Covering the outer reaches of space to the tiniest microbes in our bodies, Science Friday is the source for entertaining and educational stories about science, technology, and other cool stuff.
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If you’ve heard the hammering of a woodpecker in the woods, you might have wondered how the birds can be so forceful. What does it take to whack your head against a tree repeatedly, hard enough to drill a hole? A team of researchers wondered that too and set out to investigate, by putting tiny muscle monitors on eight downy woodpeckers and recording them with high-speed video as they pecked away in the lab. Integrative organismal biologist Nick Antonson, co-author of a report on the work, joins ...
Our memories make us who we are—just ask Barbra Streisand. But despite the lyrics in many popular songs, memories aren’t frozen in time. When we call them up, the details shift and change. And neuroscience research shows that we might be able to take that a step further—to manipulate our memories and even implant false ones. Neuroscientist Steve Ramirez joins Host Ira Flatow to explain how memory manipulation could revolutionize the way we treat brain disorders. They also discuss Ramirez’s book,...
Bearded vultures build giant, elaborate nests that are passed down from generation to generation. And according to a new study, some of these scavengers have collected bits and bobs of human history over the course of centuries. Scientists picked apart 12 vulture nests preserved in Spain and discovered a museum collection’s worth of objects, including a woven sandal that could be more than 700 years old. Host Flora Lichtman talks with study author Ana Belen Marín-Arroyo, an archaeologist who stu...
The band Phish has toured for over 40 years. One of the draws of their legendary live shows—which can go on for 8 hours—is finding moments of “flow,” when the band members lock into an improvised jam, finding new musical ideas in real time. Phish fans live for these transcendent moments, but so do the musicians—to the point that Mike Gordon, the band’s bass player, is funding scientific research to better understand flow state. Host Flora Lichtman sits down with Mike and his research collaborato...
Around 25 years ago, Ardem Patapoutian set out to investigate the fundamental biology behind our sense of touch. Through a long process of gene elimination, he identified a class of sensors in the cell membrane that turn physical pressure into an electrical signal. He changed the game in the field of sensation and perception, and in 2021 shared the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for his work. He joins Host Flora Lichtman to talk about his research, the odd jobs he worked along the way, an...
Over the last five years, billions of people have received at least one dose of a COVID-19 mRNA vaccine. New research has found an unanticipated result of these vaccines: Cancer treatments are more effective for some vaccinated patients, and many live longer than their unvaccinated counterparts. This news comes at a time where the federal government is slashing funding for mRNA research. Host Ira Flatow speaks to lead study author Adam Grippin and vaccine expert Eric Topol. Guests: Dr. Adam Grip...
This episode dives into the enduring debate about whether dinosaurs were already declining before the asteroid hit, or if they were thriving. Paleontologists Steve Brusatte and Lindsay Zanno present new studies, including findings from New Mexico fossils and a re-evaluation of the 'Nanotyrannus' debate, which suggest a robust and diverse dinosaur ecosystem right up to the extinction event. The discussion also explores the relevance of these ancient mass extinctions for understanding current environmental changes and human vulnerability.
As Black Friday approaches, you’re probably being inundated with ads for bigger, better televisions. But just how good is good enough? Are there limits to what our eyes can even make out? Visual perception researcher Maliha Ashraf joins Host Flora Lichtman to describe her new study on display resolution—including a display calculator she and her colleagues developed to help you determine the optimal display characteristics for a given room. And retinal neuroscientist Bryan Jones joins the conver...
Decades ago, non-native carp were brought onto fish farms on the Mississippi River to control algae and parasites. They escaped, thrived, and eventually flooded the Illinois River, outcompeting native species and wreaking havoc. If the carp find their way into the Great Lakes, they could do major damage to those vital ecosystems. There’s a proposed project to stop the fish—but it’s expensive, and not everyone agrees it’s the best solution. Host Flora Lichtman speaks with WBEZ and Grist reporter ...
This episode explores the critical efforts to save wild axolotls, charismatic amphibians native solely to Lake Xochimilco. Ecologist Luis Zambrano and molecular biologist Alejandro Maeda-Obregón discuss the drastic population decline and innovative conservation strategies, including using environmental DNA (eDNA) to track populations and creating plant-filtered refuges in collaboration with local farmers. They also emphasize the axolotl's profound cultural significance in Mexico, offering a message of hope for global conservation.
