have recently uncovered a whole ecosystem of life in this largest collection of trash. Today, with the help of marine biologist Fiona Chong, we meet the tiny marine life that calls this place home.Read Fiona and her collaborators' paper, High concentrations of floating neustonic life in the plastic-rich North Pacific Garbage PatchInterested in hearing other tales of marine life?

Science in the headlines: An amazingly preserved sea squirt fossil that could tell us something about human evolution, a new effort to fight malaria by genetically modifying mosquitos and why archeologists are rethinking a discovery about a Copper-age leader. All Things Considered host Adrian Florido nerds-out on those stories with Short Wave host Regina G. Barber and science correspondent Geoff Brumfiel.Have questions about science in the news? Email us at [email protected].

Canada is having its worst fire season in modern history. The fires have burnt more than 20 million acres, casting hazardous smoke over parts of the U.S. and stretching Canadian firefighting resources thin. Public officials and many news headlines have declared the fires as "unprecedented," and in the modern-sense they are. But NPR climate correspondent Nate Rott has been talking to researchers who focus on the history of wildfire in Canada's boreal forests and they say the situation is not without precedent.Want more stories on the environment? Drop us a line at [email protected].

In the Port of Baltimore, a ship is docked that hasn't transported passengers for more than 50 years. It's the NS Savannah and it's designated a National Historic Landmark. That's because it was the first—and only—nuclear-powered passenger ship to have ever been built. Science correspondent Geoff Brumfiel tells us about his recent tour of the ship and why it was a symbol of peace in it's time. To see more pictures of Geoff's visit to the NS Savannah, including one from 1962 when the ship was operational, click this link. Want to learn more about nuclear power? Email us at [email protected].

20 years ago, the cult classic movie 'The Core' was released in theaters. From the start, it's clear that science is more a plot device than anything — but some scientists love it anyway. Today, Scientist in Residence Regina G. Barber has a friendly laugh with geologist Jackie Caplan-Auerbach about the creative liberties writers took to make the movie's plot work.P.S. We're biased here, but we don't think you need to have seen the movie to enjoy this episode. This edition of our periodic 'movie club' series, where we separate fact from fiction, was highly requested by you, our audience. If you want us to do the same for another movie you love, write us! We're at [email protected].

We hope you had a restful holiday! Maybe even got outside for some relaxing fresh air. If so, you might've come across cute and not-so-cute critters like ticks. With ticks in mind, we're heading to Big Thicket National Preserve in Texas. Among the trees and trails, researchers like Adela Oliva Chavez search for blacklegged ticks that could carry Lyme disease. She's looking for answers as to why tick-borne illnesses like Lyme disease are spreading in some parts of the country and not others. Today, what Adela's research tells us about ticks and the diseases they carry, and why she's dedicated her career to understanding what makes these little critters ... tick. (encore)

Chefs will tell you, cooking is not just an art — it's a science. And the spirit of summer barbecues, NPR science correspondent Sydney Lupkin brings us this piece about how understanding the chemistry of cooking meat can help you perfect your barbeque. It's all about low and slow cooking. This story was originally reported for NPR by Gisele Grayson. Read her reporting.Curious about other science powering the things you love? Email us at [email protected].

New gravitational waves, why orcas might be attacking boats and a new robot prototype inspired by animals: it's all in our latest roundup of science news, with All Things Considered host Ari Shapiro, Regina G. Barber and Geoff Brumfiel.Have questions about science in the news? Email us at [email protected].

Salomé Buglass discovered an unexpected kelp forest while studying underwater mountains in the Galapagos. Kelp—a type of seaweed—usually grows in shallower, cooler areas. So why was an entire kelp forest growing in these deeper, tropical waters? Today on the show, Salomé talks to host Regina G. Barber about what it means, and how it could help in the fight against climate change.

Sunscreen: we should all be using it, but we might not all be using it the right way. In fact, the type of sunscreen you use may not be nearly as important as using it effectively. With the help of a few expert dermatologists, NPR science correspondent Allison Aubrey cues Scientist in Residence Regina G. Barber into six common mistakes to avoid when using sunscreen and how to stay safe in the sun this summer. Have a science fact you can't stop thinking about? Email us at [email protected]! We'd love to hear from you.

For generations, scientists have leaned on seven key species, including rats and mice, for research. They're called model organisms and they've been standardized over the year — removing as much individuality as possible. But as research questions become more complicated, some researchers are turning to more niche critters to study. Host Regina Barber talks to reporter Anil Oza about the shift.

In pockets across the U.S., communities are struggling with polluted air — often in neighborhoods where working class people and people of color live. A new NASA satellite called Tropospheric Emissions: Monitoring Pollution (TEMPO) could detail just how polluted those pockets are. Today, NPR climate reporters Rebecca Hersher and Seyma Bayram talk to host Emily Kwong about how this new satellite could help communities like Curtis Bay, a Maryland neighborhood where residents have been fighting for clean air for decades. Got questions about science? Email us at [email protected]. We'd love to hear from you!

Season 2 of the critically acclaimed Star Trek: Strange New Worlds premiered June 15 (streaming on Paramount+). So today, Short Wave Scientist in Residence Regina G. Barber chats with two Trekkie physicists about the science powering the show and why they love the franchise. Astrophysicist Erin Macdonald is the science consultant for Star Trek, and Chanda Prescod-Weinstein is a theoretical physicist and author of the book The Disordered Cosmos. This episode, the trio discusses not only the feasibility of warp drive, global cooperation and representation and how the transporters that beam crew members from the surface of a planet to the ship might be breaking fundamental laws of physics.Questions about the "scientific" underpinnings of other pop culture? Email us at [email protected]. We'd love to hear from you!

All Things Considered host Ari Shapiro returns to nerd-our with Short Wave hosts Emily Kwong and Regina G. Barber on three science headlines from space: a newly-discovered asteroid, a new moon-related discovery and a new study about what spaceflight does to the human body. Have questions about science in the news? Email us at [email protected].

With much of California's massive snowpack yet to melt, downstream communities remain on high alert for flooding. Hundreds of homes were destroyed or damaged during the record-breaking winter, which tested the state's aging flood infrastructure. To prevent flooding, communities often raise levees next to rivers higher and higher. Today, NPR climate correspondent Lauren Sommer talks about a new approach: just giving rivers some space to flow. Got questions about science? Email us at [email protected]. We'd love to hear from you!

For many scientists, science isn't something they check in and out of — it permeates their whole lives. That's true for Sarafina El-Badry Nance, an astrophysicist and science communicator. In her new memoir, Starstruck: A Memoir of Astrophysics and Finding Light in the Dark, Sarafina brings the stars down to Earth, rooting her personal journey in the lessons of the stars. This episode, Regina and Sarafina chat supernovae, cancer and what supernovae reveal to us about life.

Smoke from Canadian wildfires is causing poor air quality in parts of the U.S. This smoke can have dangerous health effects because it carries fine particulates known as PM 2.5. With millions of people affected, we thought it would be a good time to turn it over to our friends at NPR's Life Kit podcast. Ever ready with helpful tips, they just released an episode with tips for protecting yourself from wildfire smoke.Stay safe, Short Wavers.

Teppei Katori loves two things: particle physics and music. Naturally, he combined the two. Today on Short Wave, Teppei talks to host Regina G. Barber about how he and his collaborators convert data from cosmic rays—high energy particles from space that are constantly colliding with Earth—into beautiful sights and sounds.

Dinosaurs ruled the earth for many millions of years, but only after a mass extinction took out most of their rivals. Just how that happened remains a mystery — sounds like a case for paleoclimatologist Celina Suarez! This encore episode, Suarez walks us through her scientific detective work, with a little help from her trusty sidekick, Scientist in Residence Regina G. Barber. Have a science fact you can't stop thinking about? Email us at [email protected]! We'd love to hear from you.

This week's science news roundup reunites All Things Considered host Ailsa Chang with Short Wave hosts Emily Kwong and Regina G. Barber to dig into the latest headlines in biomedical research, also known as cool things for the human body. We talk new RSV vaccines, vaccination by sticker and a new device helping a man with paralysis walk again. Have questions about science in the news? Email us at [email protected].

Ice in Antarctica is melting really quickly because of climate change. That's driving sea level rise around the world, and the water is rising especially fast in the seaside city of Galveston, Texas — thousands of miles from Antarctica. Why do Antarctica and Texas have this counterintuitive relationship? And what does it mean for a $34 billion effort to protect the city from hurricanes?Read more and see pictures and video from Antarctica here.

Mora Leeb was 9 months old when surgeons removed half her brain. Now 15, she plays soccer and tells jokes. Scientists say Mora is an extreme example of a process known as brain plasticity, which allows a brain to modify its connections to adapt to new circumstances.Read more of Jon's reporting.Science in your everyday got you puzzled? Overjoyed? We've love to hear it! Reach us by emailing [email protected].

If you ask a physicist or cosmologist about the beginnings of the universe, they'll probably point you to some math and tell you about the Big Bang theory. It's a scientific theory about how the entire universe began, and it's been honed over the decades. But recent images from the James Webb Space Telescope have called the precise timeline of the theory a little bit into question. That's because these images reveal galaxies forming way earlier than was previously understood to be possible. To understand whether it's physics itself or just our imaginations that need help, we called up theoretical physicist Chanda Prescod-Weinstein.Got questions about the big and small of our universe? Email us at [email protected].

In February 2021, pandemic restrictions were just starting to ease in Hawaii, and Leila Mirhaydari was finally able to see her kidney doctor. Transplanted organs need diligent care, and Leila had been looking after her donated kidney all on her own for a year. So a lot was riding on that first batch of lab results. "Immediately, all my levels were just out of whack and I knew that I was in rejection," she says. "I've had to work through a lot of emotional pain, of feeling like I failed my donor. Like, why couldn't I hold on to this kidney?"On today's episode, editor Gabriel Spitzer walks us through Leila's journey — from spending her late 20s on dialysis, to being saved by a gift and ultimately, to the search for another donated kidney. Learn more about living donation from the United Network for Organ Sharing.

Kwasi Wrensford studies two related species: the Alpine chipmunk and the Lodgepole chipmunk. The two have very different ways of coping with climate change. In this episode, Kwasi explains to host Emily Kwong how these squirrelly critters typify two important evolutionary strategies, and why they could shed light on what's in store for other creatures all over the globe.

This week for our science news roundup, superstar host of All Things Considered Ari Shapiro joins Short Wave hosts Emily Kwong and Regina G. Barber to discuss the joy and wonder found in all types of structures. The big. The small. The delicious. We ask if diapers can be repurposed to construct buildings, how single-celled organisms turned into multi-cellular ones and how to make the best gummy candy?Have questions about science in the news? Email us at [email protected].

Race is a social construct — so why are DNA test kits like the ones from 23andMe coded like they reveal biological fact about the user's racial makeup? This episode, Short Wave Scientist in Residence Regina G. Barber talks to anthropologist Agustín Fuentes about the limits of at-home genetic tests and how misinformation about race and biology can come into play. Using science at home to decode your life? Email us at [email protected].

The COVID-19 public health emergency has ended, but millions across the globe continue to deal with Long COVID. Researchers are still pursuing basic questions about Long COVID — its causes, how to test for it and how it progresses. Today, we look at a group of researchers studying the blood of some Long COVID patients in the hopes of finding a biomarker that could let physicians test for the disease.Questions? Thread of scientific research you're loving? Email us at [email protected] — we'd love to hear about it!

There's a lot for scientists to learn about the origins of humans' musical abilities. In the last few years, though, they've discovered homo sapiens have some company in our ability to make musical rhythm. That's why today, producer Berly McCoy brings the story of singing lemurs. She explains how their harmonies could help answer questions about the beginnings of humans' musical abilities, and what all of this has to do with Queen.

This week, the American Psychological Association issued its first-of-kind guidelines for parents to increase protection for children online. It comes at a time of rising rates of depression and anxiety among teens.This episode, NPR science correspondent Michaeleen Doucleff looks into the data on how that seismic change has shifted the mental health of teenagers. In her reporting, she found that the seismic shift of smartphones and social media has re-defined how teens socialize, communicate and even sleep.

Today on the show, we meet a prosthetic designer and a neuroscientist fascinated with understanding how the brain and body might adapt to something we haven't had before — a third thumb. Dani Clode and Tamar Makin spoke to Short Wave in Washington D.C., at the 2023 annual meeting for the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS).

Another week comes by, and luckily so does our roundup of science news. This time, we've got some questions about better understanding our health: Why do some people get motion sickness from virtual reality (VR) content? Do we really need to walk 10,000 steps a day? And is there real science behind ice baths? This week, Sacha Pfeiffer, legendary reporter and occasional host of NPR's All Things Considered, who joins our hosts Emily Kwong and Regina G. Barber to demystify and (in some cases) debunk the science of this week's health headlines. We love hearing what you're reading and what science catches your eye! Reach the show by emailing [email protected].

A doctor's job is to help patients. With that help, often comes lots and lots of paperwork. That's where some startups are betting artificial intelligence may come in. The hope is that chatbots could generate data like treatment plans that would let doctors spend less time on paperwork and more time with their patients. But some academics warn biases and errors could hurt patients. Have a lead on AI in innovative spaces? Email us at [email protected]!

Today on the show, next-generation energy innovators Bill David and Serena Cussen challenged us to think about the future of clean energy storage. They spoke to Emily Kwong at the 2023 annual meeting for the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) in Washington D.C.

California's wet winter has devastated many local communities. It has also benefited some of the state's endangered ecosystems. Those benefits are on full display in California's largest remaining grassland. Wetlands, long severed from the rivers and streams that nourished them, are being flooded with freshwater. Biologists are seeing baby salmon, fattened by new food sources in flood plains, make their way to sea. Endangered birds and waterfowl are nesting next to flooded fields. Today, NPR climate correspondent Nate Rott takes us on a tour through California's booming natural beauty.To see one of the superblooms and other ecological benefits, check out Nate's story — filled with photos by NPR's ace photographer Claire Harbage: https://n.pr/428xWOB.

In the toxic waters of Sulphur Cave in Steamboat Springs, Colo. live blood-red worm blobs that have attracted international scientific interest. We don special breathing gear and go into the cave with a team of researchers. There, we collect worms and marvel at the unique crystals and cave formations that earned Sulphur Cave a designation as a National Natural Landmark in 2021. Then we learn how extremophiles like these worms are helping scientists search for new antibiotics, medicines and even models for robots that can explore uneven, dangerous terrain, like caves on other planets.Read more about these worms: https://n.pr/3LjbigOWe love hearing what science you're digging lately! Drop us a line at [email protected].

It's our latest roundup of science news! This time, with Ailsa Chang of NPR's All Things Considered, who joins us to discuss three stories that take us on a journey through space — from the sounds of Earth's magnetosphere, to the moons of Jupiter, to a distant phenomenon NASA calls "an invisible monster on the loose, barreling through intergalactic space."Learn more about NASA's Harp Project here: https://listen.spacescience.org/We love hearing what you're reading and what science is catching your eye! Reach the show by emailing [email protected].

In the Arctic Ocean, sea ice is shrinking as the climate heats up. In the Western U.S., wildfires are getting increasingly destructive. Those two phenomena are thousands of miles apart, but scientists are uncovering a surprising connection. The ice is connected to weather patterns that reach far across North America. And as the climate keeps changing and sea ice shrinks, Western states could be seeing more extreme weather, the kind that fuels extreme wildfires.Check out the full series about how melting ice affects us all: npr.org/icemelt. We love hearing from you! Reach the show by emailing [email protected].

Melting glaciers are leaving behind large, unstable lakes that can cause dangerous flash floods. Millions of people downstream are threatened. In today's episode, NPR climate desk reporter Rebecca Hersher and producer Ryan Kellman take Short Wave co-host Emily Kwong to a community high in the mountains of Nepal where residents are on the front lines of this new climate threat, and explains how scientists are looking for solutions that can save lives around the world.Check out the full series about how melting ice affects us all: npr.org/icemelt. Reach the show by emailing [email protected].

Endangered North Atlantic right whales are disappearing from their native waters, a serious danger for a species with only 340 animals left. The mystery behind this change took NPR's climate reporter Lauren Sommer 2,000 miles away to the world's second-largest ice sheet, sitting on top of Greenland. On today's episode, Lauren takes Short Wave co-host Emily Kwong on an expedition to Greenland's ice sheet and then to the Gulf of Maine to break down the ripple effects of climate change. Reach the show by emailing [email protected].

This week, New York City crowned Kathleen Corradi its first rat czar. The new position is part of a multipronged approach from city officials. Reporter and New Yorker Anil Oza called up rodentologists to understand — does their approach withstand the test of scientific research? We love hearing your musings and questions about the science in your everyday life. Reach us by emailing [email protected].

When Tove Danovich decided to dabble in backyard chicken keeping, she embraced a tried and true journalistic practice — reading everything there is to find on the subject. In her search, she found plenty of how-to guides, but what she really wanted was to know more about the science. She wanted to understand their evolution and unique relationship with humans. "As I was reading more and as I was wanting this book that increasingly it seemed like it it just didn't exist. I wound up writing it instead," says Tove. Today, Aaron visits Tove in her chicken coop to talk about her recent book Under the Henfluence: Inside the World of Backyard Chickens and the People Who Love Them and to meet the chicken stars of Tove's Instagram account.Listen to Short Wave on Spotify, Apple Podcasts and Google Podcasts. Know of a new book we should feature on Short Wave? Drop us a line at [email protected].

In 1957, the Space Age began with the launch of Sputnik, the first artificial satellite. Since then, the number of objects humans have hurled toward the stars has soared to the thousands. As those objects have collided with one another, they've created more space debris in Earth's orbit. According to some estimates, all of that debris and human-made space trash, the number of objects — from satellites to screws — could be in the millions. In this iteration of our AAAS live show series, Short Wave co-host Aaron Scott talks to Danielle Wood, an assistant professor of aeronautics and astronautics at MIT, about the dangers of accumulating space debris, and how she and others are working to make space more sustainable. Have a story about space innovation you'd love us to share? Launch it our way at [email protected].

In this Friday round up of science news we can't let go, not everything is as it seems. Meatballs are not made of fresh meat from the cattle range. Robots are keeping something from you. And plants have secrets they keep out of your earshot. It's deceptive science, Short Wave-style. We love hearing what you're reading and what science is catching your eye! Reach the show by emailing [email protected].

Katie Wu is a bona fide cat person. She has two of them: twin boys named Calvin and Hobbes. Every night, they curl up in bed with her, bonking their little noses together, rubbing their fur and whiskers everywhere, and leaving behind inevitable cat residue. It's certifiably cute ... and a little bit gross.It's also the worst nightmare for the cat-allergic. Which, just shy of a decade ago, Katie was. In a stroke of luck, Katie's debilitating cat allergy disappeared. The reasons for her immune overhaul remain a mystery.Allergies can wax and wane over time, but it seems to be less common to have the night-and-day shift that Katie experienced. In this episode, Katie walks host Aaron Scott through the dynamic world of allergies and what it reveals about our immune systems. And of course, Katie's cats make cameo appearances. (encore)

The phenomenon of zoonotic spillover — of viruses jumping from animals to people — is incredibly common. The question is: which one will start the next pandemic? NPR science desk correspondent Michaeleen Doucleff brings us her reporting on Influenza D, an emerging virus spreading among cows and other livestock in the United States.

Today, most climate science is done with satellites, sensors and complicated computer models. But it all started with a pioneering female physicist and two glass tubes. Eunice Foote, the woman behind that glass tube experiment, has largely been left out of the history books. Until about 10 years ago, John Tyndall was seen as the grandfather of climate science for setting the foundation for the understanding of the greenhouse gas effect. But Eunice's experiment, done three years prior, showed that air with more "carbonic acid," or carbon dioxide, both heated up faster and cooled down slower than regular air.

To really understand the human brain, scientists say you'd have to map its wiring. The only problem: there are more than 100 trillion different connections to find, trace and characterize. But a team of scientists has made a big stride toward this goal, a complete wiring diagram of a teeny, tiny brain: the fruit fly larva. With a full map, or connectome, of the larval fruit fly brain, scientists can start to understand how behaviors shape, and are shaped by, the specific wiring of neural circuits. On today's episode, our resident neuroscience aficionado, NPR science correspondent Jon Hamilton, talks over the new findings with Short Wave co-host Emily Kwong, and explains why we big-brained humans ought to care.

Rice is arguably the world's most important staple crop. About half of the global population depends on it for sustenance. But, like other staples such as wheat and corn, rice is cultivated annually. That means replanting the fields year after year, at huge cost to both the farmers and the land. For years, scientists have been tinkering with rice strains to create a perennial variety – one that would regrow after harvest without the need to be resown. Today, Scientist in Residence Regina G. Barber takes a look at one promising perennial rice effort. It's one of a series of interviews we conducted live at the 2023 Annual Meeting of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS). Curious about extra thumbs, battery breakthroughs and sustainability in space? Check your feed for more live Short Wave episodes from the AAAS Sci-Mic stage in coming weeks! Curious about other scientific innovations? As always, you can reach the show by emailing [email protected].

