Twitter: @scifri
Site: www.sciencefriday.com/radio
150 episodes
2023 to present
Average episode: 22 minutes
Open in Apple Podcasts • RSS
Categories: Broadcast Radio Programs • News-Style
Podcaster's summary: Brain fun for curious people.
| Episodes |
| 2024-Apr-23 • 18 minutes What Worsening Floods Mean For Superfund Sites Superfund sites contain extreme pollution. Flooding—made worse by climate change—could carry their toxic contaminants into surrounding areas. |
| 2024-Apr-22 • 18 minutes The Global Mental Health Toll Of Climate Change | Capturing DNA From 800 Lakes In One Day An explosion of research is painting a clearer picture of how climate change is affecting mental health across the globe. Also, a citizen science project aims to find species that have gone unnoticed by sampling the waters of hundreds of lakes worldwide for environmental DNA. |
| 2024-Apr-19 • 25 minutes Clean Energy Transition Progress | Avian Flu In Cattle And Humans Has Scientists Concerned Global temperature increases are slowing, electric vehicle sales are growing, and renewable energy is now cheaper than some fossil fuels. Also, in a recent outbreak of avian flu, the virus has jumped from birds to cows, and to one dairy worker. A disease ecologist provides context. |
| 2024-Apr-18 • 18 minutes A Cheer For The Physics Of Baseball When you watch a baseball game, you’re also enjoying a spectacular display of science—from physics to biomechanics. |
| 2024-Apr-17 • 19 minutes Carbon Cost Of Urban Gardens And Commercial Farms | Why There's No Superbloom This Year Some food has a larger carbon footprint when grown in urban settings than on commercial farms, while for other foods the reverse is true. Also, what’s the difference between wildflowers blooming in the desert each spring, and the rare phenomenon of a “superbloom”? |
| 2024-Apr-16 • 18 minutes Inside The Race To Save Honeybees From Parasitic Mites Varroa destructor mites are killing honeybees and their babies at alarming rates. |
| 2024-Apr-15 • 16 minutes The Brain’s Glial Cells Might Be As Important As Neurons These lesser-known nervous system cells were long thought to be the “glue” holding neurons together. They’re much more. |
| 2024-Apr-12 • 26 minutes Limits On ‘Forever Chemicals’ In Drinking Water | An Important Winter Home For Bugs | Eclipse Drumroll A long-awaited rule from the EPA limits the amounts of six PFAS chemicals allowed in public drinking water supplies. Also, some spiders, beetles, and centipedes spend winter under snow in a layer called the subnivium. Plus, a drumroll for the total solar eclipse. |
| 2024-Apr-11 • 18 minutes Investigating Animal Deaths At The National Zoo When an animal dies at Washington, D.C.’s National Zoo, a pathologist gathers clues about its health and death from a necropsy. |
| 2024-Apr-10 • 19 minutes Eating More Oysters Helps Us—And The Chesapeake Bay In the ever-changing and biodiverse Chesapeake Bay, conservation and food production go hand in hand. |
| 2024-Apr-09 • 13 minutes How Trees Keep D.C. And Baltimore Cool Satellite technology—and community outreach—can help harness trees’ cooling power for city residents. |
| 2024-Apr-08 • 18 minutes Predicting Heart Disease From Chest X-Rays With AI | Storing New Memories During Sleep Dr. Eric Topol discusses the promise of “opportunistic” AI, using medical scans for unintended diagnostic purposes. Also, a study in mice found that the brain tags new memories through a “sharp wave ripple” mechanism that then repeats during sleep. |
| 2024-Apr-05 • 31 minutes Recipient Of Pig Kidney Transplant Recovering | Answering Your Questions About April 8 Eclipse A Massachusetts man who received a kidney from a genetically modified pig is recovering well. Also, on April 8, a total solar eclipse will plunge parts of North America into darkness. Scientists answer the questions you asked. |
| 2024-Apr-04 • 18 minutes Our Inevitable Cosmic Apocalypse We revisit a 2020 interview with cosmologist Katie Mack about how the universe could end. Plus, remembering psychologist Daniel Kahneman. |
| 2024-Apr-03 • 18 minutes The Complicated Truths About Offshore Wind And Right Whales Officials say offshore wind turbines aren’t killing North Atlantic right whales. So why do so many people think otherwise? |
| 2024-Apr-02 • 18 minutes The Bumpy Road To Approving New Alzheimer’s Drugs After a controversial Alzheimer’s medication was discontinued, a new anti-amyloid drug receives extra scrutiny from the FDA. |
| 2024-Apr-01 • 23 minutes ‘3 Body Problem’ And The Laws Of Physics | In Defense Of ‘Out Of Place’ Plants Particle accelerators, nanofibers, and solar physics: The science advisor for the Netflix adaptation breaks down the physics in the show. Also, in her new book, Jessica J. Lee looks at how humans have moved plants around the globe–and how our migrations are intertwined with theirs. |