Endometriosis is a painful disease that occurs when endometrium-like tissue grows outside of the uterus. It’s extremely common —if you have a uterus, you have a 1 in 10 chance of getting it. Yet, it takes seven years on average to receive a formal diagnosis. What does the latest science tell us about the biology of the condition and how to treat it? And why do so many people have such a difficult time getting diagnosed? Host Flora Lichtman is joined by endometriosis researcher and patient Linda ...
We've figured out how to harness renewable energy from many natural systems, like solar, wind, and geothermal power. But what about the ocean’s waves? It might seem like converting wave power into electricity on a large scale would’ve been figured out by now, but the tech is actually just getting its sea legs. Why has it been so hard to develop? And just how promising is it? Host Flora Lichtman talks with Oregon Public Broadcasting reporter Jes Burns, who reported on Oregon’s massive wave energy...
For Halloween, we bring you an ode to three quintessentially creepy creatures : bats, arachnids, and snakes. First, bat researcher Elena Tena joins Host Flora Lichtman to describe tracking the greater noctule bat in flight and learning that it can feed on migratory birds. Then, arachnologist Paula Cushing describes the camel spider, which is neither a camel nor a spider. And herpetologist Sara Ruane highlights one of her favorite snakes, the tiger keelback, which is both venomous and poisonous. ...
Information scientist Jed Brubaker discusses the evolving landscape of digital afterlives, exploring how online platforms become spaces for grief and remembrance. He delves into the complexities of managing deceased loved ones' social media, the mixed emotions people experience, and the emergence of AI replicas. The episode also provides practical advice on how to plan for one's digital legacy, emphasizing the need for clear directives to loved ones.
At first blush, the plots of many horror movies don’t seem particularly appealing. Take “The Shining”: A murderous psychopath tries to kill his family in a haunted, secluded hotel. But horror movies have had devoted fans for as long as they’ve been around, and lately, scary movies and television shows like “Sinners” or “The Walking Dead” have made a big splash. Why? What draws us to horror? And why are some people more thrill-seeking or morbidly curious than others? Host Flora Lichtman talks wit...
For decades, peanut allergies were on the rise in the US. But a study released on October 20 found that peanut allergies in babies and young children are now decreasing. This drop correlates with a change in guidance from the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases. In 2017, the agency started recommending exposing children to peanuts “early and often.” Since that recommendation, the prevalence of peanut allergies has dropped significantly. Sharon Chinthrajah, a physician specializ...
Dr. Bonnie Bassler explores the intricate world of bacterial communication, revealing how these microscopic organisms use chemical signals to count neighbors, distinguish between species, and make collective decisions. This "quorum sensing" allows bacteria to coordinate complex behaviors, from sharing resources to launching attacks, depending on their social environment. Understanding this ancient communication system not only sheds light on the fundamental nature of life but also opens critical pathways for developing novel biomedical and industrial applications, from new medicines to environmental clean-up.
After years of development, lab-grown fish is taste-test ready for the public. Four restaurants in the US are serving up cultivated salmon made by the company Wildtype. Producer Kathleen Davis gives Host Flora Lichtman a rundown on how Wildtype tastes, initial public perception, and the upstream battle to take cultivated meat mainstream. Plus, SciFri heads to Burlington, Vermont, where scientists are cooking up the foods of the future—including the building blocks of cell-cultured meat. Flora di...
Paleoanthropologist Ella Al-Shamahi introduces her new PBS series "Human," which challenges traditional science documentaries by infusing emotion into the story of human evolution. She advocates for recognizing the human experience of our ancestors, exemplified by Neanderthal-Homo sapiens hybrids, and discusses the importance of effective science communication that acknowledges tribalism and personal beliefs. The episode delves into how Homo sapiens, initially underdogs among many human species, ultimately thrived through interbreeding and cumulative culture, offering a fresh, global perspective on our ancient family tree.
TikTok and other social media sites are full of mental health content—often short, grabby, first-person videos detailing symptoms for conditions like ADHD and autism. But what does this mean for teens and young adults who spend hours a day scrolling? A new study published in PLOS One analyzes the 100 most viewed TikTok videos about ADHD to assess both how accurate they are and how young people respond to them. Researchers found that about half of the videos were inaccurate or missing key context...