After reading the science headlines this week, we have A LOT of questions. Why did the Virgin Islands declare a state of emergency over a large blob of floating algae? What can a far-off asteroid tell us about the origins of life? Is the ever-popular bee waggle dance not just for directions to the hive but a map? Luckily, it's the job of the Short Wave team to decipher the science behind the day's news. This week, co-host Aaron Scott, Scientist in Residence Regina G. Barber and science correspondent Geoff Brumfield are on the case. Buckle up as we journey beyond the headlines and sail out to sea, blast off to space and then find our way home with the help of some dancing bees!Have suggestions for what we should cover in our next news round up? Email us at [email protected].

A few weeks ago, raw data gathered in Janaury 2020 from Huanan Seafood Wholesale Market in Wuhan, China — the early epicenter of the COVID-19 pandemic — was uploaded to an online virology database. It caught the attention of researchers. A new genetic analysis from an international team provides the strongest evidence yet for natural origins of the COVID-19 pandemic and the role of one animal in particular: raccoon dogs. Short Wave co-host Emily Kwong talks with Katherine Wu, a staff writer at The Atlantic, who broke the story and explains the genetic evidence. To dive into emerging genetic evidence of this pandemic's origins, read:- Crits-Christoph et. al (2023), Genetic evidence of susceptible wildlife in SARS-CoV-2 positive samples at the Huanan Wholesale Seafood Market, Wuhan: Analysis and interpretation of data released by the Chinese Center for Disease Control- Katherine Wu's Atlantic article, The Strongest Evidence Yet That an Animal Started the Pandemic- Michaeleen Doucleff's NPR reporting, What does science say about the origin of the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic?

From text churned out by ChatGPT to the artistic renderings of Midjourney, people have been taking notice of new, bot-produced creative works. But how does this artificial intelligence software fare when there are facts at stake — like designing a rocket capable of safe spaceflight?In this episode, NPR science correspondent Geoff Brumfiel and Short Wave co-host Emily Kwong drill into what this AI software gets wrong, right — and if it's even trying to detect the difference in the first place.Want to hear more about other advances in the tech space? Email us at [email protected]!

Dotted across the Great Basin of the American West are salty, smelly lakes. The largest of these, by far, is the Great Salt Lake in Utah.But a recent report found that water diversions for farming, climate change and population growth could mean the lake essentially disappears within five years. Less water going in means higher concentrations of salt and minerals, which threatens the crucial ecological role saline lakes play across the West, as well as the health of the people who live nearby. On today's episode, Kirk takes Short Wave co-host Aaron Scott on an audio field trip to the endangered Great Salt Lake, and explains why losing the lake could be devastating for everyone from brine flies to the humans that live next door.

Planetary scientists announced some big news this week about our next-door neighbor, Venus. For the first time, they had found direct evidence that Venus has active, ongoing volcanic activity. "It's a big deal," says Dr. Martha Gilmore, a planetary geologist at Wesleyan University. "It's a big deal in that there are no other planets, actually, where we've seen active volcanism." (Moons don't count - sorry Io!) What makes that fact so striking is how inhospitable a place Venus is now – crushing pressure, a toxic atmosphere and a surface temperature around 850 degrees Fahrenheit. So, what happened? How did Earth and its closest sibling diverge so sharply? On today's episode, Martha talks with scientist in residence Regina G. Barber about what studying Venus can tell us about the past and the future of our own planet.

Our friends at NPR's TED Radio Hour podcast have been pondering some BIG things — specifically, the connection between our physical, mental, and spiritual health. In this special excerpt, what if you could control a device, not with your hand, but with your mind? Host Manoush Zomorodi talks to physician and entrepreneur Tom Oxley about the implantable brain-computer interface that can change the way we think. Keep an eye on NPR's TED Radio Hour podcast feed the next few weeks, as they unveil the series.

For the past few winters, researchers have been intentionally flying into snowstorms. And high in those icy clouds, the team collected all the information they could to understand—how exactly do winter storms work? With more accurate data could come more accurate predictions about whether a storm would cause treacherous conditions that shut down schools, close roads and cancel flights. NPR science correspondent Nell Greenfieldboyce recently took to the skies for one of these flights and shares her reporting with us today.Read more of Nell's reporting on this NASA effort: https://n.pr/3lk9utHWant to hear about other storm chasing happening in the name of science? Email us at [email protected].

As a leading expert on paleogenomics, Beth Shapiro has been hearing the same question ever since she started working on ancient DNA: "The only question that we consistently were asked was, how close are we to bringing a mammoth back to life?"In the second part of our conversation (listen to yesterday's episode), Beth tells Short Wave co-host Aaron Scott that actually cloning a mammoth is probably not going to happen. "But there are technologies that will allow us to resurrect extinct traits, to move bits and pieces of genes that might be adapted to a large animal like an elephant living in the Arctic."That is what companies like Colossal Biosciences and Revive and Restore are trying to do, with Beth's help. And she is leading the effort on another iconic extinct species, the dodo. In today's episode, how Beth Shapiro's initial work mapping the dodo genome laid the groundwork to bring back a version of it from extinction, and how the knowledge scientists gain from de-extinction could help protect species under threat now.

Research into very, very old DNA has made huge leaps forward over the last two decades. That has allowed scientists like Beth Shapiro to push the frontier further and further. "For a long time, we thought, you know, maybe the limit is going to be around 100,000 years [old]. Or, maybe the limit is going to be around 300,000 years," says Shapiro, Professor of Ecology & Evolutionary Biology at UC Santa Cruz. "Well, now we've been working with a horse fossil in Alaska that's about 800,000 years old." Beth's career has spanned the heyday of ancient DNA research, beginning in the late 1990s when rapid genetic sequencing technology was in its early days. She talked with Short Wave co-host Aaron Scott about the expanding range of scientific puzzles the young field is tackling — from new insights into our Neanderthal inheritance to deep questions about ecology and evolution.

This March 14, Short Wave is celebrating pi ... and pie! We do that with the help of mathematician Eugenia Cheng, Scientist In Residence at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago and author of the book How to Bake Pi. We start with a recipe for clotted cream and end, deliciously, at how math is so much more expansive than grade school tests.Click through to our episode page for the recipes mentioned in this episode.Plus, Eugenia's been on Short Wave before! To hear more, check out our episode, A Mathematician's Manifesto For Rethinking Gender.Curious about other math magic? Email us at [email protected].

A new drug for Alzheimer's disease, called lecanemab, got a lot of attention earlier this year for getting fast-tracked approval based on a clinical trial that included nearly 1,800 people. It was the most diverse trial for an Alzheimer's treatment to date, but still not enough to definitively say if the drug is effective for Black people. "[In] the world's most diverse Alzheimer's trial, a giant trial of 1,800 people that lasted for a much longer time than most trials did, we're still not sure that all of the groups that are at highest risk of Alzheimer's disease actually see any kind of benefit," says Dr. Jonathan Jackson, Assistant Professor of Neurology at Harvard Medical School. On today's episode, Jonathan and Short Wave co-host Emily Kwong delve into how drug developers can overlook those hardest hit by the disease they're trying to treat.

Reading the science headlines this week, we have A LOT of questions. Why are more animals than just humans saddled — er, blessed — with vocal fry? Why should we care if 8 million year old plankton fossils are in different locations than plankton living today? And is humanity finally united on protecting the Earth's seas with the creation of the Biodiversity Beyond National Jurisdiction treaty? Luckily, it's the job of the Short Wave team to decipher the science behind the headlines. This week, that deciphering comes from co-hosts Emily Kwong and Aaron Scott, with the help of NPR climate correspondent Lauren Sommer. Hang out with us as we dish on some of the coolest science stories in this ocean-themed installment of our regular newsy get-togethers! Have suggestions for what we should cover in our next news round up? Email us at [email protected].

Have you ever wondered how biologists choose what animal to use in their research? Since scientists can't do a lot of basic research on people, they study animals to shed light on everything from human health to ecosystems to genetics. And yet, just a handful of critters appear over and over again. Why the mouse? Or the fruit fly? Or the zebrafish? Cassandra Extavour, an evolutionary biologist at Harvard, talked with Short Wave co-host Aaron Scott about her favorite new model critter on the block: crickets. (Well, "favorite" might be a strong word. As Cassandra concedes, "to be honest, my opinion about crickets is sort of neutral to slightly grossed out.") On today's episode we leave the mouse to its maze, and instead consider the cricket and all the amazing things it can teach us.

The whitebark pine is a hardy tree that grows in an area stretching from British Columbia, Canada south to parts of California and east to Montana. It's a keystone species in its subalpine and timberline ecosystems and plays an outsized role in its interactions with other species and the land — feeding and providing habitat for other animals, and providing shade to slow glacial melt to the valleys below. But it's increasingly threatened — by more intense fires, by mountain pine beetle infestations and by a deadly fungus called blister rust. Today, producer Berly McCoy takes the microphone to share the ongoing efforts by reforestation forester ShiNaasha Pete and others to save this important species.Check out the Headwaters Podcast: https://glacier.org/headwaters/ Reach the show by emailing [email protected].

Indonesia is the world's largest exporter of coal for electricity. And it's also an emerging economy trying to address climate change. The country recently signed a highly publicized, $20 billion international deal to transition away from coal and toward renewable energy. The hope is the deal could be a model for other countries. But Indonesian energy experts and solar executives worry much of this deal may be "omong kosong" — empty talk. Today, NPR climate solutions reporter Julia Simon breaks down the realities and limitations of Indonesia's renewable aspirations. Reach the show by emailing [email protected].

The Roman Colosseum is a giant, oval amphitheater built almost two thousand years ago. Despite its age and a 14th century earthquake that knocked down the south side of the colosseum, most of the 150-some foot building is still standing. Like many ancient Roman structures, parts of it were constructed using a specific type of concrete. Scientists and engineers have long suspected a key to these buildings' durability is their use of this Roman concrete. But exactly how this sturdy concrete has contributed to the architecture's strength has been a mystery to researchers across the globe.A team of interdisciplinary researchers have recently discovered one answer to why these ancient Roman buildings have weathered the test of time — while many modern, concrete structures seem to crumble after a few decades. The answer: self-healing concrete. Curious about other new discoveries or potential climate solutions scientists are researching? Email us at [email protected].

Chanda Prescod-Weinstein is a theoretical physicist at the University of New Hampshire. It's her job to ask deep questions about how we — and the rest of the universe — got to this moment. Her new book, The Disordered Cosmos: A Journey into Dark Matter, Spacetime, and Dreams Deferred, does exactly that. It's an examination of the science that underpins our universe and how the researchers seeking to understand those truths, in turn, shape the science. As we close out Black History month, we revisit this conversation between Chanda and former Short Wave host, Maddie Sofia. Chanda explains that what she wants most is for every single person to have equal access to the same night sky that has mesmerized her all these years.

When Abra Lee became the landscape manager at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport, she sought some advice about how to best do the job. The answer: study the history of gardening. That led to her uncovering how Black involvement in horticulture in the U.S. bursts with incredible stories and profound expertise, intertwined with a tragic past. She's now teaching these stories and working on a book, Conquer the Soil: Black America and the Untold Stories of Our Country's Gardeners, Farmers, and Growers. Abra Lee talks with former Short Wave producer Eva Tesfaye about uncovering Black horticultural history and several of the hidden figures who shaped it.

As a kid, Clarice Phelps dreamed of being an astronaut, or maybe an explorer like the characters on Star Trek. Her path to a career in science turned out to be a bit different than what she expected, including lengthy stints on a nuclear-powered aircraft carrier. But that path led her to being a part of something big: the discovery of a new element on the periodic table. Clarice talks to Short Wave co-host Aaron Scott about her role in creating Tennessine, one of the heaviest elements known to humankind.

Population geneticist Dr. Janina Jeff is the host and executive producer of In Those Genes, a hip-hop inspired podcast that uses genetics to uncover the those lost identifies of African descended Americans through the lens of Black culture. Short Wave co-host Emily Kwong speaks with Janina about what a person's genetic ancestry test does and does not reveal, and the complicated intersection of genetics, history and race.

This week, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) will hold a public hearing about its remediation plan for cleaning up chemicals in and around East Palestine, Ohio. It follows the derailment of a Norfolk Southern train carrying hazardous chemicals like vinyl chloride and butyl acrylate near the town earlier this month. Residents were temporarily evacuated from the area two days later to allow for a controlled burn of the chemicals. EPA health officials have been monitoring the air and water in the area and testing for chemicals as part of their human health risk assessment. We wanted to know: What goes into an assessment like that? And how does the EPA know if people are safe — now and long-term? To walk us through that assessment, we talked to Karen Dannemiller, an associate professor of environmental health science at The Ohio State University.- Read EPA updates on the Ohio Derailment: https://bit.ly/3Y14qrx - Read the EPA's remediation plan: https://bit.ly/3SrRk5gThe phone number to request free, private water testing is 330-849-3919.

In the Bekaa Valley region of Lebanon, there is a giant walk-in fridge housing tens of thousands of seeds. They belong to the International Center for Agricultural Research in the Dry Areas (ICARDA). Scientists from around the world use the seeds for research. ICARDA seeds have improved food security in several countries. They've transformed Ethiopian agriculture to use more drought-resistant crops. A new chickpea can be planted in winter. And now, NPR's Middle East correspondent Ruth Sherlock has found that some scientists are turning to the seed bank for answers to a hotter, drier planet. They're hoping ICARDA seeds will lead to breakthroughs in certain crops' resilience to the effects of climate change. Read more of Ruth's reporting: https://n.pr/3IZB2OdCurious about other potential climate solutions scientists are researching? Email us at [email protected].

In this Back To School episode we consider the "List of Life": the criteria that define what it is to be a living thing. Some are easy calls: A kitten is alive. A grain of salt is not. But what about the tricky cases, like a virus? Or, more importantly, what about futuristic android robots? As part of our Black History Month celebration, developmental biologist Crystal Rogers and scientist-in-residence Regina G. Barber dig into what makes something alive, and wade into a Star-Trek-themed debate. Is there something you'd like us to cover in our Back To School series? Email us at [email protected] episode was produced by Berly McCoy, edited by Gabriel Spitzer and fact-checked by Anil Oza. The audio engineer was Josh Newell.

Monday another earthquake struck southeastern Turkey, near the Syrian border. This time, the quake registered as a magnitude 6.3 — an order lower than the initial, devastating 7.8 magnitude earthquake and the magnitude 7.5 aftershock that struck the area two weeks ago on Feb. 6. A magnitude 6.3 is still considered strong, according to the United States Geological Survey (USGS). And as NPR previously reported, some locals were inside buildings trying to recover belongings lost in the initial quake when Monday's aftershock hit. It made us wonder: What are aftershocks? And how long will people in Turkey and neighboring countries like Syria have to endure aftershocks while piecing their lives back together? Days? Years?For answers, we turned to earthquake geologist Wendy Bohon, who we've previously spoken to about the limitations of earthquake detection.

The video game series that spawned the new hit HBO drama, The Last of Us, is the zombie genre with a twist. Instead of the standard viral pandemic or bacterial disease that's pushed humanity to the brink, but a fungus that has evolved to survive in human bodies in part due to climate change. Short Wave's Aaron Scott talks with fungal researcher Asyia Gusa about the science that inspired The Last of Us and the real threats fungal researchers see in the ever-warming world.

Many of us are off today for President's Day. In the meantime, we want to share this episode from our friends at NPR's Life Kit podcast. In it, they discuss the importance of birds as an "indicator species" – their health helps us understand the health of our environment. Plus, they collect expert tips on how we can help birds survive, and thrive. For more of Audrey's reporting, check out "North American birds are in decline. Here are 8 simple ways you can help."

After reading the science headlines this week, we have A LOT of questions. Is chocolate really that good for your health? How do solar flares affect life on earth? And what's the big deal about scientists identifying the chemical motivation for tsetse fly sex? Luckily, it's the job of Short Wave co-hosts Emily Kwong and Aaron Scott and Scientist in Residence Regina G. Barber to decipher the science behind the headlines. Hang out with us as we dish on some of the coolest science stories in this Valentines-themed installment of our regular newsy get-togethers! Have suggestions for what we should cover in our next news roundup? Email us at [email protected].

In Disney's new animated feature 'Strange World,' a band of multigenerational explorers journeys to the center of their fantastical homeland. Along the way, they fend off, make friends with, and unearth secrets about the curious creatures who call this place home. There's the filterlopes, six-legged deer-forms with fan-like antennae. Or scouts, squishy blue balls with 12 elastic limbs. But as fantastical as these creatures sound, each one is grounded in the physics and biology of its real-world counterpart.Enter married couple Elizabeth Rega and Stuart Sumida, professors of anatomy and paleontology, respectively. They've worked as science consultants on more than 70 films, from 'Ratatouille' to 'Guardians of the Galaxy.' Film crews bring the duo onboard as biology experts, to help animators figure out how their animal creations — and sometimes their imaginary beasts — should look and move. But 'Strange World' may be their biggest undertaking yet; Elizabeth and Stuart entered at the earliest stages of production to help envision the kinds of creatures that would fill this world with science and wonder. Short Wave's Aaron Scott talks to Elizabeth Rega and Stuart Sumida about their experiences as science consultants on film sets, and the science fueling Disney's imagined new world.

A few years ago, a team of scientists set out on a field expedition in the rugged, dry Northern Territory of Australia. There, they found a plant that was both strange and familiar hiding in plain sight. After careful research during the pandemic, the newly described tomato recently made its debut in PhytoKeys, a peer-reviewed, open-access journal. Today, Short Wave Scientist in Residence Regina G. Barber talks to lead author Tanisha Williams about the plant's journey from the side of a trail in the Australian Outback to a greenhouse in rural Pennsylvania. Check out more of our favorite plant episodes:- When Autumn Leaves Start To Fall https://n.pr/3YuWOP6- Traditional Plant Knowledge Is Not A Quick Fix https://n.pr/3E4CUSU- New Discoveries In Underwater Plant Sex https://n.pr/3I4W9wC- Yep, We Made Up Vegetables https://n.pr/3xo6yyw- Micro Wave: Does Talking To Plants Help Them Grow?https://n.pr/40UO6v2

You may have heard of the "love hormone," or oxytocin. But you may not know that scientists have relied on cuddly rodents like the prairie vole to help us understand how this protein works in our brains.Voles are stocky, mouse-like little mammals that range over most of North America. One species in particular, the prairie vole, is known for its fidelity: Prairie voles pair-bond and mate for life. And so, for years, scientists have known that oxytocin is important in facilitating the feeling of love in both humans and voles. However, a new study suggests love can prevail even without the "love hormone" – at least among prairie voles.On today's episode, NPR's science correspondent Jon Hamilton tells Short Wave co-host Emily Kwong how prairie voles, once again, are helping us understand and appreciate something as abstract as love. Struck by cupid's arrow and wondering what's love got to do, go to do with it? Email us at [email protected]. You can follow Short Wave on Twitter @NPRShortWave.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, one measurement became more important than almost any other: blood oxygen saturation. It was the one concrete number that doctors could use to judge how severe a case of COVID-19 was and know whether to admit people into the hospital and provide them with supplemental oxygen. But pulse oximeters, the device most commonly used to measure blood oxygen levels, don't work as well for patients of color. Kimani Toussaint, a physicist at Brown University, is leading a group trying to make a better, more equitable alternative a reality.

Every year, lightning is estimated to cause up to 24,000 deaths globally. It starts forest fires, burns buildings and crops, and causes disruptive power outages. The best, most practical technology available to deflect lightning is the simple lightning rod, created by Benjamin Franklin more than 250 years ago. But lightning rods protect only a very limited area proportional to their height. So today's show, why a group of European researchers are hoping the 21 century upgrade is a high-powered laser. Plus: Regina makes incremental progress on conquering her irrational fear of lightning.Struck by other illuminating scientific research? Email us at [email protected].

One of the most important tools the federal government has for cracking down on greenhouse gas emissions is a single number: the social cost of carbon. It represents all the damage from carbon emissions — everything from the cost of lost crops and flooded homes to the lost wages when people can't safely work outside and the cost of climate-related deaths. Currently, the cost is $51 per ton of carbon, but the Environmental Protection Agency has proposed raising the cost to $190. NPR climate correspondent Rebecca Hersher tells Aaron how the change could dramatically alter how the government confronts climate change, and why the new number is simultaneously more accurate and an ethics nightmare.

In the wake of the massive earthquake in Turkey and Syria, many scientists have been saying this area was "overdue" for a major quake. But no one knew just when: No scientist has "ever predicted a major earthquake," the U.S. Geological Survey says. Even the most promising earthquake models can only offer seconds of warning. In this episode, host Emily Kwong talks to geologist Wendy Bohon and NPR science correspondent Geoff Brumfiel about why earthquake prediction can be so difficult, and the science that fuels these models.

The James Webb Space Telescope is by far the most powerful space-based telescope ever deployed by the United States. But it is only one instrument, and scientists all over the world have to share. The JWST's managers received more than 1,600 research proposals for what the telescope should look at. When an astronomer or a team does get some much-coveted telescope time, they currently get exclusive access to whatever data they collect for a full year. But there is a movement in astronomy to make most results open-access right away. That might speed up the pace of scientific discoveries and open up the data to a much wider set of researchers. On the other hand, some astronomers worry that instant open access would mostly benefit researchers who already have advantages. In this episode, NPR's Nell Greenfieldboyce talks with Short Wave scientist in residence Regina G. Barber, who has firsthand experience competing for telescope time, about who gets dibs on the data, and how that could affect equity in astronomy.