| 2024-Mar-29 • 20 minutes Baltimore Bridge Collapse | Mapping How Viruses Jump Between Species We look into the engineering reasons why the Francis Scott Key bridge collapsed after a ship crashed into it. Also, a new analysis finds that more viruses spread from humans to animals than from animals to humans. |
| 2024-Mar-28 • 18 minutes The Legacy Of Primatologist Frans de Waal In a conversation from 2019, Dr. Frans de Waal tells the story of a female chimp who didn’t produce enough milk to feed her young. The prominent primatologist, who died this month, helped humans understand the emotional lives of our closest living animal relatives. |
| 2024-Mar-27 • 19 minutes The ‘Asteroid Hunter’ Leading The OSIRIS-REx Mission In a new memoir, planetary scientist Dr. Dante Lauretta takes readers behind the scenes of a mission to secure a sample from the asteroid Bennu. |
| 2024-Mar-26 • 18 minutes Swimming Sea Lions Teach Engineers About Fluid Dynamics Understanding how sea lions move through water could help engineers design better underwater vehicles. |
| 2024-Mar-25 • 18 minutes Botanical Rescue Centers Take In Illegally Trafficked Plants The U.S. Botanic Garden is one of 62 locations across the United States that rescue endangered species poached in the wild. |
| 2024-Mar-22 • 25 minutes 2023 Was Hottest Year On Record | The NASA Satellite Studying Plankton The World Meteorological Organization’s report confirms last year had the highest temperatures on record and predicts an even hotter 2024. Also, NASA’s new PACE satellite will study how these tiny creatures could affect Earth’s climate, and how aerosols influence air quality. |
| 2024-Mar-21 • 18 minutes A Strange-Looking Fish, Frozen In Time A group of fish called gar, dubbed “living fossils,” may have the slowest rate of evolution of any jawed vertebrate. |
| 2024-Mar-20 • 18 minutes What We Know After 4 Years Of COVID-19 Four years ago this week, the World Health Organization declared COVID-19 a pandemic. Experts say it’s far from over. |
| 2024-Mar-19 • 18 minutes Science Unlocks The Power Of Flavor In ‘Flavorama’ In her new book, Dr. Arielle Johnson explains how and what we taste with chemistry. |
| 2024-Mar-18 • 18 minutes Abortion-Restrictive States Leave Ob-Gyns With Tough Choices Post-Dobbs, ob-gyns and medical students alike must navigate the risk of criminal prosecution associated with patient care in some states. |
| 2024-Mar-15 • 25 minutes Nasal Rinsing Safely | How Your Brain Constructs Your Mental Health A recent study looked into life-threatening Acanthamoeba infections, and a few deaths, linked to the use of tap water with devices like neti pots. And, in ‘The Balanced Brain,’ Dr. Camilla Nord explores the neuroscience behind mental health, and how our brains deal with life’s challenges. |
| 2024-Mar-14 • 18 minutes A New Book Puts ‘Math in Drag’ Do you think math is boring? Drag queen Kyne is on a mission to make math fun and accessible for all. |
| 2024-Mar-13 • 17 minutes With This Rare Disorder, No Amount Of Sleep Is Enough A new book explores idiopathic hypersomnia, which causes overwhelming daytime sleepiness despite ample sleep. |
| 2024-Mar-12 • 19 minutes How Election Science Can Support Democracy | The Genetic Roots Of Antibiotic Resistance The Union of Concerned Scientists has unveiled an election science task force led by experts from across the country. Also, a survey of soil and animal poop samples from around the world identified 18 new species of Enterococcus bacteria. |
| 2024-Mar-11 • 31 minutes Triple Feature: Dune, Mars, And An Alien On Earth On the heels of the Oscars, we dive into three films that take us to other worlds: A planetary scientist compares Arrakis from 'Dune' to real planets and analyzes whether life could exist on such a sandy, scorching-hot world. And, in a new documentary, NASA psychologists try to find solutions for the mental health challenges of a three-year trip to Mars. Finally, in the movie “65,” an alien crashes on Earth during the Jurassic era, shocked to discover dinosaurs. An astrobiologist has questions. |
| 2024-Mar-08 • 13 minutes Could This Be The End Of Voyager 1? Voyager 1 has been sending incoherent data back to Earth, possibly marking the beginning of the end of its decades-old mission. |
| 2024-Mar-07 • 17 minutes What It Takes To Care For The US Nuclear Arsenal The book “Countdown” looks at why the US is modernizing its arsenal, and what it means to exist with nuclear weapons. |
| 2024-Mar-06 • 18 minutes A Young Scientist Uplifts The Needs Of Parkinson’s Patients Neuroscience graduate student Senegal Alfred Mabry is looking at effects of Parkinson’s disease beyond the most visible body tremors. |
| 2024-Mar-05 • 25 minutes Snakes Are Evolutionary Superstars | Whale Song Is All In The Larynx In the trees, through the water, and under the dirt: Snakes evolve faster than their lizard relatives, allowing them to occupy diverse niches. Also, researchers are working to understand just how baleen whales are able to produce their haunting songs. |