We’re taking a polar plunge into the science of sea unicorns, also known as narwhals! Narwhals are mysterious arctic whales with long, twirly tusks protruding from their foreheads, like a creature out of a fairy tale. And it turns out that we don’t know too much about them, partly because they live so far north in the remote Arctic. An international team of researchers used drones to observe narwhals in the wild and learned new things about their behavior, including how they use their tusks to h...
Astrophysicists may have spotted evidence for “dark stars,” an unusual type of star that could possibly have existed in the earliest days of the universe, in data from the James Webb Space Telescope. Instead of being powered by nuclear fusion as current stars are, the controversial theory says that these ancient dark stars would have formed by mixing a huge cloud of hydrogen and helium with a type of self-annihilating dark matter. Dark stars would not have been dark—researchers believe that if t...
AI is everywhere these days, and though there’s debate about how useful it is, one area where experts think it could be game-changing is scientific research. It promised to be particularly useful for speeding up drug discovery, an expensive and time-consuming process that can take decades. But so far, it hasn’t panned out. The few AI-designed drugs that have made it to clinical trials haven’t been approved, venture capital investment in these efforts has cratered in the last few years, and many ...
It’s easy to take maps for granted. After all, most of us have a pretty good map in our pockets at all times, ready to show us how to get anywhere on the globe. But to make a map useful, you have to decide what to keep in and what to leave out—and, most importantly, which mathematical equations to use. Beyond navigating from point A to point B, math and maps come together for a wide variety of things, like working out the most efficient route to deliver packages, calculating the depth of the oce...
It seems like every week, there’s a new headline about some kind of sci-fi-esque organ transplant. Think eyeballs, 3D-printed kidneys, pig hearts. In her new book, Replaceable You: Adventures in Human Anatomy , science writer Mary Roach chronicles the effort to fabricate human body parts—and where that effort sometimes breaks down. Host Flora Lichtman speaks with Roach about everything from hair transplants to 3D-printed hearts, and why our anatomy is so hard to replicate in the first place. Gue...
Remember “The Biggest Loser”—the show where people tried to lose as much weight as quickly as possible for a big cash prize? The premise of the show was that weight loss was about willpower: With enough discipline, anyone can have the body they want. The show’s approach was problematic, but how does its attitude toward weight loss match our current understanding of health and metabolism? The authors of the book Food Intelligence , nutrition scientist Kevin Hall, who studied “Biggest Loser” conte...
Join Dr. Chad Orzel and Ira Flatow to commemorate 100 years of quantum science, delving into its historical development from Planck to Heisenberg and the fundamental particle-wave duality. They discuss astonishing phenomena like entanglement and its implications, the ongoing quest to apply quantum rules to macroscopic objects, and breakthroughs in quantum computing. The conversation also touches on the mysteries of the dark universe and the philosophical debates surrounding quantum interpretations.
This year’s Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine went to three people whose combined discoveries outlined the role of the peripheral immune system —how the immune system knows to attack just foreign invaders and not its own tissues and organs. But when the phone rang for Shimone Sakaguchi, Mary E. Brunkow, and Fred Ramsdell, only two of them picked up. Host Ira Flatow talks with Nobel Prize winner Fred Ramsdell, co-founder and scientific advisor at Sonoma Biotherapeutics. Plus, Ira talks with b...
It’s World Space Week, and we’re fueling up the rocket for a tour of some missions and projects that could provide insights into major space mysteries. Astrophysicist Hakeem Oluseyi joins Host Flora Lichtman to celebrate the wonders of space science , from the recently launched IMAP, which will study the solar environment, to the new Vera Rubin Observatory, and big physics projects like LIGO. Plus, the latest in climate tech: MIT Technology Review has published its annual list of climate tech co...
The Klamath River, which runs from southern Oregon to California, used to be a top salmon run. But after a series of hydroelectric dams was installed along the river around 100 years ago, salmon populations tanked. This is the prologue to a remarkable story of a coalition that fought to restore the river . Led by members of the Yurok Nation, who’ve lived along the river for millennia, a group of lawyers, biologists, and activists successfully lobbied for the removal of the dams. The fourth and f...