Everyone sees the world differently. Exactly which colors you see and which of your eyes is doing more work than the other as you read this text is different for everyone. Also different? Our blind spots – both physical and social. As we continue celebrating Black History Month, today we're featuring Exploratorium Staff Physicist Educator Desiré Whitmore. She shines a light on human eyesight – how it affects perception and how understanding another person's view of the world can offer us a fuller, better picture of life.

A green comet, cancer-sniffing ants, stealthy moons ... hang out with us as we dish on some of the coolest science stories in the news! Today, Short Wave co-hosts Emily Kwong and Aaron Scott are joined by editor Gabriel Spitzer. Together, they round up headlines in this first installment of what will be regular newsy get-togethers in your feed. Have suggestions for what we should cover in our next news roundup? Email us at [email protected].

The Nipah virus is on the World Health Organization's short list of diseases that have pandemic potential and therefore pose the greatest public health risk. With a fatality rate at about 70%, it is one of the most deadly respiratory diseases health officials have ever seen. But as regular outbreaks began in the early 2000s in Bangladesh, researchers were left scratching their heads. Initially, the cause of the outbreaks was unknown to them. But once they identified the virus, a second, urgent question arose: How was the virus jumping from bats into humans?This episode is part of the series, Hidden Viruses: How Pandemics Really Begin.

Moiya McTier says the night sky has been fueling humans' stories about the universe for a very long time, and informing how they explain the natural world. In fact, Moiya sees astronomy and folklore as two sides of the same coin. "To me, science is any rigorous attempt at understanding and explaining the world around you," she explained to Short Wave's Aaron Scott. "You can see that they knew enough about the world around them to predict eclipses, to predict annual floods in Egypt, for example. I think that you can use folklore and mythology to understand the early scientific attempts of humanity." Moiya McTier is the author of The Milky Way: An Autobiography of our Galaxy. She joins us to draw out the connections between astronomy and folklore, why the night sky is more dynamic than it might look, and what it feels like to live on an astronomical timescale.

Over the past decade, AI has moved right into our houses - onto our phones and smart speakers - and grown in sophistication. But many AI systems lack something we humans take for granted: common sense. In this episode Emily talks to MacArthur Fellowship-winner Yejin Choi, one of the leading thinkers on natural language processing, about how she's teaching machines to make inferences about the real world.

Gas stoves are found in around 40% of homes in the United States, and they've been getting a lot of attention lately. A recent interview with Richard Trumka, the commissioner of the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC), quickly became fodder for outrage, viral disinformation and political fundraising after he proposed regulating the appliance. The proposal stems from a growing body of research suggesting gas stoves are unhealthy — especially for those with asthma, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and children. NPR climate and energy correspondent Jeff Brady joins us today to separate fact from fiction.

Yi-Kai Tea, a biodiversity research fellow at the Australian Museum in Sydney, has amassed a social media following as @KaiTheFishGuy for his sassy writing and gorgeous photos of fish and other wildlife. Kai recently returned from an expedition aboard an Australian research ship to explore the deep seas surrounding a new marine park in the Indian Ocean. Led by the Museums Victoria Research Institute, dozens of scientists aboard mapped the ocean floor and, using nets dropped to as deep as six kilometers, gathered thousands of specimens, ranging from the utterly adorable deep sea batfish to the terrifying highfin lizardfish to the unfortunately named bony-eared assfish. Today on the show, Kai takes host Aaron Scott on a tour of the ocean floor and the fantastical creatures that call it home. "They are masters of the realm," says Kai. "You can't live in 3,000 meters of water and not be a master at what you do. And the fact that these creatures are living down there, thriving and making the most out of these habitats, that's a remarkable feat."

As an emergency physician at Western Health, in Melbourne, Australia, Dr. Andy Tagg says he meets a lot of anxious parents whose children have swallowed Lego pieces. Much like Andy so many years ago, the vast majority of kids simply pass the object through their stool within a day or so. But Andy and five other pediatricians wondered, is there a way to give parents extra reassurance ... through science? So the doctors devised an experiment. "Each of them swallowed a Lego head," says science journalist Sabrina Imbler, who wrote about the experiment for The Defector. "They wanted to basically see how long it took to swallow and excrete a plastic toy." On today's episode, Sabrina joins Scientist in Residence Regina G. Barber to chart the journey of six lego heads, and what came out on the other side. Learn about Sabrina Imbler's recent book, How Far the Light Reaches, at their website.Editor's note: This episode contains frequent and mildly graphic mentions of poop. It may cause giggles in children, and certain adults.

Film directors Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert (collectively: Daniels) reimagined the multiverse movie in their breakout film Everything Everywhere All At Once. Tuesday, the film received 11 Oscar nominations for the 95th Academy Awards, including best picture and best director. This episode, the Daniels share how science played a starring role. Curious about the science behind other pop culture? Email us at [email protected]. We might give it 15 minutes of Short Wave fame in an upcoming episode.

Most people are focused on the present: today, tomorrow, maybe next year. Fixing your flat tire is more pressing than figuring out if you should buy an electric car. Living by the beach is a lot more fun than figuring out when your house might be flooded by rising sea levels.That basic human relationship with time makes climate change a tricky problem.Host Emily Kwong talks to climate correspondent Rebecca Hersher about how our obsession with the present can be harnessed to tackle our biggest climate problems.

This mystery begins in 1952, in the Nevada desert, when a self-taught geologist came across the skeleton of a massive creature that looked like a cross between a whale and a crocodile. It turned out to be just the beginning. Ichthyosaurs were bus-sized marine reptiles that lived during the age of dinosaurs, when this area of Nevada was underwater. Yet paleontologists found few other animals here, which raised the questions: Why were there so many adult ichthyosaurs, and almost nothing else? What could have killed them all? Paleontologist Neil Kelley says that recently, there has been a major break in the case—some new evidence, and a hypothesis that finally seems to fit. Neil talked with Short Wave co-host Aaron Scott about his theory of the case, and why it matters to our understanding of the past.

About three million people in the United States have epilepsy, including about a million who can't rely on medication to control their seizures. For years, those patients had very limited options. But now, in 2023, advancements in diagnosing and treating epilepsy are showing great promise for many patients, even those who had been told there was nothing that could be done. Using precise lasers, microelectronic arrays and robot surgeons, doctors and researchers have begun to think differently about epilepsy and its treatment. Today on Short Wave, host Aaron Scott talks with NPR science correspondent Jon Hamilton about these advances in treating epilepsy. He explains why folks should ask their doctors about surgery — even if it wasn't an option for them a few years ago.

Winter storms have flooded parts of California, broken levees and forced thousands to evacuate. Climate change is altering the historic weather patterns that infrastructure like reservoirs and waterways were built to accommodate. Urban planners and engineers are rethinking underlying assumptions baked into buildings and water systems in order to adapt to the changing climate. Today, NPR climate correspondent Lauren Sommer walks us through three innovations happening around the country to help cities adapt to shifting and intensifying weather patterns.Heard of other cool engineering innovations? We'd love to hear about it! Email us at [email protected].

Time is a concept so central to our daily lives. Yet, the closer scientists look at it, the more it seems to fall apart. Time ticks by differently at sea level than it does on a mountaintop. The universe's expansion slows time's passage. "And some scientists think time might not even be 'real' — or at least not fundamental," says NPR science correspondent Geoff Brumfiel. Geoff joined Short Wave Scientist in Residence Regina G. Barber to bend our brains with his learnings about the true nature of time. Along the way, we visit the atomic clocks at the National Institute of Standards and Technology, consider distant exploding stars and parse the remains of subatomic collisions. Want to know more about fundamental physics? Email [email protected].

Historic drought in the west and water diversion for human use are causing stretches of the Colorado and Mississippi rivers to run dry. "The American West is going to have to need to learn how to do more with less," says Laurence Smith, a river surveyor and environmental studies professor at Brown University. He recently dropped in for a chat with Short Wave co-host Emily Kwong about how scientists are turning a new page on managing two of The United States's central waterways, the Colorado and Mississippi Rivers.

We're off today in observance of Martin Luther King Jr. Day. In the meantime, we want to share this episode from our friends at NPR's Life Kit podcast about how to become a community scientist — and better scientific research.

Are humans ever satisfied? Two social psychologists, Ethan Ludwin-Peery and Adam Mastroianni, fell down a research rabbit hole accidentally answering a version of this very question. After conducting several studies, the pair found that when asked how things could be different, people tend to give one kind of answer, regardless of how the question is asked or how good life felt when they were asked. Short Wave's Scientist in Residence Regina G. Barber digs into the research—and how it might reveal a fundamental law of psychology about human satisfaction.

Inside the mountaintop glaciers of the Pacific Northwest lives a mysterious, and often, overlooked creature. They're small, black, thread-like worms that wiggle through snow and ice. That's right, ice worms! Little is known about them. But one thing scientists are sure of? They can't really handle freezing temperatures. In this episode, NPR science correspondent Nell Greenfieldboyce talks to Emily about how ice worms survive in an extreme environment and why scientists don't understand some of the most basic facts about them.

There's always a moment of intense isolation when Jessica Mejía gets dropped off on the Greenland ice sheet for a multi-week research stint. "You know you're very much alone," said Jessica, a postdoctoral researcher in glaciology at the University of Buffalo. Glaciers such as those that cover Greenland are melting due to climate change, causing sea levels to rise. That we know. But these glaciers are also moving. What we don't know is just how these two processes – melting and movement – interact and ultimately impact how quickly sea levels will rise. Jessica joins Short Wave's Aaron Scott to explain what it's like to live on a glacier for a month, and what her research could mean for coastal communities all over the world.

The mineral zircon is the oldest known piece of Earth existing on the surface today. The oldest bits date back as far as 4.37 billion years — not too far from the age of Earth itself at about 4.5 billion years old. And, unlike other minerals, zircon is hard to get rid of. This resilience enables scientists to use zircon to determine when major geological events on Earth happened. As part of our series on time, host Aaron Scott talks to science correspondent Nell Greenfieldboyce about why this mineral is often considered a geologic clock and has earned the nickname "Time Lord." This episode is part of our series, "Finding Time — a journey through the fourth dimension to learn what makes us tick." Read more of Nell's reporting on zircon here. Curious about other aspects of our universe? Email us at [email protected].

When Dr. Chloé Schmidt was a PhD student in Winnepeg, Canada, she was studying wildlife in urban areas. She and her advisor Dr. Colin Garroway came across a 2020 paper that posed a hypothesis: If the echos of systemic racism affect the human residents of neighborhoods and cities, then it should affect the wildlife as well. Short Wave Scientist in Residence Regina G. Barber talks to Chloé and Colin about their findings of how redlining and biodiversity are intertwined.

From space, it looks almost elegant: a narrow plume cascading off the Pacific Ocean, spilling gently over the California coast. But from the ground, it looks like trouble: flash flooding, landslides and power outages. California is enduring the effects of an atmospheric river, a meteorological phenomenon where converging air systems funnel wet air into a long, riverine flow that dumps large amounts of rain when it makes landfall. "Atmospheric rivers can transport volumes of water many times that of the Mississippi River," says Dr. Daniel Swain, a climate scientist with UCLA, the National Center for Atmospheric Research, and the Nature Conservancy of California. Daniel joined Short Wave's Aaron Scott to explain where these "rivers" of air come from, how climate change is fueling more of them, and why you're a lot more likely to have heard of them if you happen to live on the west coast of almost any continent.

Every month, 1.8 billion people menstruate globally. For those people, managing periods is essential for strong reproductive and emotional health, social wellbeing and bodily autonomy. But a lot of people haven't been educated about periods or the menstrual cycle since they were kids — if at all.This episode, a period manual in four parts: How periods work, the different stages of the menstrual cycle, how to know when something's wrong, and whether to have a period in the first place.

Speaking to Short Wave from about 250 miles above the Earth, Josh Cassada outlined his typical day at work: "Today, I actually started out by taking my own blood," he said. The astronauts aboard the International Space Station are themselves research subjects, as well as conductors of all sorts of science experiments: Gardening in microgravity, trapping frigid atoms, examining neutron stars. Then, there's the joy of walks into the yawning void of space. Speaking from orbit, Cassada told fellow physicist and Short Wave Scientist in Residence Regina G. Barber about research aboard the station, what it takes to keep the ISS going and which countries' astronauts make the best food. Curious about the other goings-on in space? Beam us an email at [email protected] — we might answer it in a future episode!

Time is woven into our personal memories. If you recall a childhood fall from a bike, your brain replays the entire episode in excruciating detail: The glimpse of wet leaves on the road ahead, that moment of weightless dread and then the painful impact. This exact sequence has been embedded into your memory thanks to some special neurons known as time cells. Science correspondent Jon Hamilton talks to Emily about these cells — and why the label "time" cells is kind of a misnomer.Concerned about the space-time continuum? Email us at [email protected] — using science, we might be able to set you at ease in a future episode.

To ring in the new year, producer Berly McCoy brings host Emily Kwong this homemade science mad lib!

From misty eyeballs to full-on waterworks, what are tears? Why do we shed them? And what makes humans' ability to cry emotional tears unique? Hosts Emily Kwong and Aaron Scott get into their feelings in this science-fueled exploration of why we cry. (encore) To see more of Rose-Lynn Fisher's images from Topography of Tears, visit her website.

In 1967, Jocelyn Bell Burnell made a discovery that revolutionized astronomy. She detected the radio signals emitted by certain dying stars called pulsars. Today, Jocelyn's story. Scientist-in-residence Regina G. Barber talks to Jocelyn about her winding career, her discovery and how pulsars continue to push the field of astronomy today. (encore)

Being small has its advantages - and some limitations. One organism that intimately knows the pros and cons of being mini is the pumpkin toadlet.As an adult, the animal reaches merely the size of a chickpea. At that scale, the frog's inner ear is so small, it's not fully functional. That means the frog's movements seem haphazard. Today, with the help of Atlantic science writer Katie Wu, we investigate: If a frog can't jump well, is it still a frog? (encore)Read Katie Wu's piece in The Atlantic, A Frog So Small, It Could Not Frog.

Mamadou Ndiaye uses comedy to teach animal facts, but there's nothing funny about these deadly ones.

Host Emily Kwong and editor Gisele Grayson exchange the gift of facts - in this quick hello from us to you, our wonderful listeners!

Kwasi Wresnford describes the subjects of his research as "elfin": skittish little squirrel-cousins with angular faces, pointy ears and narrow, furry tails. He studies two species in particular: the Alpine chipmunk and the Lodgepole chipmunk. As the climate warms, these two chipmunks have developed different ways of coping. The Alpine chipmunk has climbed higher, in search of cooler habitat, while the Lodgepole chipmunk continues to thrive in its historic habitat. On this episode, Kwasi explains to Emily Kwong how these squirrelly critters typify two important evolutionary strategies, and why they could shed light on what's in store for other creatures all over the globe.

This week, the UN Biodiversity Conference (COP 15) wrapped up in Montreal, Canada. Nations from around the world came together to establish a new set of goals to help preserve the planet's biodiversity and reduce the rate of loss of natural habitats. The last time biodiversity targets were set was in 2010, at COP 10. In the 12 years since, the world collectively failed to meet any of those biodiversity benchmarks.Aaron Scott talks to Giuliana Viglione, an editor at Carbon Brief covering food, land and nature. She shares what she saw on the ground at COP 15, what the new goals for 2030 are, and why she has more hope that progress will be made this time around.

Psychedelic drugs – like LSD, salvia, ayahuasca, Ibogaine, MDMA (AKA ecstasy), or psilocybin (AKA 'magic mushrooms' or 'shrooms') – are experiencing a resurgence of interest in their potential medical benefits. At the Neuroscience 2022 meeting held by the Society of Neuroscience, the appetite for psychedelic research permeated the sessions, discussions, and even after-hours barroom talk — drawing in researchers, neuroscientists, companies, reporters, and advocates alike. "In the last couple of years there has been a lot of excitement in psychedelics. I think it started first in the popular media." says Alex Kwan, associate professor at Cornell University. "Neuroscience, actually, I think took another year or two to catch on." Today on the show, host Aaron Scott and NPR's brain correspondent Jon Hamilton chat psychedelic drugs — whether this renewed interest will represent incremental or revolutionary changes in the fields of medicine, psychology, and neuroscience.

Math is a complex, beautiful language that can help people understand the world. And sometimes math is hard! Science communicator Sadie Witkowski says the key to making math your friend is to foster your own curiosity and shed the fear of sounding dumb. That's the guiding principle behind her podcast, Carry the Two and it's today's show: Embracing all math has to offer without the fear of failure. We encore this episode in between Carry the Two's seasons - their second one starts on January 3, 2023!This episode was produced by Berly McCoy, edited by Rebecca Ramirez and fact checked by Rachel Carlson. The audio engineer was Josh Newell.

Dietary supplements — the vitamins, herbs and botanicals that you'll find in most grocery stores — are everywhere. More than half of U.S. adults over 20 take them, spending almost $50 billion on vitamins and other supplements in 2021. Yet decades of research have produced little evidence that they really work. Aaron Scott talks to Dr. Jenny Jia about the science of dietary supplements: which ones might help, which ones might hurt, and where we could be spending our money instead.

Brazil's president-elect, Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, is renewing calls to protect the Amazon and reign in the deforestation. Climate scientists are encouraged but so far there aren't a lot of specifics of how this might happen. NPR's Kirk Siegler traveled to a remote Amazonian research station that is also threatened by illegal logging and talks to host Aaron Scott about his trip.

On Dec. 5 at 1 o'clock in the morning local time, researchers at the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory in California used lasers to zap a tiny pellet of hydrogen fuel. The lasers hit their target with 2.05 megajoules of energy, and the pellet released roughly 3.15 megajoules. It's a major milestone, and one that the field of fusion science has struggled to reach for more than half a century: producing a fusion reaction that generates more energy than it consumes. While progress, the technology is still a ways off from its promise to produce energy without creating greenhouse gases. Today on the show, Regina G. Barber brings us two NPR stories that explain what this experiment showed and what else needs to happen to make fusion a practical energy source.

Gene editing was a new idea in the mid-1970s. So when Harvard and MIT planned new research in recombinant DNA, alarm bells went off. "People were worried about a 'Frankengene,'" says Lydia Villa-Komaroff, then a freshly minted PhD. Amidst a political circus, the city of Cambridge, Massachusetts banned research into recombinant DNA, forcing scientists like Villa-Komaroff into exile. But that turned out to be just the prelude to a breakthrough. In this episode, Dr. Villa-Komaroff tells Emily Kwong the story of overcoming the skeptics and coaxing bacteria into producing insulin for humans.

TFW when you're so excited you get those butterflies in your stomach - or maybe when you see something icky, you feel ill. On today's show, producer Berly McCoy looks at this relationship between our gut and our brain. Berly talks to host Emily Kwong about how the organs evolved to have a tight connection - connections that go beyond transient feelings of excitement or disgust. In fact, an increasing body of research shows links between the gut and conditions we typically associate mostly with the brain – like anxiety and Parkinson's Disease.Here's a link to the study about gut bacteria and the brain in some children with Autism Spectrum Disorder. https://www.theautismstudy.com/study

For many, recycling feels like a tangible way to personally combat climate change and to positively affect the environment. But after a years long investigation, NPR correspondent Laura Sullivan finds that reality is generally the opposite: Only a small fraction of plastic is ultimately recycled. Moreover, plastic production is on the rise.Further reading:- Recycling plastic is practically impossible — and the problem is getting worse- How Big Oil Misled The Public Into Believing Plastic Would Be Recycled

If an asteroid were hurling through space, making a beeline straight to Earth, how would humans prevent it from doing what it did to the dinosaurs? Would we bomb it? Would we shoot lasers at it like a scene from Hollywood's latest sci-fi flick? Well, the folks at NASA have designed and tested a theory."The DART mission, the Double Asteroid Redirection Test, is essentially our first test of a kinetic impact for planetary defense." says Cristina Thomas, assistant professor of Astronomy and Planetary Science at Northern Arizona University. Put simply, scientists at NASA took a spacecraft and crashed it into an asteroid — hoping the little nudge, like bumper cars, would be enough to push the asteroid off course. Today on the show, Short Wave's scientist-in-residence Regina G. Barber talks to Cristina Thomas about what it was like watching the success of the DART mission and what this means for science and planetary defense. Email Short Wave at [email protected]. Or, follow us on Twitter at @NPRShortWave.

The human body is made up of more than 30 trillion cells, but how do they all work together? It's all about communication! "They talk through molecules going from one cell to the adjacent cell," says Dr. Sandra Murray, a professor of cell biology and physiology at the University of Pittsburgh who studies how cells communicate with each other to do complex tasks, like close a wound or deliver a baby. This year, Dr. Murray became the first person of color elected as president of the American Society for Cell Biology. She talks with host Aaron Scott about the beautiful language of cells, how she made her way as a Black woman in STEM, and what gives her hope in her field today.

Just after Thanksgiving, for the first time in almost 40 years, Hawaii's Mauna Loa volcano erupted. It's one of several ongoing eruptions – including Kilauea, also on Hawaii, and Indonesia's Mount Semeru. At just over half the size of the big island of Hawaii, Mauna Loa is the world's biggest active volcano. Today, volcanologist Alison Graettinger talks to Scientist in Residence Regina G. Barber about what makes Mauna Loa's eruption different than Indonesia's and others around the Pacific, and what it reveals about planet Earth.Watch the U.S. Geological Survey's live video of the eruption here.