| 2024-Mar-04 • 18 minutes What’s Behind The Measles Outbreak In Florida? Two pediatricians discuss the outbreak, vaccine hesitancy, and unraveling public health measures in Florida and beyond. |
| 2024-Mar-01 • 19 minutes Pythagoras Was Wrong About Music | Biochar's Potential For Carbon Capture The Greek philosopher Pythagoras had specific ideas about the mathematical ratios behind music. It turns out that he was wrong. Also, the charcoal-like substance known as biochar packs carbon into a stable form, making it less likely to escape into the atmosphere. |
| 2024-Feb-29 • 18 minutes As Space Exploration Expands, So Will Space Law A new generation of space lawyers will broker deals and handle disputes between countries as the world enters a new era of space exploration. |
| 2024-Feb-28 • 18 minutes Blood In The Water: Shark Smell Put To The Test Despite their reputation as super-smellers, sharks don’t have a better sense of smell than other fish. One researcher investigates. |
| 2024-Feb-27 • 25 minutes How Trivia Experts Recall Facts | One Ant Species Sent Ripples Through A Food Web How can some people recall random facts so easily? It may have to do with what else they remember about the moment they learned the information. Also, in Kenya, an invading ant species pushed out ants that protected acacia trees. That had cascading effects for elephants, zebras, lions, and buffalo. |
| 2024-Feb-26 • 17 minutes OpenAI’s New Product Makes Incredibly Realistic Fake Videos A security expert weighs in on Sora, OpenAI’s new text-to-video generator, and the risks it could pose, especially during an election year. |
| 2024-Feb-23 • 19 minutes Private Spacecraft Makes Historic Moon Landing | New Cloud Seeding Technique The Odysseus lander, made by Intuitive Machines and launched by SpaceX a week ago, is the first commercial mission to soft-land on the moon. Also, scientists try swapping silver iodide for liquid propane to keep long-running cloud seeding programs effective in warmer temperatures. |
| 2024-Feb-22 • 17 minutes Making Chemistry More Accessible To Blind And Low-Vision People Scientists are working to make chemical research more accessible to blind and low-vision students through 3D-printed models and modified equipment. |
| 2024-Feb-21 • 18 minutes Understanding And Curbing Generative AI’s Energy Consumption As the environmental costs of tools like ChatGPT and DALL-E mount, governments are demanding more clarity from tech companies. |
| 2024-Feb-20 • 23 minutes Which Feathered Dinosaurs Could Fly? | Some French Cheeses At Risk Of Extinction Researchers found that a specific number and symmetry of certain feathers can indicate whether a bird (or dinosaur) could fly. Plus, a lack of diversity in the microbes that make Camembert, brie, and some blue cheeses could mean we bid adieu to some French varieties. |
| 2024-Feb-19 • 18 minutes Climate Scientist Michael Mann Wins Defamation Case Michael Mann discusses what the victory means for the public understanding of climate science—and for bad-faith attacks on scientists. |
| 2024-Feb-16 • 21 minutes Odysseus Lander Heads To The Moon | Ohio Chemical Spill, One Year Later If successful, Odysseus will be the first U.S. spacecraft to land on the moon since the Apollo mission. And, in East Palestine, Ohio, the stream that flows under residents’ houses is still polluted following a train derailment and chemical spill. |
| 2024-Feb-15 • 18 minutes One Crisis After Another: Designing Cities For Resiliency The leaders of a global architecture and design firm discuss how design can help communities adapt to global crises. |
| 2024-Feb-14 • 18 minutes Using Sound To Unpack The History Of Astronomy A new podcast series examines sonified space data to explore pivotal moments throughout the history of astronomy. |
| 2024-Feb-13 • 24 minutes Colorectal Cancer Rates Rising In Young People | What An AI Learns From A Baby Colorectal cancer is becoming increasingly common among adults in their 20s, 30s, and 40s. Plus, associating images and sounds from a child’s daily life helped teach a computer model a set of basic nouns. |
| 2024-Feb-12 • 18 minutes A Black Physician’s Analysis Of The Legacy Of Racism In Medicine In a new book, Dr. Uché Blackstock reflects on her experiences as a Black physician and the structural racism embedded in medicine. |
| 2024-Feb-09 • 20 minutes Faraway Planets With Oceans Of Magma | The Art And Science Of Trash Talk Hycean planets were thought to be covered by oceans of water, but a new study suggests it could be magma instead. And, author Rafi Kohan explains the psychological and physiological responses to trash talk, ahead of Super Bowl Sunday. |