When lightning strikes a giant tree in the tropical rainforest, there's usually no fire, no blackened crater — you might not even notice any damage. But come back months later, as Evan Gora does, and you may find that tree and dozens around it dead. Gora, a forest ecologist who studies lightning in tropical forests, says we are just beginning to understand how lightning actually behaves in these forests, and what its implications are for climate change. On today's episode, Evan Gora tells Aaron Scott about shocking discoveries in lightning research, and why Evan has developed a healthy respect for the hazards it poses – both to individual researchers and to the forests that life on Earth depends on.

It's easy to overlook the soil beneath our feet, or to think of it as just dirt to be cleaned up. But soil wraps the world in an envelope of life: It grows our food, regulates our climate, and makes our planet habitable. "What stands between life and lifelessness on our planet Earth is this thin layer of soil that exists on the Earth's surface," says Asmeret Asefaw Berhe, a soil scientist at the University of California-Merced. Just ... don't call it dirt. "I don't like the D-word," Berhe says. Berhe says soil is precious, taking millennia to regenerate. And with about a third of the world's soil degraded, according to a UN estimate, it's also at risk. Prof. Berhe, who is also serving as Director of the U. S. Dept. of Energy's Office of Science, marks World Soil Day by telling Aaron Scott about the hidden majesty of soil and why it's crucial to tackling the climate crisis.

Julia Ruth's job takes a lot of strength, a lot of balance, and a surprising amount of physics. She's a circus artist — and has performed her acrobatic Cyr wheel routine around the world. But before she learned her trade and entered the limelight, she was on a very different career path — she was studying physics. Julia talks with Emily (who also shares a past life in the circus) about her journey from physicist to circus artist, and how she learned her physics-defining acts.

An exhibit that blended science and technology for an immersive art experience went on display in Washington, DC and New York City in 2021 and 2022. It invited visitors to explore the cells in their brain. The installation was a partnership between the Society for Neuroscience and technology-based art space, ARTECHOUSE. In this encore episode, producer Thomas Lu talks to neuroscientist John Morrison and chief creative officer Sandro Kereselidze about the Life of a Neuron.Curious about other ways science intersects with art? Email us at [email protected].

New York's Bellevue Hospital is the oldest public hospital in the country, serving patients from all walks of life. It's also the home of a literary magazine, the Bellevue Literary Review, which is now more than 20 years old. In today's encore episode, NPR arts correspondent Neda Ulaby tells Emily how one doctor at Bellevue Hospital decided a literary magazine is essential to both science and healing. As always, you can reach the show by emailing [email protected].

Arts therapies appear to ease a host of brain disorders from Parkinson's to PTSD. But these treatments that rely on music, poetry or visual arts haven't been backed by rigorous scientific testing. Now, artists and brain scientists have launched a program to change that. NPR's brain correspondent Jon Hamilton tells us about an initiative called the NeuroArts Blueprint in this encore episode. If you want to know more about the neuroaesthetics research Aaron mentioned participating in, you can read the paper The brain on art: intense aesthetic experience activates the default mode network: https://bit.ly/3Vfqk9k

Pull out your art supplies because it's time to get crafty—with agar! We're beginning Arts Week at the intersection of biology and art. Therein lies a creative medium that's actually alive. Scientists and artists practice etching designs on petri dishes with bacterial paint that can grow and multiply. This encore episode, Aaron talks with science correspondent Nell Greenfieldboyce about her foray into the agar art world. Love the science powering another craft? Email the show at [email protected].

Emily and Aaron wish you a Happy Thanksgiving, and explain how you can help the show. Hint: It's giving us feedback about what you love and think we could do better on the show. You can take our survey at npr.org/shortwavesurvey.

The climate meeting known as COP27 has wrapped. Representatives from almost 200 countries attended to talk about how to tackle climate change and how to pay for the costs of its effects that the world is already seeing. Rebecca Hersher and Michael Copley from NPR's Climate Desk talk with Emily about why the meeting went into overtime, three big things that came out of it, and the long and bumpy road still ahead to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

The idea came to Uma Valeti while he was working on regrowing human tissue to help heart attack patients: If we can grow tissue from cells in a lab, why not use animal cells to grow meat? Food production accounts for as much as a third of the world's greenhouse gas emissions. The idea behind cultivated meat is to help feed the world while dramatically reducing human contributions to global warming and avoiding killing animals. NPR Health Correspondent Allison Aubrey has been visiting production facilities and talking with both food and climate scientists to understand how far away lab-grown meat is from store shelves, and what a meal of cultivated chicken tastes like.We'd love to hear your thoughts on our show. Take our survey: npr.org/shortwavesurvey Reach the show by emailing [email protected].

In the mornings, Sonia Vallabh and Eric Minikel's first job is to get their two garrulous kids awake, fed and out the door to daycare and kindergarten. They then reconvene at the office and turn their focus to their all-consuming mission: to cure, treat, or prevent genetic prion disease. Prions are self-replicating proteins that can cause fatal brain disease. For a decade, Sonia Vallabh has been living with the knowledge that she has a genetic mutation that will likely cause in her the same disease that claimed her mother's life in 2010. Upon discovering she had the mutation, Sonia and her husband made a massive pivot: They went from careers in law and urban planning to earning their Ph.D.s, and founding a prion research lab at the Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard. On today's episode, Sonia and Eric talk with Short Wave's Gabriel Spitzer about what it's like to run a lab with one's spouse, cope with the ticking clock in Sonia's genes, and find hope in a bleak diagnosis.

The first time Sonia Vallabh understood something was very wrong with her mother Kamni was on the phone on her mom's 52nd birthday. She wasn't herself. By the end of that year, after about six months on life support, Kamni had died. The disease she died from would upend Sonia and her husband Eric's lives, and send them on a careening journey toward a completely new calling: to prevent or cure the disease that's stalking Sonia's family." Sonia Vallabh and Eric Minikel join Short Wave to tell their story in this second of three episodes on prion disease.

Prions are biological anomalies – self-replicating, not-alive little particles that can misfold into an unstoppable juggernaut of fatal disease. Prions don't contain genes, and yet they make more of themselves. That has forced scientists to rethink the "central dogma" of molecular biology: that biological information is always passed on through genes. The journey to discovering, describing, and ultimately understanding how prions work began with a medical mystery in a remote part of New Guinea in the 1950s. The indigenous Fore people were experiencing a horrific epidemic of rapid brain-wasting disease. The illness was claiming otherwise healthy people, often taking their lives within months of diagnosis. Solving the puzzle would help unlock one of the more remarkable discoveries in late-20th-century medicine, and introduce the world to a rare but potent new kind of pathogen. For the first episode in a series of three about prion disease, Short Wave's Gabriel Spitzer shares the science behind these proteins with Emily Kwong, and explains why prions keep him awake at night.

Climate negotiations continue at COP27 in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt. Tens of thousands of attendees from around the world have gathered in the seaside resort town. They've come to discuss some of the key issues to figure out how to combat climate change, remedy its effects, and to focus on implementing the big changes discussed last year in Glasgow. Correspondent Nathan Rott joins Emily Kwong to walk through the biggest debates at this year's COP, like loss and damage payments. And, he talks about how the war in Ukraine and the U.S. midterm elections are affecting discussions as well. Email the show at [email protected].

Today, we pass the mic to our colleagues at All Things Considered to share the first piece in their series on the impact of climate change, global migration and far-right politics. They begin with the story of Mamadou Thiam, a Senegalese man living in a temporary shelter created by the United Nations. He is from a family of fishermen, but floods have destroyed his home. In the past when there was flooding, people could relocate for a few months and then return. But more flooding means leaving may become permanent.

A pivotal week in Corey Gray's life began with a powwow in Alberta and culminated with a piece of history: the first-ever detection of gravitational waves from the collision of two neutron stars. Corey was on the graveyard shift at LIGO, the Laser Interferometer Gravitational Observatory in Hanford, Washington, when the historic signal came. Corey tells Short Wave Scientist in Residence Regina G. Barber about the discovery, the "Gravitational Wave Grass Dance Special" that preceded it, and how he got his Blackfoot name.

If Earth heats up beyond 1.5 degrees, the impacts don't get just slightly worse--scientists warn that abrupt changes could be set off, with devastating impacts around the world. As the 27th annual climate negotiations are underway in Egypt and the world is set to blow past that 1.5°C warming threshold, Emily Kwong talks to climate correspondents Rebecca Hersher and Lauren Sommer about three climate tipping points--points of no return that could cause big changes to the Earth's ecosystems. Email the show at [email protected].

Researchers are launching a make-or-break study to test the conventional wisdom about what causes Alzheimer's disease. And in a recent small study, the antidepressant effects of ketamine lasted longer when an intravenous dose was followed with computer games featuring smiling faces or words aimed at boosting self-esteem. As science correspondent Jon Hamilton heads to the Society for Neuroscience's annual meeting, he talks to Aaron Scott about his most recent reporting on depression and Alzheimer's, and previews what he'll be talking to researchers about at the meeting.

Last month, Short Wave explored the evolutionary purpose of laughter. Now, we're talking tears. From glistening eyeballs to waterworks, what are tears? Why do we shed them? And what makes our species' ability to cry emotional tears so unique?

Regina G. Barber talks with Dr. Rosalyn LaPier about ethnobotany--what it is and how traditional plant knowledge is frequently misunderstood in the era of COVID and psychedelics. And, how it's relevant and important for reproductive health today.

World leaders have gathered in Egypt this week to begin climate talks at the 27th Conference of the Parties. However, there are still outstanding questions about who should pay for climate change losses and damages. Vulnerable countries hit hardest by climate change are asking the wealthier countries most responsible for these damages for compensation.Climate change correspondent Lauren Sommer joins Emily Kwong to talk about this debate — and the case one island nation is making to seek payment.

In 1859, Charles Darwin published On the Origin of Species, a book about the evolution of non-human animals by natural selection. In its wake, a political idea arose — eugenics. Reading Darwin's book, Sir Francis Galton proposed that humans should be bred to give more "suitable" characteristics a "better chance of prevailing." Today, producer Rebecca Ramirez talks to Adam Rutherford about his new book, Control: The Dark History and Troubling Present of Eugenics, which traces the inextricable link between political ideology and science, and the enduring shadow of eugenics.

Correspondent Allison Aubrey talks to host Emily Kwong about the pros and cons of adopting permanent Daylight Saving Time or year-round Standard Time.

Katie Wu is a cat person. She has two of them: twin boys named Calvin and Hobbes. But up until grad school, she couldn't be anywhere close to a cat without her throat tightening and her nose clogging up. In a stroke of luck, Katie's cat allergy suddenly disappeared. The reasons for her night-and-day immune overhaul remain a mystery.In this episode, Katie walks host Aaron Scott through the dynamic world of allergies and what it reveals about our immune systems. Calvin and Hobbes make cameo appearances.

Pacific lamprey have lived on Earth for about 450 million years. When humans came along, a deep relationship formed between Pacific lamprey and Native American tribes across the western United States. But in the last few decades, tribal elders noticed that pacific lamprey populations have plummeted, due in part to habitat loss and dams built along the Columbia River. So today, an introduction to Pacific lamprey: its unique biology, cultural legacy in the Pacific Northwest and the people who are fighting to save it. (Encore)

Halloween calls to mind graveyards and the walking dead, so, naturally, Short Wave wanted to know what happens when you donate your body to real scientists. Host Aaron Scott talked with journalist Abby Ohlheiser about their reporting trips to a Forensic Osteology Research Station and an anatomy lab to learn how donated bodies help everyone from surgeons to law enforcement to forensic archeologists do their jobs. And while this episode might not be for the squeamish, Abby says these spaces of death are not morbid. Instead, they are surprisingly peaceful. You can read Abby's full article in the MIT Technology Review.

The common box turtle is found just about anywhere in the continental United States east of Colorado. For all their ubiquity, it's unclear how many there are or how they're faring in the face of many threats—from lawn mowers to climate change to criminals. So today, science correspondent Nell Greenfieldboyce presents the researchers hunting for turtles—and for answers. They're creating a century-long study to monitor thousands of box turtles in North Carolina.Heard about other ambitious research? We want to know! Reach us by tweeting @NPRShortWave or emailing [email protected].

When Steve Gosser heard the song of a scarlet tanager in the woods, he knew to look for a bright-red bird with black wings. But when he laid eyes on the singer, he saw instead a dark-colored head, black-and-white body, with a splash of red on its chest. "Well, that sort of looks like a first-year male rose-breasted grosbeak," he said. The song of one bird coming out of the body of another suggested this little guy could be a rare hybrid. Gosser enlisted the help of some pros, including biologist David Toews, who conducted a genetic analysis to see if this was truly the offspring of two species that diverged 10 million years ago, and today run in very different circles. On today's episode, Gosser and Toews fill Aaron in on this avian mystery, and what hybrid animals can teach us about evolution.

The civil war in Ethiopia is destroying the medical system in the northern Tigray region, which serves nearly 7 million people. Doctors are operating without anesthesia and re-using medical equipment. Sporadic electricity and water are also causing problems for hospitals and clinics. NPR's Ari Daniel talks to host Aaron Scott about how people who need and provide medical care are coping.

Botanist and founder of #BlackBotanistsWeek Tanisha Williams explains why some leaves change color during fall and what shorter days and colder temperatures have to do with it. Plus, a bit of listener mail from you! (Encore)You can always reach the show by emailing [email protected]. We're also on Twitter @NPRShortWave!

Plants living underwater can't count on pollinating insects to get it on. The prevailing theory has been that pollen moves underwater simply by floating around in water currents. But a team of researchers co-led by Dr. Vivianne Solís-Weiss, have discovered a helper organism pitching in to pollinate seagrasses: marine worms. In today's episode, Vivianne tells Short Wave Scientist in Residence Regina G. Barber how she happened to catch these worms, called polychaetes, in the act of pollinating seagrass flowers underwater, and how the discovery is shedding new light on evolution in the oceans.

The world of brain research had two incredible developments last week. Researchers have taught a dish of brain cells to play the video game Pong to help develop more intelligent AI. Separately, scientists transplanted human brain organoids into a living animal with the hope of using them as models of human disease. Jon Hamilton talks with host Aaron Scott about this research and its implications.

The natural world is filled with treats ... and tricks. Today, Internet zoologist and TikTok star Mamadou Ndiaye takes over to talk about some of those tricks — specifically the murderous ones. He turns the tables on Emily and Aaron, quizzing them on some of the animals in his new book 100 Animals That Can F*cking End You. Special guests span land and sea, including the hippopotamus, blowfish, snails, snakes — and more!We're always excited to hear what's on our listeners' minds. You can reach the show by emailing [email protected] or tweeting us @NPRShortWave.

Contraceptive research has historically prioritized women because they bear the burden of pregnancy and most contraceptive options available today are for women. But there are efforts to widen the contraceptive responsibility. Today, Scientist-in-Residence Regina G. Barber talks to host Emily Kwong about the state of research into male contraceptives and which method researchers expect to hit the market first.We're always excited to hear what's on our listeners' minds. You can reach the show by emailing [email protected] or tweeting us @NPRShortWave.

Ever read those Choose Your Own Adventure books of the 80s and 90s? As a kid, Dr. Pamela Harris was hooked on them. Years later she realized how much those books have in common with her field: combinatorics, the branch of math concerned with counting. It, too, depends on thinking through endless, branching possibilities. She and several students set out to write a scholarly paper in the style of Choose Your Own Adventure books. Dr. Harris tells Regina G. Barber all about how the project began, how it gets complicated when you throw in wormholes and clowns, and why math is fundamentally a creative act.

Perimenopause, the period of transition to menopause, is still a largely misunderstood chapter of reproductive life. It brings about both physical and mental health changes that patients might not hear about from their doctors. Emily talks with health correspondent Rhitu Chatterjee about perimenopause, and how to advocate for yourself as you're going through it.

Short Wave hosts Aaron Scott and Emily Kwong quiz All Things Considered hosts Mary Louise Kelly and Sacha Pfeiffer on some science questions Short Wave has reported on over the past year. They say they consider all the things, but do they consider the science enough? Quantum physics, prehistoric creatures and spelunking are all fair game in this friendly battle of the brains.-P.S. Short Wave is continuing our birthday celebration by hanging out with all of you on Twitter Spaces! We'll be on NPR's Twitter account @NPR on October 19 at 3pm Eastern, talking about the goofiness of our show and answering your questions. Join us!

Laughter: We do it spontaneously, we do it forcefully, we do it with each other and by ourselves. But why did we evolve to giggle in the first place? Emily and Regina explore the evolutionary underpinnings of laughter — from chimpanzees to modern-day humans — and the ways it unites us. Keep laughing with us on Twitter — we're at @NPRShortWave — or email the show at [email protected].

Of course we have to have cake for Short Wave's third birthday! Sugar-ologist and biochemist Adriana Patterson talks to producer Berly McCoy to give us some tips from chemistry - the secret to making a fluffy cake and how honey can help a buttercream frosting.Check out Adriana's Cakeculator - https://cakeculator.sugarologie.com/.

The California condor used to soar across the western skies of North America, but by the 1980s, the bird was on the edge of extinction — just 22 remained. Thanks to decades of conservation work, the California condor population has rebounded to a couple hundred birds in Central California and Arizona. This past May, a large partnership led by the Yurok Tribe re-introduced the birds to Northern California. Today, host Aaron Scott talks to Yurok biologist Tiana Williams-Claussen about the years-long quest to return the birds to their ancestral skies, and the importance of condor — who the Yurok call Prey-go-neesh — to the Yurok people and the natural world. (encore)Check out the Yurok Tribe's condor live stream.

Since the first successful in vitro fertilization pregnancy and live birth in 1978, nearly half a million babies have been born using IVF in the United States. Assisted reproductive technology has made it possible for more people to become parents, but it's not accessible to everyone. Reproductive endocrinologist Amanda Adeleye explains the science behind IVF, the barriers to accessing it and her concerns about fertility treatment in a world without the legal protections of Roe v. Wade.

Scorpions: They're found pretty much everywhere, and new species are being identified all the time. Arachnologist Lauren Esposito says there's a lot to love about this oft-misunderstood creature. Most are harmless — they can't even jump — and they play a critical role in their diverse ecosystems as a top invertebrate predator.Want to hear us talk about other newly identified animal species? We'd love to know! We're at @NPRShortWave on Twitter, and our email is [email protected].

ALS is a disease that destroys the nerve cells in the brain and spinal cord we need for voluntary movement. There is no cure, but now there is a newly approved medication that may slow down the disease and extend patients' lives. The drug, called Relyvrio, got its start with a couple of college students, some "ice bucket challenge" money, and a new approach to targeting this disease. Neuroscience correspondent Jon Hamilton checks in with host Emily Kwong about why some advisors aren't persuaded the drug works and how you weigh promising but limited evidence against the backdrop of a 100% fatal disease with hardly any other treatment options?

When a disaster like Hurricane Ian destroys a house, the clock starts ticking. It gets harder for sick people to take their medications, medical devices may stop working without electricity, excessive temperatures, mold, or other factors may threaten someone's health. Every day without stable shelter puts people in danger.The federal government is supposed to help prevent that cascade of problems, but an NPR investigation finds that the people who need help the most are often less likely to get it. Today we encore a conversation between NPR climate reporter Rebecca Hersher and Short Wave guest host Rhitu Chatterjee.

On August 18, 2015, in Sitka, Alaska, a slope above a subdivision of homes under construction gave way. This landslide demolished a building and killed three people. Today on the show, host Emily Kwong recounts the story of the Kramer Avenue landslide and talks about how scientists and residents implemented an early warning system for landslides to prevent a future disaster.

The last several decades have taken a toll on the oceans: Some fish populations are collapsing, plastic is an increasing problem and climate change is leading to coral bleaching — as well as a host of other problems. But marine biologist and World Economic Forum programme lead Alfredo Giron says there's room to hope for the seas. He works to create systems that governments and the fishing industry can use to make sure fishing is legal and sustainable so oceans thrive for years to come. He talks to host Aaron Scott about his work and how managing the ocean is a lot about managing people.

When's the last time you thought about your bladder? We're going there today! In this Short Wave episode, Emily talks to bladder expert Dr. Indira Mysorekar about one of our stretchiest organs: how it can expand so much, the potential culprit behind recurrent urinary tract infections and the still-somewhat-mysterious link between the aging brain and the aging bladder. --------------------------------------------------------------------Our third birthday is coming up on October 15th and we want your voice on our show! Send us a voice recording with your name, where you're located, a one-sentence birthday wish, and this exact sentence: "You're listening to Short Wave, from NPR." E-mail it to us at [email protected] and we may put it at the top of one of our birthday shows.

What's in a grassland? There are all sorts of wildflowers, many insects, animals like prairie dogs, bison and antelope — and beneath the surface, there's a lot of carbon. According to some estimates, up to a third of the carbon stored on land is found in grasslands. But grasslands are disappearing — just like forests. Today, journalist Julia Rosen shares her reporting on the hidden majesty and importance of the grasslands.To learn more, including what colonialism has to do with disappearing grasslands, check out Julia's article in The Atlantic, "Trees Are Overrated".

It's easy to take city parks for granted, or to think of them as separate from nature and from the Earth's changing climate. But the place where many of us come face-to-face with climate change is our local park. On today's episode, Ryan Kellman and Rebecca Hersher from NPR's Climate Desk team up with Short Wave producer Margaret Cirino to spend 24 hours in Philadelphia's Fairmount Park.

In movies, asteroids careening towards Earth are confronted by determined humans with nuclear weapons to save the world! But a real NASA mission wants to change the course of an asteroid now (one not hurtling towards Earth). The Double Asteroid Redirection Test, or DART, launched in 2021 and on Monday, September 26, 2022, makes contact with the celestial object. In 2021, NPR science correspondent Nell Greenfieldboyce talked about what it takes to pull off this mission and how it could potentially protect the Earth in the future from killer space rocks, and that's what you'll hear today. And stay tuned - when NASA has the results of contact in a few weeks, Short Wave will bring Nell back to tell us all about it!

Dinosaurs ruled the earth for many millions of years, but only after a mass extinction took out most of their rivals. Just how that happened remains a mystery — sounds like a case for paleoclimatologist Celina Suarez! Suarez walks us through her scientific detective work, with a little help from her trusty sidekick, scientist-in-residence Regina G. Barber.

In the final episode of Short Wave's Summer Road Trip series exploring the science happening in national parks and public lands, Aaron talks to National Park Service Director Charles Sams, who recently issued new policy guidance to strengthen the ways the park service collaborates with American Indian and Alaska Native Tribes, the Native Hawaiian Community, and other indigenous peoples. It's part of a push across the federal government to increase the level of tribal co-stewardship over public lands. Aaron talks with Sams, the first Tribal citizen to head the agency, about how he hopes this will change the way parks are managed, how the parks are already incorporating Traditional Ecological Knowledge, and what national parkland meant to him growing up as a member of the Cayuse and Walla Walla tribes on the Umatilla Indian Reservation in eastern Oregon. Listen to more episodes about all the amazing research taking place on public lands, where we hike up sky islands and crawl into caves in search of fantastical creatures, by visiting the series website: https://www.npr.org/series/1120432990/road-trip-short-wave

The water advice is everywhere - how much to drink (8 cups a day - really?), what to drink, when to drink, and all its benefits. On this episode we produced with our colleagues at Life Kit, hosts Aaron Scott and Emily Kwong take some cherished hydration beliefs and get to the reality behind the science of hydration and the actual best ways to quench our thirst.

Nearly a decade ago, Karen Douthitt and her sisters June Ward and Susie Gilliam set out to learn why Alzheimer's disease was affecting so many of their family members. Since then, each sister has found out whether she carries a rare gene mutation that makes Alzheimer's inescapable. Jon Hamilton talks to Emily about the sisters and how all three have found ways to help scientists trying to develop treatments for the disease. Thoughts or comments? Get in touch — we're on Twitter @NPRShortWave and on email at [email protected].

Last week, Lauren Sommer talked with Short Wave about the dangerous combination of heat and humidity in the era of climate change and how the heat index can sometimes miss the mark in warning people how hot it will feel. That reminded us of producer Thomas Lu's conversation about relative humidity with Maddie Sofia. He digs into why some meteorologists say it's important to pay attention to dew point temperature and how moisture in the air and temperature influence the way our body "feels" when we're outside. (Encore)

The world has been warily watching the Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant in Ukraine. The nuclear complex is being held by Russian forces, while the plant itself is being run by an increasingly ragged and exhausted Ukrainian workforce. Shells have fallen on the complex, and external power sources have been repeatedly knocked out, endangering the system that cools the nuclear reactors and raising the specter of a meltdown. NPR's Kat Lonsdorf reports from inside Ukraine.

Heat—it's common in summer in much of the world, but it's getting increasingly more lethal as climate change causes more extreme heat. NPR climate correspondent Lauren Sommer talks with Short Wave's Regina G. Barber about how human bodies cope with extended extreme heat and how current information on how hot it feels need updating.Follow Short Wave on Twitter @NPRShortWave. Or email us — we're at [email protected].

A century ago, astronomers were locked in a debate about the scope of our universe. Were we it? The answer is no. There are other galaxies beyond the Milky Way, and they are speeding away from us. Answering that question left astronomers with an even bigger puzzle. Why is everything sprinting away from us and what does that mean for the center of the universe? Today, Scientist in Residence Regina G. Barber brings back astronomer Dr. Vicky Scowcroft for the final episode in our series on cosmic distances and humanity's place in the universe. It's a big one: The mystery of our expanding universe. If you haven't heard the other two episodes in the series yet, check them out here:- Venus And The 18th Century Space Race- The Stars that Settled The Great DebateCurious about other intergalactic goings on? Tweet us @NPRShortWave or email us at [email protected].

Updated COVID boosters are now available that target the Omicron subvariant and many Americans 12 and older are eligible for the shot. Host Emily Kwong and health correspondent Allison Aubrey talk about who should get it, when, and whether there's a case to be made for skipping this booster. You can read more about Allison's reporting at "Omicron boosters: Do I need one, and if so, when?" Follow Short Wave on Twitter @NPRShortWave. You can also email us at [email protected].

Why do some songs can stick with us for a long time, even when other memories start to fade? Science reporter (and former Short Wave intern) Rasha Aridi explains the neuroscience behind that surprising moment of, "Wow, how do I still remember that song?!" (Encore)

Big Bend National Park in Texas is home to the only remaining Guadalupe fescue in the United States. The grass is tucked away in the Chisos Mountains, high above the Chihuahuan Desert. These mountaintops form a string of relatively wet, cool oases called "sky islands" — unique, isolated habitats. But as the planet warms, species that depend on "sky island" habitats tend to get pushed even higher up the mountain — until they eventually run out. Carolyn Whiting, Park Botanist at Big Bend, talks to host Aaron Scott about why the little things are worth preserving. Check out all the other episodes in our series on the research happening in U.S. public lands.We're on Twitter now! Tweet us @NPRShortWave. We also happily accept emails at [email protected].

Julia Ruth has a pretty cool job: it takes a lot of strength, a lot of balance, and a surprising amount of physics. As a circus artist, Julia has performed her acrobatic Cyr wheel routine around the world. But before she learned her trade and entered the limelight, she was on a very different career path--she was studying physics. Julia talks with Emily (who also shares a past life in the circus) about her journey from physicist to circus artist, and how she learned her physics-defining acts.

Scientists in the UK have discovered that if they take a pot meant for catching crabs and just add some bright lights, scallops flock through the door like it's Studio 54. Scallops are normally fished via trawling or dredging—methods that can cause lasting damage to delicate seafloor ecosystems. So this accidental discovery (the lights were initially added to attract crab) could have a significant impact on scallop fishing. We talk with one of the scientists, Robert Enever of Fishtek Marine, a company that creates sustainable fishing gear, about this collaboration between science, industry and conservation.Follow Short Wave on Twitter @NPRShortWave. You can also email the show at [email protected].

Some of the world's best artificial waves are happening hundreds of miles from the ocean—in Waco, Texas. They're so good, they're attracting top professionals, casual riders and a science correspondent named Jon Hamilton. Jon's been following the wave technology for years and says the progress is huge. These days, pro surfers come from all over to try the "Freak Peak" of Waco.

We're taking the day off for the Labor Day holiday! We hope you're also able to get some rest. We'll be back with another episode tomorrow.You can now chat us up on Twitter @NPRShortWave. We'd love to hear from you! You can also reach us by emailing [email protected].

In the toxic waters of Sulphur Cave in Steamboat Springs, Colo. lives blood-red worm blobs that have attracted scientific interest from around the world. We don special breathing gear and go into the cave with David Steinmann, the spelunking scientist who first documented the worms, along with a trio of science students from Georgia Tech, to collect worms and marvel at the unique crystals and cave formations (ever heard of snottites??) that earned Sulphur Cave a designation as a National Natural Landmark in 2021. Then we learn about how extremophiles like these worms are helping scientists search for new antibiotics, medicines, or in the case of the Georgia Tech team, models for worm blob robots that can explore uneven, dangerous terrain, like caves on other planets.

It may seem obvious now that other galaxies lie beyond the Milky Way, but less than 100 years ago, some astronomers held a view of our universe that was a little more ... self-centered. In the 1920s, astronomers were locked in the "Great Debate" — whether Earth was center of the universe and if the universe was just the Milky Way. Today, Scientist in Residence Regina G. Barber talks to Dr. Vicky Scowcroft about the stars that ended astronomy's Great Debate. Follow Short Wave on Twitter for more on everything science.

Do worms feel pain? How do otters experience the world? What are those pink appendages on the face of the star-nosed mole? We answer all these questions and more in this quiz show episode of Short Wave. Scientist in Residence Regina G. Barber and producer Margaret Cirino go head-to-head answering questions based on science writer Ed Yong's new book, An Immense World: How Animal Senses Reveal the Hidden Realms Around Us. Are you reading a new fascinating science-themed book? Let us know which one at [email protected].

NASA's Artemis Moon mission was supposed to launch Monday. But it was delayed due to a problem one of the rocket engines. When it launches, it will be a giant step towards sending humans back to the moon. We're eager to know: What leaps in scientific knowledge will be gained?It's a question planted in our minds by the scientist Hal Walker, who led an experiment during the first lunar landing half a century ago. The goal: Beam a laser at the moon. This encore episode, Scientist in Residence Regina G. Barber talks to host Aaron Scott about the Lunar Laser Ranging experiment — and how shooting that laser helped us better understand one of Einstein's theories.Follow Aaron on Twitter @AaronScottNPR and Regina @ScienceRegina. Reach the show by beaming an email to [email protected].

People experiencing a mental health crisis have a new way to reach out for help in the U.S. — calling or texting the numbers 9-8-8. Today, health correspondent Rhitu Chatterjee joins Scientist in Residence Regina G. Barber to talk about how the hotline works, the U.S. mental health system and what this alternative to 911 means for people in crisis.Further Reading:- The new 988 mental health hotline is live. Here's what to know- Social Media Posts Criticize the 988 Suicide Hotline for Calling Police. Here's What You Need to KnowBelow is a non-comprehensive list of other hotlines and resources from our colleague Aneri Pattani at Kaiser Health News. Some resources may geographically limit services.- BlackLine is a hotline geared toward the Black, Black LGBTQ+, brown, Native, and Muslim communities- Kiva Centers offers daily online peer support groups- M.H. First Oakland and M.H. First Sacramento operate during select weekend hours in the California cities of Oakland and Sacramento- Peer Support Space hosts virtual peer support groups twice a day Monday through Saturday- Project LETS provides support by text for urgent issues that involve involuntary hospitalization- Samaritans of New York is a hotline based in New York City- Trans Lifeline is a hotline for trans and questioning individuals- Wildflower Alliance has a peer support line and online support groups focused on suicide preventionFollow Short Wave on Twitter @NPRShortWave. You can email us at [email protected].

In a crater at the top of a dormant volcano lies a place so quiet, the ambient sound is right near the threshold of human hearing. Visitors to the crater say they can hear their own heartbeats. This spot, in Haleakalā National Park, has been nicknamed the "quietest place on Earth."Getting there is no small feat--the ascent involves hiking upward through five different climate zones. But the reward is an experience of natural silence that is increasingly difficult to find.Conservationists, park scientists, and communities all over the United States are working to conserve their pristine soundscapes while noise pollution from planes, vehicles, and other human sources increases. Today, Regina G Barber talks with producer Margaret Cirino about the history, culture, and sound of the Haleakalā crater, and why it should matter to all of us.

Humans haven't set foot on the moon in 50 years, but NASA hopes to take one step closer with the launch of a new rocket and space capsule on Monday. Today, science correspondent Nell Greenfieldboyce joins Scientist in Residence Regina G. Barber to talk about what NASA hopes to learn from this test flight and why it might be difficult to justify the program's cost.Planning to tune in for Monday's launch? Email us at [email protected].

Plunge into the ocean off the west coast of Ireland...and then keep plunging, down to where there's no light and the temperature is just above freezing. That's where underwater chemist Sam Afoullouss sends a deep sea robot to carefully collect samples of marine organisms. The goal? To search for unique chemistry that may one day inspire a medicine. Sam talks giant sponges, dumbo octopuses and bubblegum coral with host Emily Kwong – how to use them as a source for drug discovery while also protecting their wild, intricate ecosystems.

Sweating can be unpleasant, but consider the alternatives: You could roll around in mud. You could spend all day panting. You could have someone whip you up a blood popsicle. Sweating turns out to be pretty essential for human existence, AND arguably less gross than the ways other animals keep from overheating. On today's episode, a small army of NPR science reporters joins host Emily Kwong to talk about how humans developed the unique ability to perspire, how sweat works in space and the neat things other animals do to beat the heat. How have you (and the animals in your life) stayed cool this summer? Let us know at [email protected].

Grab your towels and flip flops, because we're heading to the beach. Whether you love playing in the sand, or dread getting it off your feet, building a sandcastle is an often underappreciated art form. In today's encore episode, Emily Kwong asks, scientifically, what is the best way to make a sandcastle? What's the right mix of water and sand to create grand staircases and towers? Sedimentologist Matthew Bennett shares his research and insights.

Volcanoes are "talking" to us all the time. Scientists say the sooner we learn to interpret their normal chatter, the quicker we'll know when something unusual — and potentially dangerous — is happening. But volcanoes often sit on protected land, so that detection work sometimes brings scientists into conflict with conservationists. Today, the tug-of-war over a sleeping giant in the Pacific Northwest. This episode is part of our series about the science happening on public lands, dropping every Friday the rest of the summer.--------As we continue our road trip, we also want to hear where in the world you are — especially if you're at a national park! To be featured in an episode, send us a recording saying your name, location and "You're listening to Short Wave — from NPR." Our email is [email protected]. We'd love to hear from you!

Demand for coal in Europe is rising as Russia's invasion of Ukraine threatens the country's vast natural resource and fossil fuel reserves - and subsequently, the world's energy supply. With trillions of dollars of Ukrainian energy deposits now under Russian control, the effects of the war are being felt far beyond the country's borders.

On a trip to Hawaii, Short Wave host Emily Kwong encountered manta rays for the first time. The experience was eerie and enchanting. And it left Emily wondering — what more is there to these intelligent, entrancing fish? Today, Emily poses all her questions to Rachel Graham, the founder and executive director of MarAlliance, a marine conservation organization working in tropical seas. (encore)Have you been completely captivated by an animal too? Share your story with us at [email protected].

The perfect cup of joe might be a matter of taste, but knowing the science behind the coffee-making process could help you elevate your at-home brewing game. Today, barista champion Sam Spillman on the chemical processes behind coffee and her technical approach to the craft. Have your own approach to coffee chemistry? Tell us at [email protected].

In 1967 Jocelyn Bell Burnell made a discovery that revolutionized the field of astronomy. She detected the radio signals emitted by certain dying stars called pulsars. Today, Jocelyn's story. Scientist in Residence Regina G. Barber talks to Jocelyn about her winding career, her discovery and how pulsars are pushing forward the field of astronomy today.Have cosmic queries and unearthly musings? Contact us at [email protected]. We might open an intergalactic case file and reveal our findings in a future episode.

Short Wave is going outside every Friday this summer! In this second episode of our series on the National Park system, we head to Big Thicket National Preserve in Texas. Among the trees and trails, researchers like Adela Oliva Chavez search for blacklegged ticks that could carry Lyme disease. She's looking for answers as to why tick-borne illnesses like Lyme disease are spreading in some parts of the country and not others. Today: What Adela's research tells us about ticks and the diseases they carry, and why she's dedicated her career to understanding what makes these little critters... tick.

When Moderna and Pfizer first came out with their mRNA vaccines for COVID-19, supply was limited to rich countries and they did not share the details of how to create it. That left middle income countries like Brazil in the lurch. But for Brazilian scientists Patricia Neves and Ana Paula Ano Bom, that wasn't the end. They decided to invent their own mRNA vaccine. Their story, today: Aaron talks to global health correspondent Nurith Aizenman about the effort and how it has helped launch a wider global project to revolutionize access to mRNA vaccine technology.

Ahead of the peak of the Perseid meteor shower, we're re-airing our first episode with Scientist in Residence Regina G. Barber. In it, Regina and planetary scientist Melissa Rice explore all things shooting star. They talk about the different types, where they come from and what they actually are (hint: not stars). Learn more about viewing the Persieds in the next few days here: Get ready to look up in the night sky at all those meteor showers.

The White House officially declared monkeypox a public health emergency in the United States last week. More than 7,500 cases of the virus have been confirmed since it began spreading across the country in May. Today's show: Health reporter Pien Huang on how the outbreak began, how it gathered steam and whether monkeypox is on track to become an endemic disease in the United States.Check out more of NPR's reporting on monkeypox:- Monkeypox: The myths, misconceptions — and facts — about how you catch it- He discovered the origin of the monkeypox outbreak — and tried to warn the world- How we talk about monkeypox matters. Experts offer ways to reduce stigma

Math is a complex, beautiful language that can help us understand the world. And sometimes ... math is also hard! Science communicator Sadie Witkowski says the key to making math your friend is to foster your own curiosity. That's the guiding principle behind her new podcast, Carry the Two. It's also today's show: Embracing all math has to offer without the fear of failure. --------Callout time! Do you have a favorite space fact? Send it to us in a voice memo in 20 seconds or less. Include your name and location, and email it to [email protected]. We may feature your voice in an upcoming episode.

Buckle up! Short Wave is going on a road trip every Friday this summer. In this first episode of our series on the research happening in the National Park system, we head to Shenandoah National Park and the Great Dismal Swamp National Wildlife Refuge. Some bats there are faring better than others against white-nose syndrome, a fungus that has killed more than 7 million bats in the last decade. Today — what researchers like Jesse De La Cruz think is enabling some bat species to survive. As we road trip, we want to hear where in the world you are too — especially if you're at a national park! To be featured in an episode, send us a recording saying your name, location and "You're listening to Short Wave — from NPR." Our email is [email protected]. We'd love to hear from you!

New abortion bans have made some doctors hesitant to provide care for pregnancy complications. That's led to life-threatening delays, and trapped families in a limbo of grief and helplessness. Today, senior health editor Carrie Feibel shares the story of one woman in Texas, whose pregnancy became a medical crisis because of the state's abortion laws.Read Carrie's full reporting: https://n.pr/3zpDXK0

It's been over 150 years since the first article was published about the molecular key to life as we know it — DNA. With help from expert Pravrutha Raman, Short Wave producer Berly McCoy explains how DNA is stored in our cells and why the iconic double helix shape isn't what you'd see if you peeked inside your cells right now. (encore)Curious about all the other biology that defines us? Email the show at [email protected] — we're all ears ... and eyes and toes and ... a lot of things. Thanks, DNA!

Under a 1971 Congressional Act, the Bureau of Land Management has the right to round up wild horses on public lands. Oftentimes, those horses are shipped to holding facilities, where they are kept in captivity and separated from their families. William Simpson wants to change that. He wants to deploy the wild horses across public lands, to live and graze — and ultimately, prevent the worst wildfires.

Not much is known about why people experience tastes differently and why some people can detect certain tastes and not others. There also might be other tastes out there to add to the list beyond the five known ones now. In this finale to Short Wave's Taste Buddies series, we're tackling the science of the five tastes, and in this episode, we look at why there is so much more research to be done. Host Aaron Scott talks to Danielle Reed from the Monell Chemical Senses Center about the controversy in taste science and about what other tastes might exist beyond sweet, sour, bitter, salty and umami. To listen to more episodes about how we taste, check out our Taste Buddies series: n.pr/3sSOgDBEmail the show at [email protected].

Today, we talk about spicy food and its intersection with pleasure and pain as part of our "Taste Buddies" series — Short Wave's ode to "taste." In this episode, Host Emily Kwong talks to food reporter Ruth Tam and researchers Julie Yu and Nadia Byrnes about the science behind our love for spicy foods and what drives some of us to seek out the pain. Follow Emily on Twitter @EmilyKwong1234. You can email Short Wave at [email protected].

Our ancestors evolved the ability to taste the sweet goodness of foods like pastries and creamy chocolates. They were enticed to consume quick calories that might only be available sporadically. What does that mean today for our brains and bodies in a world where sugar is much more abundant? Host Aaron Scott talks to taste and smell researcher Paule Joseph about the sticky science of sugar and how we can have too much of a good thing.-Separately, we want to feature YOU in an upcoming episode! Is there a moment when you realized how math impacts the world or a favorite way to harness math's power? Tell us in a 20 second or less voice memo emailed to [email protected]. Include your name and location, and your voice could appear in an upcoming episode!

Today, we're getting salty as we continue our series "Taste Buddies" — Short Wave's ode to taste buds. In this encore episode, Scientist in Residence Regina G. Barber goes on a salty flavor journey with scientist Julie Yu. Along the way, Julie explains salt's essential role in our daily lives and how it affects our perception of food. Follow Regina on Twitter @ScienceRegina. Reach the show by sending an email to [email protected].

We're continuing our celebration of taste with another episode in our "Taste Buddies" series. Today: Umami.In the early 1900s a Japanese chemist identified umami, but it took a century for his work to be translated into English. In this encore episode, Short Wave host Emily Kwong talks with producer Chloee Weiner about why it took so long for umami to be recognized as the fifth taste.Follow Emily on Twitter @emilykwong1234. Reach the show by sending an email to [email protected].

This week Short Wave is celebrating our sense of taste with an entire week of themed episodes, covering everything from sugar and spice to what's beyond our classic ideas of taste. It's a series we're calling, "Taste Buddies."In today's encore episode with Atlantic science writer Katherine Wu, we take a tour through the mysteries of sourness — complete with a fun taste test. Along the way, Katie serves up some hypotheses for the evolution of sour taste because, as Katie explains in her article, "The Paradox of Sour," researchers still have a lot to learn about this weird taste.Baffled by another seemingly mundane aspect of our existence? Email the show at [email protected] and who knows — it might turn into a whole series!