| 2024-Feb-08 • 19 minutes Is Each Fingerprint On Your Hand Unique? | In This Computer Component, Data Slides Through Honey A new study uses artificial intelligence to show that each of our ten fingerprints are remarkably similar to one another. Plus, honey could be the secret ingredient in building a more eco-friendly “memristor,” which transmits data through malleable pathways. |
| 2024-Feb-07 • 18 minutes The FDA Approved The First CRISPR-Based Therapy. What’s Next? The first CRISPR gene-editing treatment is a cure for sickle cell disease. Are we on the cusp of a gene therapy revolution? |
| 2024-Feb-06 • 18 minutes Protecting The ‘Satan’ Tarantula | If Termites Wore Stripes, Would Spiders Still Eat Them? A team of scientists in Ecuador is on a mission to describe new-to-science tarantula species to help secure conservation protections. And, undergraduate researchers pasted striped capes onto termites’ backs to see if a well-known warning sign would fend off predators. |
| 2024-Feb-05 • 18 minutes Scientists Are Uncovering A World Of ‘Dark Matter’ Carcinogens New findings about how substances like air pollutants can trigger cancer may help reveal carcinogens we were unaware of. |
| 2024-Feb-02 • 25 minutes Syphilis Cases Up 80% Since 2018 | The Largest Deep-Sea Coral Reef In The World There has been a boom of syphilis cases, including a 180% increase in congenital syphilis cases, despite other STI levels staying stable. Also, the world's largest deep-sea reef stretches for hundreds of miles in near-freezing waters and total darkness, but it’s bustling with life. |
| 2024-Feb-01 • 17 minutes Expanding Our Umwelt: Understanding Animal Experiences Writing about animals’ sensory experiences in ‘An Immense World’ changed author Ed Yong’s own worldview—and hobbies. |
| 2024-Jan-31 • 18 minutes How Signing Characters Help Deaf Children Learn Language A lab at Gallaudet University is creating television shows with signing characters to increase literacy in both English and ASL. |
| 2024-Jan-30 • 18 minutes ‘Mysterious’ Canine Illness: What Dog Owners Should Know Veterinary experts discuss what is known about the potential respiratory pathogen—or pathogens—and which dogs are most at risk. |
| 2024-Jan-29 • 18 minutes An App For People Of Color To Rate Their Birthing Experiences | How Different Animals See Irth is a “Yelp-like” app to help expectant parents make informed decisions by exposing bias and racism in healthcare systems. Also, a new video camera system shows the colors of the natural world as different animals see them. |
| 2024-Jan-26 • 25 minutes NASA Opens Canister With Asteroid Sample | ADHD Prescription Rates Spiked During The Pandemic Engineers had to design bespoke tools to open the OSIRIS-REx capsule nearly four months after it arrived back on Earth. Also, prescription rates for ADHD drugs rose by 30% from 2020-2022, with large increases among women and young people. |
| 2024-Jan-25 • 18 minutes AI Helps Find Ancient Artifacts In The Great Lakes | An Artist Combines Indigenous Textiles With Modern Tech Researchers in Michigan modeled a prehistoric land bridge and used AI to predict where caribou–and humans–might have traveled along it. Also, artist Sarah Rosalena uses Indigenous weaving, ceramics, and sculpture practices to create art that challenges tech’s future. |
| 2024-Jan-24 • 31 minutes When The ‘Personal’ Computer Turned 30 In a conversation from 2014, Ira and guests looked back on the early days of personal computing, talk about how the Macintosh came to be, and reflect on what the anniversary of the Mac meant after 30 years. |
| 2024-Jan-23 • 27 minutes How The Moon Transformed Life On Earth, From Climate to Timekeeping A new book explores how the moon changed us—and how we’ve changed the moon. |
| 2024-Jan-22 • 34 minutes From Scans To Office Visits: How Will AI Shape Medicine? Scientists are testing artificial intelligence’s ability to read imaging results, make diagnoses, and more. Listeners call in. |
| 2024-Jan-19 • 13 minutes Rhesus Monkey Cloned With Modified Approach Has Survived Into Adulthood In China, a cloned rhesus monkey has lived for over two years, signifying advances in cloning and reproductive gene editing technology. |
| 2024-Jan-18 • 19 minutes 3,000 Types Of Brain Cells Categorized In Massive Brain Cell Atlas The new atlas catalogs cell types by the genes they express, which could help medical researchers tailor treatments. |
| 2024-Jan-17 • 14 minutes Brain ‘Organoids’: Lab-Grown Cell Clusters Model Brain Functions Scientists can coax stem cells into clusters that mimic the functions of brain regions, which could help us understand brain disorders. |
| 2024-Jan-16 • 19 minutes The Lasting Allure Of Shackleton’s ‘Endurance’ In a conversation from March 2023, the maritime archeologist who found the storied wreck discusses the mission and his new book. |
| 2024-Jan-15 • 33 minutes How Close Are We To Answers About Aliens? Dr. Adam Frank discusses the human fascination with extraterrestrial life—and the scientific search for it—in his new book. |