The Food and Drug Administration allows faster drug approvals based on preliminary study data if the drug fulfills an unmet medical need. But the speedy approval comes with a promise that the drugmaker does another clinical trial once the drug is on the market to prove it really works. If not, the FDA can rescind the approval. How are the companies doing and how well does the agency enforce that system? Pharmaceuticals correspondent Sydney Lupkin investigated the 30-year track record for accelerated approvals. Today, her findings on stalled trials and missing evidence.

The war in Ukraine is devastating that nation's rich, natural environment - from chemical leaks poisoning water supplies and warships killing dolphins to explosions disrupting bird migrations. NPR Environmental Correspondent Nate Rott has been reporting from Ukraine. He sits down with Short Wave's Scientist in Residence Regina G. Barber to talk about how the Russian invasion is harming the environment even beyond Ukraine's borders. Read more of Nate's reporting: https://n.pr/3PkuKcEWant to get in touch? Reach the show by emailing [email protected].

Host Emily Kwong wants to keep an eye on her carbon footprint. Most of it consists of greenhouse gas emissions from driving her car or buying meat at the grocery store. But it's not so obvious how to measure those emissions, or how factories, cargo ships, or even whole countries measure theirs.Enter: NPR science reporter Rebecca Hersher. Together, Rebecca and Emily break down how greenhouse gas emissions are tallied ... and why those measurements are so important in figuring out who's responsible for cleaning up. What should we measure next? Email the show at [email protected].

In the 18th century the world was focused on Venus. Expeditions were launched in pursuit of exact measurements of Venus as it passed between Earth and the Sun. By viewing its journey and location on the Sun's surface, scientists hoped to make a massive leap in scientific knowledge. With a little help from math, Scientist in Residence Regina G. Barber recounts how humanity came closer to understanding our cosmic address — and relative distances to other planets — in the solar system. You can follow Regina on Twitter @ScienceRegina. Email Short Wave at [email protected].

As a kid, Clarice Phelps dreamed of being an astronaut, or maybe an explorer like the characters on Star Trek. And while her path to a career in science was different than what she expected, it led her to being a part of something big: the discovery of a new element on the periodic table. Clarice talks to host Aaron Scott about her role in creating Tennessine, one of the heaviest elements known to humankind.Do you have a great science discovery story? Tell us about it at [email protected].

Earlier this week we got a look at one of the highest-profile scientific photo dumps of all time. The James Webb Space Telescope is the most powerful telescope ever sent into space, and it is producing some of the most detailed, rich, and far-reaching images of the universe we have seen – including the birth of stars, galaxies colliding, and the bending of space-time itself. Today, Host Emily Kwong talks with Short Wave Scientist-in-Residence Regina G. Barber and NPR's Joe Palca about these mind bending new portraits of our universe and our origins. You can follow Emily on Twitter @EmilyKwong1234 and Regina @ScienceRegina. Email Short Wave at [email protected].

This week NASA released some of the sharpest images of space ever from the James Webb Space Telescope. The telescope's camera gives us a glimpse into distant galaxies and a picture of the makings of our universe. Tomorrow, we'll nerd out about those photos. But today, we're revisiting the idea of space travel. This encore episode, science correspondent Geoff Brumfiel talks to New York Times Disability Reporting Fellow Amanda Morris about one organization working to ensure disabled people have the chance to go to space.You can always reach the show by emailing [email protected].

For centuries, mysterious blocks of beeswax and Chinese porcelain have washed up on the Oregon coast, leading to legends of pirates, treasure, and a sunken Spanish galleon. It became known as the Beeswax Wreck, and it inspired centuries of treasure hunters—and maybe even Steven Spielberg, as he created The Goonies. Now, researchers have found nearly 330-year-old timbers from the ship in a hard-to-access cave. This is the story of how a team of volunteer archeologists are working to solve one of the most enduring mysteries of the Pacific Northwest, using old-school detective skills and one well-timed natural disaster.

BA.5 is now the dominant SARS-CoV-2 subvariant in the United States. It's driving up COVID cases and hospitalizations across the country. It's also causing quicker reinfections. More people appear to be contracting the virus multiple times in relatively quick succession. Today, host Emily Kwong talks with science correspondent Allison Aubrey about this dominant subvariant: What it means for mask mandates, "long COVID" — and why infectious disease experts think this wave will be more manageable than last winter's surge.Got COVID questions? Email the show at [email protected].

Directing Duo Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert, (collectively: Daniels) are known for their first feature film Swiss Army Man and DJ Snake's and Lil Jon's music video "Turn Down For What." This year, they've taken their directing to a whole different universe. Host Emily Kwong chats with the Daniels about their new film Everything Everywhere All At Once and how their indie film about laundry and taxes melds the arts with sciences. You can follow Emily on Twitter @EmilyKwong1234. Email Short Wave at [email protected].

We're wrapping up Tiny Critter Week with a reprise of one of our favorite episodes — nudibranchs. In this episode, Maddie and Emily got super nerdy, diving into the incredible world of nudibranchs. These sea slugs eye-catching for their colors, and some of them have evolved to "steal" abilities from other organisms — from the power of photosynthesis to the stinging cells of their venomous predators.We'd love to hear which tiny critters you love — and which leave you puzzled. Reach us by sending an email to [email protected].

Honey bees know a lot about honey, and humans are starting to catch up. Scientists are now looking at how the chemicals in honey affect bee health. With the help of research scientist Bernarda Calla, Short Wave producer Berly Mccoy explains the chemical complexities of honey, how it helps keep honey bees resilient, and what role it may play in saving the bees. (encore)

If you're not so fond of spiders, you may find kindred spirits in other spiders! Researcher Daniela Roessler worked with jumping spiders and found that they know to get away from the presence of other possible predator spiders, even if they've never encountered them before. She talks with host Maria Godoy about her research and what Halloween decorations do to the poor spiders, if arachnids can have arachnophobia. (Encore)Read Daniela's research and watch videos of the experiment: https://besjournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/1365-2435.13953The video is also on her Twitter feed: https://twitter.com/RoesslerDaniela.

Being small has its advantages ... and some limitations. One organism that intimately knows the pros and cons of being mini is the pumpkin toadlet. As an adult, the animal reaches merely the size of the skittle. At that scale, the frog's inner ear is so small, it's not fully functional. That means when the frog moves, it's haphazard and seems kind of drunk. And so today, with the help of Atlantic science writer Katie Wu, we investigate: If a frog can't jump well, is it still a frog?Read Katie's piece in The Atlantic, A Frog So Small, It Could Not Frog: https://bit.ly/3bydh1gWatch pumpkin toadlets poorly fling themselves around in this video from the Florida Museum: https://bit.ly/3bFAXRv

Hey, Short Wavers!We're off today, but wanted to give you a sneak peek into this week's episodes. To inject a little levity into your (and our) lives, we're celebrating some of the smaller animals in our midst all week long. Tomorrow — an animal probably most aptly described as an orange Skittle. Any guesses?

... Could a monkey host this podcast?Aaron Scott and Resident Neuroscience Nerd Jon Hamilton discuss the vocal capabilities of our primate relatives. From syllables and consonants to rhythm and pitch, certain monkeys and apes have more of the tools needed for speech than was once thought. Now scientists are looking to them for insights into the origins of human speech. What animal should we study next? Email the show at [email protected].

The Caribbean is home to gorgeous beaches, mangroves and ... the biggest bacteria known to humankind. Find out exactly how big from science correspondent Nell Greenfieldboyce in this Micro Wave. Then, stay for the listener mail, where we answer YOUR questions — all hosted by our new senior editor, Gabriel Spitzer!Do you have a question for Short Wave? Email us a voice memo at [email protected].

A majority of people say they have experienced extreme weather in the last five years, according to a nationwide survey conducted by NPR, the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. And events like floods, wildfires and hurricanes are emptying bank accounts--especially when insurance can't cover the damage. Aaron Scott talks to science reporter Rebecca Hersher about the new survey, and the hidden ways climate change could impact your finances.

Historically, the California condor soared across the western skies of North America. But by the 1980s, the bird was on the edge of extinction — just 22 remained.Thanks to decades of conservation work, the California condor population has rebounded to a couple hundred birds in Central California and Arizona. And this May, a large partnership led by the Yurok Tribe re-introduced the birds to Northern California. Today, host Aaron Scott talks to Yurok biologist Tiana Williams-Claussen about the years-long quest to return the birds to their ancestral skies, and the importance of condor — who the Yurok call Prey-go-neesh — to the Yurok people and the natural world.

The Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade on Friday. We're revisiting an episode that may give us insight into pregnant people's lives in a post-Roe United States. We talked to Dr. Diana Greene Foster, the lead researcher on the interdisciplinary team behind The Turnaway Study. For over a decade, she and her fellow researchers followed just under a thousand women who sought an abortion across 21 states. These data reveal the outcomes of unwanted pregnancies and compare the physical, mental and financial consequences of having an abortion to those of carrying an unwanted pregnancy to term.

Pull out your art supplies because it's time to get crafty--with agar! At the intersection of biology and art lies a creative medium that's actually alive. Scientists and artists practice etching designs on petri dishes with bacterial paint that can grow and multiply.Aaron Scott talks with science correspondent Nell Greenfieldboyce about her foray into the agar art world.Have another craft suggestion? Email the show at [email protected].

Move over, T-Rex. There are new, (mostly) more accurate dinosaurs to squeal over in 'Jurassic World: Dominion', the sixth and reportedly final film of the Jurassic film franchise. Join us to get to know them a little more with help from Riley Black, a paleontologist and author of the book The Last Days of the Dinosaurs.Want to hear more about the science in pop culture? Or maybe just want to show your support for our continued coverage of dinosaurs? Let us know by e-mailing [email protected].

A Massachusetts elementary school welcomes "Huntah," the COVID-sniffing dog. Scientist-in-residence Regina Barber talks with NPR science reporter Ari Daniel about how a specialized K-9 unit is helping keep kids in classrooms.For more of Ari's reporting, check out "Dogs trained to sniff out COVID in schools are getting a lot of love for their efforts."You can follow Regina on Twitter @ScienceRegina and Ari on Instagram @mesoplodon_. Email Short Wave at [email protected].

Do you ever feel better after walking down a street that's lined with lush, green trees? You're not alone! For decades, researchers have been studying the effects of nature on human health and the verdict is clear: time spent among the trees seems to make us less prone to disease, more resistant to infection and happier overall. Aaron Scott talks with environmental psychologist Ming Kuo about why we need greenery and how you can bring more of it into your life.

Hi Short Wavers, The team is off today in continued commemoration of Juneteenth, a holiday honoring the freedom of all Americans, by marking the emancipation of enslaved Americans in Galveston, Texas on June 19, 1865. We'll be back tomorrow with more Short Wave, from NPR.

Cylita Guy was a curious child who enjoyed exploring the beaches, parks and animals that shared her hometown of Toronto, Canada. She's an urban ecologist interested in city-dwelling bats. Cylita talks to guest host Lauren Sommer about the importance of studying wildlife in cities and about her children's book, Chasing Bats and Tracking Rats: Urban Ecology, Community Science and How We Share Our Cities. (Encore)

The Uvalde school shooting has renewed questions of how to prevent the next shooting. For many who've opened fire in schools, the path to violence has common traits. A growing number of schools are adopting an evidence-based approach to preventing violence on their campuses. The plan recognizes that a student contemplating violence is a student in crisis. Today, a look at that plan in action: how a school district in Oregon has been turning troubled youth away from violence for nearly two decades.

For decades, U.S. astronauts and Russian cosmonauts have lived side-by-side aboard the International Space Station. Host Aaron Scott talks with Science Correspondent Geoff Brumfiel about how a war on planet Earth is changing life in space and what those changes say about the limits of science as a tool for diplomacy. For more of Geoff's reporting, check out "Russia's war in Ukraine is threatening an outpost of cooperation in space."You can follow Aaron on Twitter @AaronScottNPR and Geoff @GBrumfiel. Email Short Wave at [email protected].

Political polarization is affecting Americans' health, according to a new study. Researchers find higher levels of premature death in Republican-leaning counties compared to those in Democratic-leaning ones. The higher mortality in GOP counties is across the board – everything from heart disease to suicide. Allison Aubrey talks to Emily Kwong about what may be causing these disparities.

What's the most versatile pan in the kitchen? According to chef and cookbook author J. Kenji López-Alt, it's the wok! And along with spices, he sprinkles science explainers into his writing. Today's episode is just that — the science of the wok in action. He and host Emily Kwong talk about how to choose, season and cook with one, and why its unique shape makes it so versatile. Plus, we hear how Emily fared cooking one of Kenji's dishes from his new cookbook The Wok.

Sex can be a nerve-racking experience no matter what. That's especially true if you have no clue what to do, and since LGBTQ+ topics are often left out of the conversation in school sex ed classes, many queer people know this feeling well. Life Kit spoke with sexuality educators to understand what sex education could look like for queer students and the importance of including everybody in the discussions.

As a kid, Ariana Remmel had a hard time figuring out where they fit in. They found comfort in the certainty and understanding of what the world was made of: atoms and molecules and the periodic table of elements.Years later, Ari went on to become a chemist and science writer. On today's show, Ari talks with host Maddie Sofia about how chemistry has helped them embrace their mixed identities.For more, read Ari's recent essay in Catapult Magazine: https://catapult.co/stories/ariana-remmel-essay-mixed-identities-organic-chemistry

Medical transition-related treatments like hormone replacement therapy are associated with overwhelmingly positive outcomes in terms of both physical and mental health for transgender people. But, it can be hard to know exactly how to get started. Reporter James Factora explains where to start, common misconceptions about HRT, and the importance of finding community through the process. Read James' full reporting for VICE here: "A Beginner's Guide to Hormone Replacement Therapy."(www.vice.com/en/article/dyv33x/how-to-start-hrt-hormone-replacement-therapy) If you're just learning about hormone replacement therapy for the first time, welcome! We're so glad you're here. You might want to read about the basics before listening to this episode. We'll be here when you get back! ● "Overview of Feminizing Hormone Therapy," UCSF Transgender Care"(https://transcare.ucsf.edu/guidelines/feminizing-hormone-therapy)● "Overview of Masculinizing Hormone Therapy," UCSF Transgender Care(https://transcare.ucsf.edu/guidelines/masculinizing-therapy)

Kyne is the stage name of Kyne Santos, a math communicator and a drag queen. The former Canada's Drag Race contestant posted her first video explaining a math riddle in full drag on TikTok during the pandemic. Since then, Kyne's videos, under the username @onlinekyne, have have attracted 1.3 million followers and generated 40.7 million likes. Kyne talks to host Emily Kwong about bringing STEM to the drag scene. (Encore)

Tam O'Shaughnessy and Sally Ride, the first American woman in space, met as kids in the early 1960s and developed an instant connection. Years later, they fell in love. They also were dedicated to STEM education and founded Sally Ride Science in 2001, a company focused on equity and inclusion in science education. Tam talks about this, and her relationship with Sally Ride, with Maddie Sofia. (encore)

Today, we're passing the mic to our friends at It's Been A Minute. Recently, they dug into how the anticipated repeal of Roe v. Wade will affect broader privacy issues. Will tech platforms continue to provide the same information, in states where the procedure is outlawed? What risk does your digital footprint create, if you seek information about abortion or other reproductive health care? Guest host Elise Hu talks it out with Rachel Cohen, senior policy reporter at Vox News, and Lil Kalish from CalMatters.

How do you make the perfect stir-fry chicken without drying it out? Today, we answer that question with cookbook author and chef J. Kenji López-Alt and science! Host Emily Kwong talks to Scientist-In-Residence Regina G. Barber about velveting, a technique used to seal in moisture during high heat cooking. Then, some listener mail!If you're hungry for more food-based episodes, check out our TASTE BUDDIES series.

Parkland, Fla. Buffalo, NY. Uvalde, Texas. Every mass shooting in the U.S. raises calls for better policies to prevent such tragedies. There's evidence suggesting that certain kinds of laws may reduce deaths from mass shootings, say scientists who study the field — but those policy options are not the ones usually discussed in the wake of these events. Furthermore, the amount of resources devoted to studying gun violence is paltry compared to its public health impact.

Recent rule changes have increased access to abortion pills through the mail, using telehealth services. As many U.S. states gear up to restrict abortion access in anticipation of the Supreme Court possibly overturning Roe v. Wade, the medical professionals behind these services are preparing for an even bigger surge in demand. Groups that provide abortion pills are also preparing to face significant new obstacles, as anti-abortion states push back against expanded online access. Both patients and clinicians are testing the boundaries of this service that is fully legal in many states — but operates in a legal gray area in others.

The first all-black team of climbers reached the summit of Mount Everest last week, including the first Kenyan ever to do so. Today on the show Short Wave Host Aaron Scott talks with Science Reporter Ari Daniel about his interview with James Kagambi, a snow-loving, 62-year-old with a bum knee who made the trek despite his doctor's orders. You can follow Aaron on Twitter @AaronScottNPR and Ari on Instagram @mesoplodon_. Email Short Wave at [email protected].

Is your border collie a lethargic couch potato? Is your golden retriever bad with kids? Is your German shepherd too timid to guard your home?Turns out, there may be good reason why your pooch doesn't act as expected. Regina G. Barber talks with writer Katie Wu about the science of dog breeds, including how much a dog's personality is linked to breed. (Hint: less than you might think!)Got personal stories of your dog breaking its behavioral mold? Share with us at [email protected].

Depending how the Supreme Court votes on a pending case, Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization, many pregnant people may lose the right to seek an abortion in their state. Host Emily Kwong talks to research scientist Liza Fuentes about the shifting reality of abortion as health care — and how the states with the greatest restrictions generally invest the least in maternal and children's health. Today is part two of Emily and Liza's conversation. Listen to part one of Emily and Liza's conversation to hear how abortion is used as a tool to improve public health.

Abortion access has been leading political news in recent weeks. But what happens when we look at abortion as a health care tool that betters public health? Today, Emily talks to Liza Fuentes, a Senior Research Scientist at the Guttmacher Institute, a research organization that focuses on sexual and reproductive health. Fuentes says abortion access is an important part of health care for a community and losing access can exacerbate income and health inequalities.

Growing up, Jada Yuan didn't realize how famous her grandmother was in the world of physics. In this episode, Jada talks to Emily about the life of physicist Chien-Shiung Wu, whom Jada got to know much better while writing the article Discovering Dr. Wu for the Washington Post, where she is a reporter covering culture and politics.Check out part one in which Emily talks to Short Wave's scientist-in-residence about how Chien-Shiung Wu altered physics. She made a landmark discovery in 1956 about how our universe operates at the tiniest levels. Email the show at [email protected].

In the 1950's, a particle physicist made a landmark discovery that changed what was known about how the universe operates. Chien-Shiung Wu did it while raising a family and an ocean away from her relatives in China. Short Wave's Scientist-In-Residence Regina Barber joins host Emily Kwong to talk about that landmark discovery—what it meant for the physics world, and what it means to Regina personally as a woman and a Chinese and Mexican American in physics. Email the show at [email protected].

Love the bitter bite of dark chocolate, leafy greens or black licorice? Your genetics may be the reason why. Today on the show, host Aaron Scott talks to scientist Masha Niv about how our bitter taste buds work and how a simple taste test can predict your tolerance for some bitter things. Plus, what bitter receptors elsewhere in the body have to do with your health. To listen to more episodes about how we taste, check out our TASTE BUDDIES series: https://n.pr/3LkXOh7

Apps can be a great way to stay on top of your health. They let users keep track of things like exercise, mental health, the quality of their skin, and even menstrual cycles.But health researchers Giulia De Togni and Andrea Ford have found that many of these health apps also have a dark side — selling your most personal data to third parties like advertisers, insurers and tech companies. Emily talks to the researchers about the commodification of data, and their suggestions for increasing the security of your - the consumer's - information.Email us at [email protected].

Any hour now, the U.S. is expected to officially mark one million lives lost to the COVID-19 pandemic. Health correspondent Allison Aubrey shares how this misinformation first entered the parenting world--and how some are fighting back. Email the show at [email protected].

Today on Short Wave, researcher Fatima Aysha Hussain talks to host Emily Kwong about how microbes in the vagina can impact health and how transplanting vaginal microbiomes from one vagina to another could help people managing bacterial vaginosis. To learn more about the vaginal microbiome transplant study, visit https://motifstudy.org/.

If the U.S. Supreme Court rules in line with the draft decision leaked in early May, the decision to reverse Roe v. Wade affect a much broader group than people who get pregnant. But research shows abortion restrictions have a disproportionate impact on young women, poor women and especially those in communities of color. NPR health correspondent Yuki Noguchi talks to Short Wave scientist-in-residence Regina G. Barber about how this ruling would affect those women and how groups helping them get abortions are preparing.Email the show at [email protected].

In 1992, diplomats and scientists at the United Nations negotiated the first-ever treaty intended to tackle the climate change. This brought the issue to the forefront and led to a series of conferences that have occurred almost every year for the next 30 years. Short Wave host Emily Kwong talks to freelance climate reporter, Dan Charles about how those at the conference wrote a clear and ambitious goal that they didn't even fully understand. Plus — why it rattled the fossil fuel industry. This is part 2 of a two-part series. For part 1, check out "A Climate Time Capsule (Part 1): The Start of the International Climate Change Fight"Email Short Wave at [email protected].

In 1992, diplomats and scientists at the United Nations negotiated the first-ever treaty intended to tackle the scientific phenomenon now known as climate change. This brought the issue to the forefront and led to a series of conferences that would occur almost every year for the next 30 years. Short Wave host Emily Kwong talks to freelance climate reporter, Dan Charles, about how those at the conference wrote a clear and ambitious goal that they didn't even fully understand.Email the show at [email protected].

Stephanie was usually careful about her health and regular vaccinations. But then she got into sharing conspiracy-filled videos and fringe ideas. When COVID hit, misinformation put her and her husband at risk. Science correspondent and editor Geoff Brumfiel shares with Emily Kwong what he learned in reporting Stephanie's story. You can follow Emily on Twitter @EmilyKwong1234 and Geoff at @GBrumfiel. Email Short Wave at [email protected].

A leaked draft opinion in the Supreme Court case Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization has placed uncertainty on the future of abortion rights in the United States. As written, the opinion would overturn Roe v. Wade protections. We at Short Wave were immediately curious about the data behind abortions: What happens when pregnant people are denied abortions? For answers, we turned to Dr. Diana Greene Foster, the lead researcher on the interdisciplinary team behind The Turnaway Study. For over a decade, she and her fellow researchers followed just under a thousand women who sought an abortion across 21 states. These data may give us insight into pregnant people's lives in a post Roe v. Wade United States. - Read more about The Turnaway Study on UCSF's website: https://bit.ly/3P1tV8B- Read the research resulting from The Turnaway Study: https://bit.ly/3KNAit8- Read Dr. Foster's book, The Turnaway Study: Ten Years, a Thousand Women, and the Consequences of Having — or Being Denied — an Abortion: https://bit.ly/3si0i9z

The world has come a long way since the COVID-19 pandemic began. There are now vaccines, at-home tests, masks and treatments. With all of these tools available, why is COVID still here?Health policy correspondent Selena Simmons-Duffin talks to Scientist-In-Residence Regina Barber about what we can learn from the public health advocates working to end the HIV epidemic, how those lessons may translate to ending COVID and why having the scientific tools isn't enough.

In 1859, astronomer Richard Carrington was studying the Sun when he witnessed the most intense geomagnetic storm recorded in history. The storm, triggered by a giant solar flare, sent brilliant auroral displays across the globe causing electrical sparking and fires in telegraph stations.Short Wave's scientist-in-residence Regina G. Barber talks to solar physicist Dr. Samaiyah Farid about what's now known as the Carrington event and about what may happen the next time a massive solar storm hits Earth. You can check out NASA's Solar Dynamics Observatory for pictures of our Sun in real-time: go.nasa.gov/3LOWV1uCurious about other parts of our solar system? Email the show at [email protected].

Scientists have discovered the underpinnings of animal emotions. As NPR brain correspondent Jon Hamilton reports, the building blocks of emotions and of emotional disorders can be found across lots of animals. That discovery is helping scientists understand human emotions like fear, anger — and even joy. Express your joy, fear and fine — even your scientific rage to us. We're at [email protected].

Beavers have long been considered pests by landowners and government agencies. But now, many are starting to embrace them. Today on the show, Host Aaron Scott tells Host Emily Kwong how these furry ecosystem engineers are showing scientists a way to save threatened and endangered salmon and steelhead. Watch the video Aaron filmed with Oregon Field Guide about beavers and stream restoration. For more videos check out Oregon Field Guide.You can follow Aaron on Twitter @AaronScottNPR and Emily @EmilyKwong1234. Email Short Wave at [email protected].

When Kasha Patel decided to try out stand-up comedy, she was told to joke about what she knew. For her, that was science. Today on Short Wave, Kasha talks to host Emily Kwong about how she developed her sense of humor, how she infuses science into her comedy and why on Earth she analyzed 500 of her jokes. Listen to the end for bonus audio!

Climbing enthusiast and producer Thomas Lu has long wondered what makes knots such a powerful tool. Today, Thomas digs into the research with the help of Matt Berry, Quality Assurance Manager at the outdoor gear company Black Diamond Equipment, and researcher Vishal Patil.Reach the show by emailing [email protected].

Probes to Uranus and to one of Jupiter's moons where conditions might support life; a better plan high-quality science on the moon--those are some of the recommendations in a new 700 page report to NASA. NPR science correspondent Nell Greenfieldboyce has looked at that report and talked to the experts. Today, she sifts through all the juicy details of where NASA is headed the next few decades.Read the decadal survey. Probe the Short Wave minds by emailing [email protected].

COVID cases are up due to the Omicron sub-variants and masking is likely to remain optional as the courts wrangle with the transportation mask mandate that a Federal judge struck down last week. NPR correspondent Allison Aubrey talks about both of these issues with host Emily Kwong, and updates listeners on what to expect with children and the vaccine.

Cryptocurrencies may exist only in the virtual world, but their impact on our natural resources is huge. That's largely because the technology underpinning crypto is an energy vampire that devours more electricity than do many countries. But that's only part of the story.Short Wave Host Aaron Scott talks to Producer Eva Tesfaye about the many environmental impacts of crypto - beyond its strain on energy - and what various local, state and national governments are doing about it. Check out Short Wave's previous episode about how cryptocurrency works and why its technology sucks up so much energy here: n.pr/3ETHXVq Email the show at [email protected].

As cryptocurrencies become increasingly popular, the environmental impact of the technology is gaining more attention. Local, state and national governments are trying to figure out how to regulate the massive amounts of energy that some cryptocurrencies consume.Short Wave host Aaron Scott and producer Eva Tesfaye are joined by Planet Money reporter Alexi Horowitz-Ghazi who unpacks what cryptocurrencies are, how the technology works and why it all sucks up so much energy. Check out the episodes of Planet Money and The Indicator that Alexi mentioned: - Bitcoin Losers: What happens when you lose access to your bitcoin - n.pr/3La5y6x- Such Cryptocurrency. So Amaze.: The origin of Dogecoin. - n.pr/3k5sg3S- The $69 Million JPEG: A record-breaking NFT sale. - n.pr/3rM2iGB

Dr. Jessica Hernandez's new book examines the role of displacement — Indigenous peoples like her father, who was displaced by the civil war in El Salvador, and plants like the banana tree, brought from Asia to Central America — in science. Jessica, an environmental scientist, talks with Emily about how important it is to make sure that Indigenous people and their knowledge are centered as humans work to save or restore land in the era of climate change.

The United States has a goal of net-zero carbon emissions by 2050. Without serious changes to lifestyles, that means dramatic investments in green energy. But environmental laws can actually get in the way. Today, our colleagues at NPR's daily economics podcast, The Indicator from Planet Money, compare the threats to two bats on opposite ends of the planet. The bats show the tension between local and global environmentalism and how building a green economy is forcing people to have tough conversations about tradeoffs.

In the cannabis industry, the chemistry lab meets agriculture. A cannabis product called Delta-8 has been popping up in smoke shops, CBD shops and even gas stations.Dr. Katelyn Kesheimer, a researcher at Auburn University and the Alabama Cooperative Extension System, joins the show to demystify Delta-8. In this encore episode, we'll learn what it's made of, where it comes from, why it's so popular, and why science and the federal government are falling so far behind the cannabis industry. Email the show at [email protected].

Salt has such a rich history that it was once (and is perhaps still) a sign of wealth. In this latest installment of our series on flavor and taste, "Taste Buddies," Scientist-in-Residence Regina G. Barber goes on a salty flavor journey with scientist Julie Yu. Along the way, Julie explains salt's essential role in our daily lives and how it affects our perception of food. Follow Regina on Twitter @ScienceRegina. Email Short Wave at [email protected].

A recent study found that working surge after surge in the pandemic, a majority of American health care workers experienced psychiatric symptoms — including depression and thoughts of suicide. And yet, mental health correspondent Rhitu Chatterjee found that very few got help for these symptoms.If you or someone you know may be considering suicide, call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-8255. Or text the word home to 741741.

Climate change poses an existential threat to the ski industry. A warmer climate means less snow and less now menas a shorter season for snowboarders and skiiers. NPR correspondent Kirk Siegler first covered the issue 15 years ago as local station reporter in Aspen. Now he returns to that world-renowned destination and tells Short Wave co-host Aaron Scott about one resort's efforts to push the nation toward clean energy while it continues catering to the carbon-generating, jet-set crowd. Check out Kirk's full All Things Considered story here: n.pr/3rse2xPEmail the show at [email protected].

Ranalda Tsosie grew up in the Navajo Nation, close to a number of abandoned uranium mines. The uranium from those mines leached into the groundwater, contaminating some of the unregulated wells that Ranalda and many others relied on for cooking, cleaning and drinking water. Today on the show, Ranalda talks to host Aaron Scott about her path to becoming an environmental chemist to study the extent of contamination in her home community using a blend of western and Diné science methods.

In the northern Ukrainian city of Chernihiv at least half a dozen hospitals have been damaged by Russian attacks. The Emergency Department of City Hospital No. 2, located on the ground floor, was instantly destroyed. In addition, the shock wave shattered windows across all nine floors of the building, showering everything with broken glass. Correspondent Ari Daniel talks to Emily about the attack and brings Short Wave the voices of three people who were there for the attack and the aftermath.Feel free to e-mail Short Wave with your story suggestions at [email protected].

Today we share the mic with our colleagues at Planet Money to talk about one of our favorite aquatic creatures: manatees. Decades ago, manatees nearly went extinct as their habitat dwindled and boats threatened their lives. But power companies noticed something: manatees were hanging out near their power plants, seeking out warm water. So, the power companies teamed up with environmentalists to turn the warm waters near power planets into manatee refuges — saving manatee lives and the power companies money in the process. Now, there's a new conundrum: manatees that are hooked on fossil fuels.

There's a lot for scientists to learn about the origins of humans' musical abilities. In the last few years, though, they've discovered homo sapiens have some company in our ability to make musical rhythm. Producer Berly McCoy brings the story of singing lemurs to host Aaron Scott. She explains how their harmonies could help answer questions about the beginnings of our own musical abilities, and what all of this has to do with Queen.

According to the World Health Organization, Ukraine has the fourth highest incidence of tuberculosis in Europe — and one of the highest rates of multidrug resistant TB anywhere in the world. The country had been making progress but then came the pandemic, and now the war. Reporter Ari Daniel says doctors worry about increased spread of this contagious and deadly disease.

A Japanese chemist identified umami in the early 1900s, but it took a century for his work to be translated into English. Short Wave host Emily Kwong talks with producer Chloee Weiner about why it took so long for umami to be recognized as the fifth taste.

Today, we present an episode of NPR's daily economics podcast, The Indicator from Planet Money. It's filled with one of our favorite topics: Data.Algorithms are the secret sauce for many tech platforms. With user data, they can help a company tailor a subscriber's experience and make the product better. But what happens when the data that feeds an algorithm is obtained through less than legal means?We learn about the curious case of Kurbo, the weight loss app for kids that the feds say illegally collected data to generate that secret sauce.Email the show at [email protected].

This week, U.S. Food and Drug Administration vaccine advisors will meet to discuss long-term COVID vaccine strategy. This follows the recent FDA authorization and CDC recommendation of a second booster available for people 50 and older and some immunocompromised people. Going forward, will the strategy change from counting boosters to making a COVID vaccine a seasonal shot? Allison Aubrey talks to Emily Kwong about the latest on boosters, what's known about the vaccination timeline for younger children, and what some experts are saying about the BA.2 variant.

For many of us, seeing stars in the night sky is challenging because of light pollution. But there are some communities that are trying to change that. Today on the show, we visit cultural astronomer Danielle Adams in the world's first international dark sky city. Theoretical physicist Chanda Prescod-Weinstein also joins us to explain why access to dark night skies is so important.

Octopuses! They are escape artists, they camouflage in all kinds of surroundings, and they are incredibly intelligent creatures--and that intelligence evolved completely separately from humans'. That separate evolution makes them the perfect animal to study for Dominic Sivitilli, a PhD candidate in astrobiology and behavioral neuroscience at the University of Washington.Short Wave co-host Aaron Scott and Oregon Public Broadcasting (OPB) camera person Stephani Gordon visited Dominic's lab to learn about octopus intelligence, and how their arms and suckers can basically think for themselves. Aaron talks to co-host Emily Kwong about how studying octopuses can provide insight into how aliens might think. To see the octopuses in action, watch the video story Aaron and Stephani produced for OPB's nature show Oregon Field Guide here: https://www.opb.org/article/2022/03/29/want-to-study-how-aliens-might-think-look-to-the-octopus/Is there another sea creature you want to learn more about? E-mail the show at [email protected].

Shall we play a game - of Wiffle ball? Invented in 1953, this lightweight alternative to a baseball is perfectly suited for back yard romping. Today we explain why the design of the Wiffle ball guarantees that you don't need a strong arm to throw a variety of pitches. More about Jenn Stroud Rossmann's work on Wiffle Balls here:https://www.theatlantic.com/technology/archive/2017/09/wiffle-ball-physics/539982/

When a team of exoplanetary treasure hunters joined forces with professional astronomers, they discovered a whole new world. Short Wave host Emily Kwong talks with astronomer Paul Dalba and community scientist Tom Jacobs about how their collaboration led to the recent observation of a new Jupiter-like exoplanet.

This month, the U.S. Senate unanimously approved a bill to make daylight saving time permanent. Now sleep scientists are weighing in and are suggesting the opposite — that standard time might be a better choice. Correspondent Allison Aubrey talks to host Emily Kwong about the pros and cons of adopting permanent daylight saving time or year-round standard time.You can follow Emily on Twitter @EmilyKwong1234 and Allison @AubreyNPR. Email Short Wave at [email protected].

The benefits of indoor air quality in schools are substantial, but American school buildings are old and many face major challenges when it comes to upgrades. Science and health correspondent Maria Godoy talks to host Aaron Scott about how there are a few hopeful signs that indoor air quality in schools will be improved- including some federal money and a new awareness of air quality because of the pandemic. Read Maria's story on indoor air quality in schools here: n.pr/3uy3A93Email the show at [email protected].

In addition to flying, landing, and returning from the moon in 1969 — NASA's Apollo 11 crew helped with a series of scientific experiments. One of them was to leave a special instrument with lots of little reflectors on the surface of the moon. The goal of that experiment was to beam a laser at the moon. Today on the show, Scientist-In-Residence Regina G. Barber talks to host Aaron Scott about the lunar laser ranging experiment — and how shooting that laser helped us better understand one of Einstein's theories. Follow Aaron on Twitter @AaronScottNPR and Regina @ScienceRegina. Reach the show by beaming an email to [email protected].

A struggling Wyoming coal town may soon go nuclear with help from an unlikely partner, billionaire philanthropist Bill Gates. NPR Correspondent Kirk Siegler takes us to Kemmerer, Wyo., where Gates' power company, supported by public funds, plans to open a new type of nuclear energy plant in hopes of replacing a closing coal plant. The model facility would create jobs and provide the flexible baseline energy needed to back up solar, wind and other renewables. But is it a good fit for rural Kemmerer?

Cute, wrinkly faces aside, bulldogs have myriad health problems. Science points to purebred breeding practices as the reason. NPR Science correspondent Lauren Sommer talks to host Aaron Scott about how a bulldog breeding ban in Norway has fueled an ongoing debate on the practice of breeding dogs with low genetic diversity and, as a result, high instances of health problems.

The omicron outbreak has slowed dramatically in the U.S. But cases are rising in Britain due to an omicron subvariant. There are signs the U.S. could also see a bump in cases in the coming weeks. Stay safe out there, fabulous listeners! Feel free to drop us a line at [email protected].

Texas Governor Greg Abbott has directed the state's Department of Family and Protective Services to investigate certain gender-affirming care as possible child abuse, leaving parents of transgender youth feeling caught between two choices: support their children or face a possible investigation. Annaliese and Rachel are mothers living in Texas and both have transgender children. They speak to NPR about the emotional and mental toll this order has had on their families. And while the order is currently blocked by a judge, Chase Strangio, Deputy Director for Transgender Justice with the American Civil Liberties Union, explains the status of other anti-LGBTQ bills in other states.

Arts therapies appear to ease a host of brain disorders from Parkinson's to PTSD. But these treatments that rely on music, poetry or visual arts haven't been backed by rigorous scientific testing. Now, artists and brain scientists have launched a program to change that. NPR's brain correspondent Jon Hamilton tells us about an initiative called the NeuroArts Blueprint.

On December 31, 2021, The Joe Rogan Experience podcast on Spotify posted an episode with an interview with physician Dr. Robert Malone full of misinformation about the Covid-19 vaccine. This sparked outrage, a letter from a group of medical professionals, scientists and educators to Spotify and a series of creators pulling their content from the platform. Science Vs., a podcast produced by Gimlet Media which is owned by Spotify, decided to take a stand too.Listen to the episodes of Science Vs discussed here: - Misinformation: What Should Our Tech Overlords Do: bit.ly/3u2aaUY- Joe Rogan: The Malone Interview: bit.ly/3tduljk

Understanding how life survives in extreme Earth environments could point to ways life can survive on other worlds. Astrobiologist Morgan Cable talks to host Emily Kwong about how her missions here on Earth have guided two upcoming NASA missions in search for alien life, not in a far off galaxy, but here in our solar system. The Titan Dragonfly and the Europa Clipper missions will each explore an ocean world in our solar system, where scientists believe we could find life--life that may be unlike anything we've seen before. Today on Short Wave, life as we know it - and life as we don't know it.Learn more about the search for life in our solar system in the new planetarium show Living Worlds, now at the California Academy of Sciences: Thoughts? Questions? Pitches? E-mail us at [email protected].

Over the last 24 hours, some of us Short Wavers celebrated Pi Day the only way we know how: eating some yummy pie and thinking math thoughts. Here on the show, many of us are math enthusiasts. But none of us claims to be a math perfectionist. We think there's at least as much joy and insight in the mistakes as there is in what we get right. It's a lesson we discussed in today's episode about Matt Parker's book, Humble Pi. It's an oldie but a goodie from our archives.We hope it inspires you to continue to celebrate pi and math everyday.

Geneticist Janina Jeff is back on the show to talk with host Emily Kwong about season 2 of her podcast In Those Genes. They talk about rhythm, aging and navigating what can be ascribed to our genes and what is determined by society.Check out more of Janina's work on In Those Genes: inthosegenes.comEpisodes referenced in today's Short Wave include:- R&B: Rhythm & Blackness- Black Don't CrackAnd listen to our last episode with Janina: n.pr/35TPyWJEmail the show at [email protected].

Growing up, Jada Yuan didn't realize how famous her grandmother was in the world of physics. In this episode, we delve into the life of physicist Chien-Shiung Wu from her granddaughter's perspective. Jada talks to host Emily Kwong about writing the article Discovering Dr. Wu for the Washington Post, where she is a reporter covering culture and politics. Check out part one in which Emily talks to Short Wave's scientist-in-residence about how Chien-Shiung Wu altered physics. She made a landmark discovery in 1956 about how our universe operates at the tiniest levels.

In the 1950's, a particle physicist made a landmark discovery that changed what we thought we knew about how our universe operates. And Chien-Shiung Wu did it while raising a family and an ocean away from her relatives in China. Short Wave's Scientist-In-Residence Regina Barber joins host Emily Kwong to talk about that landmark discovery--what it meant for the physics world, and what it means to Regina personally as a woman and a Chinese and Mexican American in physics.

Pucker up, duderinos! Short Wave's kicking off a series on taste we're calling, "Taste Buddies." In today's episode, we meet Atlantic science writer Katherine Wu and together, we take a tour through the mysteries of sourness — complete with a fun taste test. Along the way, Katie serves up some hypotheses for the evolution of sour taste because, as Katie explains in her article, "The Paradox of Sour," researchers still have a lot to learn about this weird taste.Baffled by another mundane aspect of our existence? Email the show at [email protected] and who knows — it might turn into a whole series!

Over the last few years, we've all found different ways to cope with the pandemic. Some people started drinking more, moving less, maybe eating more. Now that the pandemic is at a lull, health experts say it's time to take stock of these habits. Short Wave host Aaron Scott chats with health correspondent Allison Aubrey about how our daily habits have been affected and changed — for better or worse — and how one might start to change ones they want to change.You can follow Aaron on Twitter @AaronScottNPR and Allison @AubreyNPR. Email Short Wave at [email protected].

For over a decade, Dr. Thomas Insel headed the National Institute of Mental Health and directed billions of dollars into research on neuroscience and the genetic underpinnings of mental illnesses. Health correspondent Rhitu Chatterjee talks with Dr. Thomas Insel about his new book, Healing: Our Path from Mental Illness to Mental Health and how he came to realize where the U.S's mental health care system had failed, despite scientific advances in the field.

In 2021, Short Wave host Emily Kwong ran her first marathon. In collaboration with our colleagues at Life Kit, Emily talks about her experience and discusses keys to training with running coach Laura Norris.

The United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) just released the second of three reports on climate change. Nearly 300 scientists from all over the world worked together to create this account of how global warming is affecting our society. NPR climate reporter Rebecca Hersher fills us in on this major climate science report and actually brings three empowering takeaways hidden within it. Read the report here: https://bit.ly/3hzWNFvAnd listen to Rebecca Hersher's hopeful takeaways from the first report: https://n.pr/3pwZRGXWhat empowers you when thinking about climate change? Email the show at [email protected]!