| 2024-Jan-12 • 25 minutes NASA Delays Crewed Moon Missions | Top Technologies To Watch In 2024 With this week’s delays to Artemis II and III, astronauts likely won’t walk on the moon until 2026 at the earliest. Also, weight-loss drugs, AI, clean-energy tech and more: digging into MIT Technology Review’s annual list with executive editor Amy Nordrum. |
| 2024-Jan-11 • 18 minutes To Get Ready For Mars, NASA Studies How The Body Changes In Space Spending time in space affects everything from eyesight to bone health. NASA’s CIPHER program will measure these changes and more. |
| 2024-Jan-10 • 18 minutes Science Journalism Is Shrinking–Along With Public Trust In Science In 2023, a flood of science journalists lost their jobs. At the same time, public trust in science continues to decline. |
| 2024-Jan-09 • 19 minutes (Part 2) Endangered Species Act At 50: Orchids And Red Wolves It's been 50 years since the Endangered Species Act established protections for plant and animal species at risk of extinction. Conservationists discuss ongoing efforts to protect orchids and red wolves. |
| 2024-Jan-08 • 17 minutes (Part 1) Endangered Species Act at 50: Hawaiian Land Snails It's been 50 years since the Endangered Species Act established protections for plant and animal species at risk of extinction. Two conservationists discuss the effort to save Hawaiian land snails. |
| 2024-Jan-05 • 25 minutes Solar Activity Flares Up In 2024 | Underground Hydrogen Reserves And Clean Energy Look out for a total solar eclipse, more solar flares, and the Parker Solar Probe’s closest approach to the sun. Also, underground hydrogen stores have raised renewable energy hopes, but can the industry overcome the logistical hurdles of distributing it? |
| 2024-Jan-04 • 37 minutes SciFri Reads ‘The Alchemy Of Us’ In November 2023, the SciFri Book Club met with author Ainissa Ramirez to talk about how our values are baked into our creations—and the people who helped bring them into reality. |
| 2024-Jan-03 • 47 minutes SciFri Reads ‘The Kaiju Preservation Society’ In August 2023, the SciFri Book Club talked with author John Scalzi about what it takes to write a believable monster onto the page. |
| 2024-Jan-02 • 29 minutes Star Trek’s Science Advisor Reveals The Real Astrophysics On Screen In a conversation from May 2023, astrophysicist Dr. Erin Macdonald talks about consulting on the famous series and the real (and fictional) science on screen. |
| 2024-Jan-01 • 34 minutes A Mathematician Asks ‘Is Math Real?’ When math is based on abstract concepts, how do we know it’s correct? In a conversation from October 2023, Dr. Eugenia Cheng takes on that question in a new book. |
| 2023-Dec-29 • 21 minutes Unmasking Owls’ Mysteries | Why It Feels So Good To Eat Chocolate In conversations from 2023, Jennifer Ackerman’s delves into owls' mysteries, and an artificial tongue helps researchers understand how texture impacts what people like about chocolate. |
| 2023-Dec-28 • 54 minutes SciFri Reads ‘The Best American Science and Nature Writing 2023’ Earlier this year, the SciFri Book Club met to reflect on our favorite stories from last year and the future of scientific discovery and journalism. |
| 2023-Dec-27 • 30 minutes The Unseen World Of Seaweeds | Should 'Dark Fungi' Species Get Names? In a conversation from 2023, an author celebrates the beautiful and underappreciated seaweeds shaping coastlines around the world. Also, scientists have recovered the DNA of thousands of new species of fungi from the environment, but they aren’t eligible for scientific names. |
| 2023-Dec-26 • 30 minutes How 'Panda Diplomacy' Led To Conservation Success For decades, panda policy has guided conservation advancements. Now, pandas in the US are being returned to China. |
| 2023-Dec-25 • 16 minutes Music’s Emotional Power Can Shape Memories—And Your Perception Of Time Researchers used music to elicit different emotions, then looked at how shifts in emotion influenced participants’ memory formation. |
| 2023-Dec-22 • 18 minutes Top Science News Stories of 2023 | Solar Panels In Historic Cape Cod This year brought us new vaccines, a highly anticipated asteroid sample, and an update to T. rex’s smile. Also, local historic committees in Cape Cod are blocking some residents from installing solar panels, citing visual impact on the neighborhood. |
| 2023-Dec-21 • 18 minutes Pennsylvania Drug Laws May Limit Syringe Services | These Romance Novels Represent Black Women In Science Pennsylvania will receive more than $1.6 billion in opioid settlement funds. But state laws may prevent that money from going to syringe services. Also, Dr. Carlotta Berry writes romance novels about Black women in the sciences to encourage more people to go into the field. |
| 2023-Dec-20 • 18 minutes Flame Retardant From Cocoa Pod Husks | The Oozy Physics Of Oobleck Scientists are using leftover cocoa pod husks to extract lignin, an organic polymer that can become flame retardant, foam, or a straw. Also, Non-Newtonian fluids challenge our ideas of what’s liquid and what’s solid. We now have a better understanding of how they work. |
| 2023-Dec-19 • 18 minutes The Military’s Carbon Footprint Is A Hidden Cost Of Defense A recent report estimates that climate reparations of the US and UK militaries would reach $111 billion. |
| 2023-Dec-18 • 20 minutes High Energy Cosmic Ray Detected | These Penguins Are The Masters Of Microsleeping While they’re nesting, chinstrap penguins take thousands of seconds-long naps a day. It adds up. Also, powerful cosmic rays like the “Amaterasu” particle are typically caused by celestial events. This one’s source is unknown. |
| 2023-Dec-15 • 23 minutes COP28 Climate Conference Ends | Why Are Some People Affected By Seasonal Affective Disorder? COP28 ended with an agreement calling for a transition away from fossil fuels, but critics say it’s too little, too late. Also, some people are more prone to develop seasonal depression. A researcher discusses the most effective treatments. |
| 2023-Dec-14 • 34 minutes A Celebration Of The 2023 Christmas Bird Count Birders across the world band together to record the number of birds in their communities from Dec 14 to Jan 5. |
| 2023-Dec-13 • 17 minutes Surfing Particles Can Supercharge Northern Lights In a conversation from 2021, Ira and a researcher discuss how the physics of plasma, particles, and the Earth’s magnetic field combine in dazzling displays of aurora. |
| 2023-Dec-12 • 33 minutes The (Not So) Easy Guide To Getting To Space In a new book, astronaut Mike Massimino reflects on his time in space, and what it taught him about succeeding on Earth. |
| 2023-Dec-11 • 18 minutes The Women Astronomers Who Captured the Stars In a conversation from 2016, Ira and Dava Sobel discuss a team of women astronomers at the Harvard College Observatory who worked to classify the stars at the beginning of the 20th century. |
| 2023-Dec-08 • 25 minutes Quercetin May Cause Red Wine Headaches | Worsening Wildfires Are Undoing Air Quality Progress A new theory pins the throbbing pain of a red wine headache on quercetin, an antioxidant in grape skins. Plus, wildfires in the Western US have not only lowered air quality, but led to increased deaths between 2000 and 2020. |
| 2023-Dec-07 • 18 minutes Speaking Multiple Languages Changes The Way You Think Speaking more than one language has the power to shape memory and cognition–and perhaps even delay the onset of Alzheimer’s. |
| 2023-Dec-06 • 18 minutes Social Connections Keep Us Physically and Mentally Healthy As We Age Long-term research tracking adults over 50 shows that social activity, intimacy, and personal connections are key to good health. |
| 2023-Dec-05 • 13 minutes Women Were Also Skilled Hunters In Ancient Times New analysis of remains and burial items suggests women and men did both parts of hunting and gathering in the Paleolithic era. |
| 2023-Dec-04 • 24 minutes An AI Leader’s Human-Centered Approach To Artificial Intelligence Dr. Fei-Fei Li of the Stanford Institute for Human-Centered AI discusses the promise and peril of the ground-breaking technology. |
| 2023-Dec-01 • 23 minutes COP28 Host Had Plans to Promote Oil and Gas | Researchers Detected Cicada Emergence With Fiber-Optics The United Nations climate summit will happen for the next two weeks in Dubai—a city known for its oil money. And, in 2021, an electronics and communications lab accidentally detected the mass emergence of Brood X with fiber-optic sensors. |
| 2023-Nov-30 • 26 minutes Ralph Nader Reflects On His Auto Safety Campaign, 55 Years Later In a conversation from 2021, Ira discusses how auto safety has drastically advanced, thanks in part to Nader’s groundbreaking investigation. |
| 2023-Nov-29 • 13 minutes What’s That Smell? An AI Nose Knows In a conversation from September 2023, Ira discusses a computer model can map the structure of a chemical to predict what it probably smells like. |
| 2023-Nov-28 • 36 minutes Jane Goodall On Life Among Chimpanzees In an interview from 2002, the primatologist gave Ira a lesson in how to speak with chimps. |
| 2023-Nov-27 • 22 minutes The ‘Wet-Dog Shake’ And Other Physics Mysteries From 2018: In his book 'How to Walk on Water and Climb Up Walls,' David Hu explores the wonders of the animal world. |
| 2023-Nov-24 • 25 minutes Ig Nobel Prizes | Stop Flushing Your Health Data Down The Toilet Counting nose hairs and licking rocks: Highlights from the 33rd First Annual Ig Nobel Prize ceremony. Plus, in a conversation from March 2023, Ira discusses smart toilets powered by AI to give users more insight into their health. |
| 2023-Nov-23 • 18 minutes The West’s Wild Horses | Artist Explores History Of Humans Genetically Modifying Pigs Reporter Ashley Ahearn bought a wild horse from the federal government for $125. Also, with opera and visual art, an exhibit looks at modern genetic engineering of pigs. |