What bird has a ten-foot wingspan and breeds almost exclusively on a single island in the Pacific Ocean? Find out in this special quiz episode of Short Wave. Host Emily Kwong tests the bird knowledge of musician and nature enthusiast Anthony Albrecht. He recently produced an album of 53 calls from threatened Australian birds to bring awareness to their vulnerable status.Listen to the album, titled Songs of Disappearance, released by the Bowerbird Collective and BirdLife Australia, here.

NPR science correspondent Lauren Sommer joins Short Wave host Emily Kwong to talk about a team of researchers who were the first to document a pack of orcas attacking a blue whale. Their work shows that killer whales, while stars in marine parks and movies, are also the ocean's top-- and often vicious-- predators. Humans' complex relationship with them may say more about humans than about the orcas.

Scientists are piecing together what led up to a massive volcanic eruption in Tonga last month. NPR science correspondent Geoff Brumfiel joins the show to talk about the likely sequence of events— and what it can teach us about future eruptions like this one.Email the show at [email protected]

One of the video games that Short Wave's Scientist in Residence has been playing a lot in the pandemic is Animal Crossing, in which bits of stars fall along the beach. It got Regina thinking — what ARE shooting stars? For answers on all things asteroid, meteoroid and comet, she turns to planetary scientist Melissa Rice. Haven't had any luck Googling to learning more about a cool phenomenon? Shoot us an email [email protected], and we'll dig up some answers.

The pandemic is at a turning point. Hospitalizations in this country are down. Deaths are starting to decline. Some of the states that have had the strictest COVID restrictions are starting to dial back. With fewer cases, and more tools to manage COVID, we can start putting more focus on other diseases again. Doctors are encouraging patients to get the checkups they've been holding off on. NPR science correspondent Allison Aubrey talks about the future of masking, virus detection and routine preventive care that has been ignored during this pandemic.Email the show at [email protected].

Everyone sees the world differently. Exactly which colors you see and which of your eyes is doing more work than the other as you read this text is different for everyone. Also different? Our blind spots – both physical and social. As we continue celebrating Black History Month, today we're featuring Exploratorium Staff Physicist Educator Desiré Whitmore. She shines a light on human eyesight – how it affects perception and how understanding another person's view of the world can offer us a fuller, better picture of life.

A few years ago, ecologist Elizabeth Clare had an idea--what if she could study rare or endangered animals in the wild without ever having to see or capture them? What if she could learn about them by only pulling data out of thin air? It turns out, the air's not so thin. There are bits of DNA floating around us, and Elizabeth figured out how to collect it. She talks to guest host Lauren Sommer about testing her collection method in a zoo, how another science team simultaneous came up with and tested the same idea and how DNA taken from the environment could revolutionize the field of ecology.Read about the study here.

Raychelle Burks is a forensic chemist and an associate professor at American University. She's also a big fan of murder mysteries. Today, we talk pop culture forensics with Raychelle and what signs to look for to know whether or not a tv crime show is getting the science right. (ENCORE)What else bothers you about TV accuracy? E-mail the show at [email protected].

As a kid, Jasmin Graham was endlessly curious about the ocean. That eventually led her to a career in marine science studying sharks and rays. But until relatively recently, she had never met another Black woman in her field. That all changed in 2020 when she connected with a group of Black women studying sharks through the Twitter hashtag #BlackInNature. Finding a community was so powerful that the women decided to start a group. On today's show, Jasmin talks with host Maddie Sofia about Minorities in Shark Sciences (MISS) and how it's supporting women of color through hands-on workshops and community building. (Encore)To see pictures of MISS's first workshop check out their website.

You're likely familiar with touch, taste, smell, sight, and hearing - but there are actually more than five senses. Emily Kwong speaks to neurobiologist André White, assistant professor at Mount Holyoke College, about the beautiful, intricate system that carries information from the outside world in. (ENCORE)

When Abra Lee became the landscape manager at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport, she sought some advice about how to best do the job. The answer: study the history of gardening. That led to her uncovering how Black involvement in horticulture in the U.S. bursts with incredible stories and profound expertise, intertwined with a tragic past. She's now teaching these stories and working on a book, Conquer the Soil: Black America and the Untold Stories of Our Country's Gardeners, Farmers, and Growers. Abra Lee talks with Short Wave producer Eva Tesfaye about uncovering Black horticultural history and several hidden figures who shaped it. We'd love to hear of any unsung horticulturists or gardeners in your life - write us at [email protected].

Humans have scalp hair. But why is human scalp hair so varied? Biological anthropologist Tina Lasisi wanted to find out. And while completing her PhD at Penn State University, she developed a better system for describing hair — rooted in actual science. (Encore)To hear more from Tina, check out these webinars: Why Care About Hair (https://bit.ly/3liJZ96) and How Hair Reveals the Futility of Race Categories (https://s.si.edu/3Dik6g8). And to dive deep into Tina's research, we recommend her paper, The constraints of racialization: How classification and valuation hinder scientific research on human variation (https://bit.ly/3DfDrOS).

Deep below our city streets lie intricate networks of underground piping built to carry away excess rainfall run off. These stormwater systems mostly go unnoticed until heavy rains overwhelm them, causing streets to flood. Now, with rising rainfall averages in much of the nation, cities need to plan for more water. Guest host Dan Charles talks to climate correspondent Lauren Sommer about the challenges of such planning and why many cities aren't set up to handle the coming rains.

Kyne is the stage name of Kyne Santos, a drag queen math communicator. The former Canada's Drag Race contestant posted her first video explaining a math riddle in full drag on TikTok during the pandemic.Since then Kyne's math videos, under the username @onlinekyne, have have attracted 1.2 million followers and generated 33.2 million likes. Kyne talks to host Emily Kwong on how to present math to the masses – and about bringing STEM to the drag scene. Check out Kyne's TikTok videos: tiktok.com/@onlinekyneEmail the show at [email protected].

For Black History Month, Short Wave is celebrating Black voices in STEM - bringing back some of our favorite conversations, as well as new guests with expertise and insights to share. In this encore episode, former Short Wave host Maddie Sofia talks to inventor James West about his life, career, and about how a device he helped invent in the 60's made their interview possible. (Encore)Email us at [email protected].

At Short Wave, it's an unspoken goal to ask and answer every question under the sun — after all, science underpins the entire universe. Today, we think we've finally met our curiosity match in mathematician Hannah Fry and geneticist Adam Rutherford. They're the duo behind the science mystery podcast The Curious Cases of Rutherford and Fry and co-authors of the new book Rutherford & Fry's Complete Guide to Absolutely Everything (Abridged). In the book, they ask questions like: How old is the Earth? Does your dog love you? And, is there free will?Obviously, the middle question is of particular interest.Are you also curious about a scientific mystery? DM us the old-fashioned way — over email at [email protected]. We'll open an investigation.

Triple axel, double lutz, toe loops, salchows — it's time to fall in love again with the sport of figure skating. The 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing are underway, and today on the show, Emily Kwong talks with biomechanic Deborah King about some of the physics behind figure skating. Plus, we go to an ice rink to see it all in action. You can email the show at [email protected].

In 2015, the National Institutes of Health ended invasive biomedical research on its hundreds of chimps. Since then, it's been gradually moving the animals to a sanctuary in Louisiana called Chimp Haven. NPR science correspondent Nell Greenfieldboyce joins the show to talk about the NIH's effort to retire research chimps and why it's complicated.Read more of Nell's reporting about chimp retirement:https://n.pr/3HsgmLq, https://n.pr/3AW3smo and https://n.pr/3sbHyaVEmail the show at [email protected]

Cylita Guy was a curious child who enjoyed exploring the beaches, parks and animals that shared her hometown of Toronto, Canada. She's a scientist – an urban ecologist – interested in city-dwelling bats. Cylita talks to guest host Lauren Sommer about the importance of studying wildlife in cities, and about her children's book, Chasing Bats and Tracking Rats: Urban Ecology, Community Science and How We Share Our Cities. This episode was produced by Berly McCoy, edited by Stephanie O'Neill and fact checked by Katherine Sypher. The audio engineer for this episode was Patrick Murray.

The Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals is deciding whether a Baltimore case against more than a dozen oil and gas companies will be heard in state or federal court. The city argues the companies are liable for the local costs of climate change. It wants the case heard in state court, which is governed by robust consumer protection laws. But industry lawyers are fighting hard to have it and more than 20 other similar lawsuits nationwide tried in federal court, where the oil and gas industry may be more likely to prevail. NPR climate correspondent Rebecca Hersher, brings an update on the case, which went before the U.S. Supreme court last year. She explains how this pending decision may prove key to determining who pays for climate change.Listen to the full Short Wave episode from last year about this case here: n.pr/3gcJDOkEmail the show at [email protected].

As COVID-19 cases in the U.S. drop, the hospitalization rate remains high — as does the death rate. Experts say getting a COVID vaccine booster is key to maintaining immunity, but only about half of all vaccinated people in the U.S. have gotten the booster, which increases protection against both serious illness and death from the Omicron variant. Still, many infectious disease experts are cautiously optimistic for the coming months, pointing to it as a time to bolster our defenses against the virus. Reach the show by emailing [email protected].

Today we're bringing you an episode from our friends at NPR's Pop Culture Happy Hour. They review the new HBO Max miniseries Station Eleven, based on the 2014 novel by author Emily St. John Mandel. The show's premise might sound eerily familiar: it begins with a highly contagious and deadly virus wiping out most of the world's population. The show then follows survivors through the pandemic's aftermath, as they decide how to rebuild what they've lost.

The Omicron surge may have peaked in the U.S., but parts of the world are seeing crippling levels of cases. Jason Beaubien, NPR global health and development correspondent, joins the show to talk about where the virus is spreading, different countries' strategies for controlling the pandemic and what vaccinations look like globally.You can email the show at [email protected].

A few years back, a radio telescope in Australia picked up a radio signal that seemed to be coming from a nearby star. One possibility? Aliens! NPR science correspondent, Geoff Brumfiel, joins the show to talk about the signal and how a hunt for extra-terrestrial life unfolded.Check out the work from Sofia Sheikh and her team at the Berkeley SETI Research Institute about what they learned from the signal: https://bit.ly/3rM6hCoYou can email the show at [email protected].

In the 1960s, the Bureau of Reclamation built a dam that flooded a celebrated canyon on the Utah-Arizona border. Today, it's known as Lake Powell — the second-largest reservoir in the U.S.A half billion dollar tourism industry has grown in the desert around the reservoir but a decades-long megadrought is putting its future in question. With what some call America's 'lost national park' reemerging, an old debate is also resurfacing: should we restore a beloved canyon or refill a popular and critical reservoir? Environmental and American West correspondent Nathan Rott brings this story to guest host Dan Charles. Read Nate's full story and see pictures by photojournalist Claire Harbage of their recent trip to Lake Powell here. This episode was produced by Berly McCoy, edited by Stephanie O'Neill and fact checked by Katherine Sypher. The audio engineer for this episode was Josephine Nyounai.

Many experts warn there will be more infections on the downslope of the omicron surge, but the U.S. is on the path to the virus becoming endemic — and that should mean fewer interruptions to daily life. Take a listen to Rachel Martin chat with health correspondent Allison Aubrey about what's next in the pandemic on Morning Edition. You can email the show at [email protected].

Parkinson's disease is a brain disorder that leads to difficulty with walking, balance and coordination. There is currently no cure, but scientists in Pittsburgh, PA have an ambitious plan to develop a treatment based on the placebo effect. NPR science correspondent, Jon Hamilton, tells the story of how this plan came to be. It involves a batch of illegal drugs, the rabies virus, and figuring out what makes a monkey really happy. Watch the video of the cyclist with Parkinson's disease here: https://bit.ly/3GPZ6PKEmail the show at [email protected].

The James Webb Space Telescope's mirrors are almost in place and soon it'll be a million miles away from Earth, ready to provide clues to the history of the universe. Naturally, many scientists have research they'd like to do that involve the telescope. Today on the show, Emily talks with correspondent Nell Greenfieldboyce about who gets time on it, and how decision-makers are working to stay focused on the proposed science instead of who will be doing it, in the hopes of making the process fair for all proposals.For more of Nell's reporting, check out, Who gets to use NASA's James Webb Space Telescope? Astronomers work to fight bias. (https://n.pr/3tH2vwJ)You can email Short Wave at [email protected].

The U.S. government has launched a website where people can request up to four free coronavirus tests per household--shipping is scheduled to begin in late January. They're responding to the fact that many Americans are really struggling to find tests as omicron surges across the country. (https://special.usps.com/testkits) Today on the show, our colleagues at Planet Money try to get tested — and they run into problems. From scammy testing sites to no tests at all, they explain what's behind the nation's COVID testing mess.

Sixty percent of electricity in the U.S. comes from fossil fuels, like natural gas and coal. Today on the show, guest host Dan Charles talks with reporter Julia Simon about how Hawaii is fighting climate change by throwing out what's been standard for many decades and encouraging the state's power company to make clean electricity. For more of Julia's reporting, check out "Biden's climate agenda is stalled in Congress. In Hawaii, one key part is going ahead." >Email Short Wave at [email protected].

Health apps can be a great way to stay on top of your health. They let users keep track of things like their exercise, mental health, menstrual cycles — even the quality of their skin. But health data researchers Giulia De Togni and Andrea Ford have found that many of these health apps also have a dark side — selling your most personal data to third parties like advertisers, insurers and tech companies.Email us at [email protected].

Pablo Escobar had a private zoo at his estate in Colombia, with zebras, giraffes, flamingoes - and four hippopotamuses. After Escobar was killed in 1993, most of the animals were relocated except for the so-called "cocaine hippos." Authorities thought they would die but they did not and now, about a hundred roam near the estate. Conservationists are trying to control their population because they worry about the people and the environment. But some locals like the hippos and a few researchers say the animals should be left alone and are filling an ecological void. The controversy reflects growing debate in ecology about what an invasive species actually is. Contact Short Wave with your animal stories at [email protected].

It's likely the last week has been rough if you're either going to school or in a family with kids trying to navigate school, be it virtual or in person. Thousands of schools around the country have shifted to remote learning. Others have changed testing protocols, are seeing staff and students out sick while trying to stay open during the midst of this latest surge. NPR health correspondent Rhitu Chatterjee and NPR education correspondent Anya Kamenetz talk to All Things Considered host Ailsa Chang about the effects on both kids' education and their mental health.Please feel free to e-mail us at [email protected].

Wingspan is a board game that brings the world of ornithology into the living room. The game comes with 170 illustrated birds cards, each equipped with a power that reflects that bird's behavior in nature. Wingspan game designer Elizabeth Hargrave speaks with Short Wave's Emily Kwong about her quest to blend scientific accuracy with modern board game design. (encore)

The U.S. is experiencing a viral blizzard which will likely continue through January, 2022. The omicron variant's surge is pushing hospitalization rates up across the country and most of the seriously ill are not vaccinated. With likely weeks still to go before infections with this variant reach their peak, the message is get vaccinated and get boosted. Emily Kwong talks to Short Wave regular Allison Aubrey about what researchers know about omicron's severity and how the vaccines are changing health outcomes. They also talk about COVID-19 and children. And, they'll talk about some strategies to figure out how to live with the virus circulating, possibly for years to come.Write us with your omicron questions at [email protected].

Electric cars can help reduce greenhouse gases and companies are taking note — racing to become the next Tesla. Today on the show, guest host Dan Charles talks with business reporter Camila Domonoske about how serious the country is about this big switch from gas to electric cars. Plus, what could get drivers to ditch the gas guzzlers?For more of Camila's reporting on electric cars, check out "The age of gas cars could be ending" and "2 little-known automotive startups are leading the race to become the next Tesla"You can email the show at [email protected].

Service dogs have long helped veterans with physical disabilities. While there have been stories about veterans with post-traumatic stress disorder being transformed by service animals, the peer-reviewed science wasn't there to back up the claims. Health reporter Stephanie O'Neill reports that's changed in recent years. Studies suggest service dogs can be effective at easing PTSD symptoms and used alongside other treatments. Now, the PAWS for Veterans Therapy Act will help connect specially trained dogs to some veterans with symptoms of traumatic stress. Read more of Stephanie's reporting: https://n.pr/32bXn8EThis reporting was done in partnership with Kaiser Health News.

Infectious disease specialist Dr. Jasmine Marcelin has spent the last year talking to a lot of people about getting the COVID-19 vaccine. Today on the show, in part two of a two part series, Dr. Marcelin shares with Emily Kwong what she's learned and how to talk about the vaccine with people who have doubts about getting vaccinated. You can follow Emily on Twitter @EmilyKwong1234. Email Short Wave at [email protected].

On today's show, Emily Kwong checks in with infectious disease physician Dr. Jasmine Marcelin at the University of Nebraska Medical Center. Jasmine spoke to Short Wave last year about how COVID-19 affected her as a doctor. In part one of a two part episode, Emily talks with her about how she's feeling a year in and how getting involved in community vaccination clinics has made a difference in her life. You can follow Emily on Twitter @EmilyKwong1234. E-mail Short Wave at [email protected].

A few months ago, on a trip to Hawaii, Short Wave host Emily Kwong encountered manta rays for the first time. The experience was eerie and enchanting. And it left Emily wondering — what more is there to these intelligent, entrancing fish? Today, Emily poses all her questions to Rachel Graham, the founder and executive director of MarAlliance, a marine conservation organization working in tropical seas.Have you been completely captivated by an animal too? Share your story with us at [email protected].

The cannabis industry is where the chemistry lab meets agriculture. Delta-8-THC is chemically derived and the hemp industry's fastest growing product. It has been popping up in smoke shops, CBD shops and even gas stations.Dr. Katelyn Kesheimer, a researcher at Auburn University and the Alabama Cooperative Extension System, joins the show to demystify Delta-8. We'll learn what it's made of, where it comes from, why it's so popular, and why science and the federal government are falling so far behind the cannabis industry.Email the show at [email protected].

Social Psychologist Devon Price says instead of viewing "laziness" as a deficit or something people need to fix or overcome with caffeine or longer work hours, think of it as a sign you probably need a break. Short Wave has this episode from our colleagues at Life Kit.

Lot of people took up bird watching in some form during the pandemic, including Short Wave editor Gisele Grayson. She edited this episode about 2021's #BlackBirdersWeek — it about celebrating Black joy. Co-organizer Deja Perkins talks about how the week went and why it's important to observe nature wherever you live.

Many skin conditions, from rashes to Lyme disease to various cancers, present differently on dark skin. Yet medical literature and textbooks don't often include those images, pointing to a bigger problem in dermatology. Today on the show, we take a close look at how the science of skincare has evolved to better serve patients of color, but still has a long way to go.

That's right — Day 2 of Short Wave's Favorite Episodes Week is pure math goodness! This encore episode, we revisit a conversation with mathematician Ranthony Edmonds. She reminds us that the idea of a lone genius scribbling away and solving complex equations is nothing more than a myth — one she actively tries to dispel in her classroom at The Ohio State University. Instead, Ranthony focuses on the community aspects of math: the support systems behind each mathematician and the benefits of a collaborative, inclusive environment for math innovation. Think we should consider math more? Let us know by emailing [email protected].

It's "My Favorite Things" week on Short Wave! Through December 30th, we'll dive into our archive to bring y'all some of our personal faves — including behind-the-scenes stories from the team. First up, a throwback from November 2019: Imagine having your Thanksgiving meal in microgravity? That's the reality for the six astronauts aboard the International Space Station. Today, we look at the evolution of astronaut food and a planned attempt to bake chocolate chip cookies in space. (Encore episode)Email the show at [email protected].

Today we are wrapping up Science Fiction Week with a very special episode from our friends at NPR's history podcast Throughline. As a part of their Imagining New Worlds series, they dive into the life of visionary science fiction writer Octavia Butler. Octavia crafted cautionary tales combined with messages of hope and resilience. Her work made her the first Black woman to win the Hugo and Nebula, science fiction's most prestigious awards. (Encore episode)

Today we're bringing you a beginner's guide to reading science fiction and fantasy from our friends at NPR's Pop Culture Happy Hour and Life Kit.So whether you're a longtime fan or a stranger in these strange lands, we've got you covered with the basics of what defines this genre and some solid recommendations to get you reading.

Today we're throwing back to one of our favorite Science Movie Club episodes: 'Contact' featuring Jodie Foster. It was a real crowd pleaser, especially among extraterrestrials and Carl Sagan fans, and features the work of beloved Short Wave alumni and sci-fi aficionados Maddie Sofia and Viet Le. The 1997 film got a lot of things right ... and a few things wrong. Radio astronomer Summer Ash, an education specialist with the National Radio Astronomy Observatory, breaks down the science in the film. (Encore episode)

It's Science Fiction Week on Short Wave, earthlings! So strap on your zero gravity suits and polish your light sabers because we're about to get nerdy ... starting with today's episode. It's one of our science fiction myth busting favorites from earlier this year. Contrary to sci-fi depictions in shows like Iron Man and Star Wars, getting from point A to point B in space is a tough engineering problem. NPR Science Correspondent Geoff Brumfiel, with help from scientist Naia Butler-Craig, explains how space propulsion actually works, and why some new technologies might be needed to get humans to Mars and beyond. (Encore episode)