| 2023-Nov-22 • 21 minutes Moon Rock Research | Science of Unraveling Sweaters Research on crystals brought back by the Apollo 17 mission shows that the moon is 40 million years older than we thought. And, a textile professor and knit expert explains why many sweaters today are of poorer quality than sweaters in the past. |
| 2023-Nov-21 • 26 minutes 2023’s Best Science Books For Kids An editor and a children’s author weigh in on this year’s best STEM books for kids. Plus, listeners share their own favorites. |
| 2023-Nov-20 • 18 minutes How AI Chatbots Can Reinforce Racial Bias In Medicine Researchers examined four popular chatbots and found they perpetuated debunked, harmful ideas from race-based medicine. |
| 2023-Nov-17 • 13 minutes An Exoplanet Where It Rains Sand Astronomers are calling the exoplanet “fluffy.” Plus, an update on a possible volcanic eruption in Iceland. |
| 2023-Nov-16 • 18 minutes Ask A Chef: How Can I Use Science To Make Thanksgiving Tastier? Chef Dan Souza from Cook’s Illustrated and America’s Test Kitchen answers your holiday cooking questions. |
| 2023-Nov-15 • 29 minutes Monumental And Invisible: How Infrastructure Works An engineering professor and author explains how modern life depends on vast, complicated systems you probably never think about. |
| 2023-Nov-14 • 18 minutes Everything You Never Knew About Squash And Pumpkins It’s squash, pumpkin and gourd season. An expert answers listener questions about these colorful fall favorites. |
| 2023-Nov-13 • 12 minutes How A University Is Adjusting One Year After ChatGPT An English professor discusses how AI is transforming education, and how students and faculty alike can use it responsibly. |
| 2023-Nov-10 • 18 minutes Euclid Telescope’s First Images | A Black Hole That Came From Gas A new ESA telescope could help us understand how dark matter and dark energy influence the structure of the universe. Also, using both JWST and the Chandra Observatory, astronomers discover the oldest known black hole. |
| 2023-Nov-09 • 18 minutes How Five Elements Define Life On Earth Is the secret to life really just wrangling carbon, oxygen, hydrogen, nitrogen, and phosphorus? Author Stephen Porder explains in a new book. |
| 2023-Nov-08 • 17 minutes Climate Future Exhibit | Oregon's Proposed Fish Vacuum |
| 2023-Nov-07 • 17 minutes How A Deaf Advisory Group Is Changing Healthcare Deaf patients often don’t receive interpreters in healthcare settings. A deaf advisory group worked with a hospital to improve how it cares for them. |
| 2023-Nov-06 • 18 minutes 40 Years Of Sounding The Alarm On Nuclear Winter In October 1983, Carl Sagan introduced the world to the idea of nuclear winter caused by nuclear weapon fallout. Is it still a threat? |
| 2023-Nov-03 • 25 minutes CRISPR-Based Sickle Cell Treatment | Pain Tolerance From Neanderthals If given final approval by the FDA, this sickle-cell treatment would be the first to use gene-editing CRISPR technology on humans. Also, gene variants inherited from Neanderthals can impact pain tolerance in modern humans. |
| 2023-Nov-02 • 18 minutes How Poisons Have Shaped Life On Earth Poisons fill our pantries and gardens. The new book Most Delicious Poison explores how common toxins have shaped life on Earth. |
| 2023-Nov-01 • 18 minutes Placenta Research May Help Explain Pregnancy Loss By studying placentas from lost pregnancies, one doctor hopes to provide answers that are so often lacking after a miscarriage or stillbirth. |
| 2023-Oct-31 • 13 minutes A Common Cold Medicine Ingredient Doesn’t Work. What Now? Twenty years ago, scientists found that phenylephrine, listed as a decongestant in many cold medicines, didn’t work. What can you use instead? |
| 2023-Oct-30 • 30 minutes Diving Into Elon Musk’s Mind Walter Isaacson’s latest biography peers into the life and mind of entrepreneur Elon Musk. |
| 2023-Oct-27 • 18 minutes RSV Drug Shortage & Beech Leaf Disease RSV has reached epidemic levels in the southern US. Also, beech leaf disease is spreading rapidly in Massachusetts. |
| 2023-Oct-26 • 18 minutes When Studying Ecology Means Celebrating Its Gifts In a conversation from 2019, bestselling author Robin Wall Kimmerer discusses the role of ceremony in our lives, and how to celebrate reciprocal relationships with the natural world. |
| 2023-Oct-25 • 18 minutes Unlocking The Mysteries Of A Metal-Rich Asteroid NASA’s Psyche spacecraft is on a six-year voyage to an asteroid largely made of metal. It may help us understand how planets form. |
| 2023-Oct-24 • 18 minutes Rapidly Evolving Trout & Ancient Hyper-Apex Predators Research shows some stocked trout are evolving rapidly and altering Wyoming's aquatic ecosystems. Plus, paleontologists pieced together a level of apex predators with no modern equivalent. |
| 2023-Oct-23 • 18 minutes Finding Meaning In The Cosmos In her new memoir, astrobiologist Dr. Aomawa Shields describes how a quest for life in the cosmos helped her find meaning on Earth. |
| 2023-Oct-20 • 24 minutes ‘Clean Hydrogen Hub’ Awardees & Formula One Car Paint Seven “clean energy hubs” will receive a total of $7B to develop forms of hydrogen production with minimal carbon emissions. And, ahead of the US Grand Prix, an aerodynamicist breaks down the recent engineering changes to F1 cars. |
| 2023-Oct-19 • 17 minutes What Is Your Cat Doing When You're Not Watching? In a conversation from 2019, Ira and the researchers behind a “catcam” study discuss the secret lives of your feline friends. |
| 2023-Oct-18 • 24 minutes The Stories Of The First Six Women Astronauts You know Sally Ride. But what about the other first women astronauts? A new book from space reporter Loren Grush illuminates their stories. |
| 2023-Oct-17 • 33 minutes A Mathematician Asks ‘Is Math Real?’ When math is based on abstract concepts, how do we know it’s correct? Dr. Eugenia Cheng takes on that question in a new book. |
| 2023-Oct-16 • 13 minutes The mRNA Vaccine Revolution The mRNA innovations used to fight COVID-19 could be harnessed for nasal spray vaccines and even protection against other diseases. |
| 2023-Oct-13 • 18 minutes Ancient Human Footprints & 'Ring Of Fire' Eclipse A new analysis of ancient footprints in New Mexico adds to the debate about when humans arrived in North America. Plus, astronomer Dean Regas offers tips for safe viewing of Saturday’s eclipse. |
| 2023-Oct-12 • 19 minutes Saltwater Wedge In The Mississippi & Kenya's Geothermal Boom A saltwater wedge threatens infrastructure and human health along the Mississippi River. Also, the geologically active East African Rift System has already helped Kenya become the world’s seventh largest geothermal producer. |
| 2023-Oct-11 • 18 minutes How Artists And Scientists Collaborated To Make Art About HIV At an HIV research conference earlier this year, HIV-positive artists and scientists were paired together to create art for an exhibition. |
| 2023-Oct-10 • 19 minutes Full-Body MRIs Promise To Detect Disease Early. Do They Work? Influencers like Kim Kardashian have promoted full-body scans, but experts say the potential harms outweigh any possible benefits. |
| 2023-Oct-09 • 18 minutes Meet The Doctor Who Solves Medical Mysteries |
| 2023-Oct-06 • 25 minutes mRNA Research Wins Nobel Prize & Lightning On Venus Nobel prizes also went to advances in quantum dots and timing super-fast electron pulses. Also, does Venus have lightning? A study based on data from the Parker Solar Probe gives the 40-year-old debate a jolt. |
| 2023-Sep-29 • 48 minutes Placebo Effect, Technoableism, Florida Citrus, Neuroscience Music. Sept 29, 2023, Part 2 Researchers are learning that placebos might be more effective when patients are told they’re receiving them. Plus, a new book argues that cutting-edge technology is not always a needed solution. And a food scientist explains how an invasive insect is turning oranges sour. |
| 2023-Sep-29 • 48 minutes Vision and the Brain, Jellypalooza. Sept 29, 2023, Part 1 A neuroscientist discusses how your brain filters visual inputs. Plus, two stories about jellyfish -- tracking a freshwater jelly that’s spreading across the US, and the surprising finding that one species of jelly may be able to learn. |
| 2023-Sep-22 • 47 minutes Ocean Climate Solutions, Florida Corals, Climate Video Games. Sept 22, 2023, Part 2 The ocean is the world’s largest carbon sink. We need to take better care of it. Plus, after this summer’s heat, marine biologists are scrambling to help protect the rapidly dying reef in the Florida Keys. |
| 2023-Sep-22 • 47 minutes Our Fragile Moment, Climate Comedy. Sept 22, 2023, Part 1 Climate scientist Michael Mann talks about how important it is to take action now—before we see climate change’s worst consequences. Plus, research suggests that comedy is a powerful way to mobilize people. |
| 2023-Sep-15 • 48 minutes New Covid Vaccine, Moroccan Earthquake, Native Bees. Sept 15, 2023, Part 2 The recent 6.8 magnitude earthquake in Morocco left thousands of people dead, injured, or lost. Why was it so dangerous? Plus, three new vaccines will be available this fall to address COVID, the flu, and RSV. And the buzz on native bees in your neighborhood. |
| 2023-Sep-15 • 47 minutes Radioactive Wildlife, Bus Stop Heat, Football Jersey Numbers. Sept 15, 2023, Part 1 Measuring cesium in wild boar and uranium in turtles sheds light on how radioactive materials travel through the environment. Plus, a new study explains why wide receivers on professional football teams feel slimmer and faster when they wear smaller numbers. |
| 2023-Sep-08 • 47 minutes Tree Soil, Rodent Biologist, Soundscape Artist. Sept 8, 2023, Part 2 Treetops can hold complex ecosystems that include soil and other plants. Plus, a rodent biologist reflects on her career. |