Social Construct of Race Imposes Biology
Anthropologist Jennifer Raff argues that race is culturally created, but has biological consequences. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Nov 07, 2018•4 min
Science Quickly
Host Rachel Feltman, alongside leading science and tech journalists, dives into the rich world of scientific discovery in this bite-size science variety show.
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Episodes
Pandas Swoon to Particular Croons
Listening to the sounds panda pairs make when they're introduced could lead to better breeding success. Christopher Intagliata reports. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Nov 06, 2018•3 min
First Benefit of Knowing Your Genome
The "low hanging fruit" of genome-related health care will be knowing which drugs are likely to treat you best, says science journalist Carl Zimmer. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Nov 02, 2018•3 min
For Halloween, Consider the Chocolate Midge
A tiny fly, related to biting no-see-ums, pollinates cacao trees and enables our chocolate cravings. Christopher Intagliata reports. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Oct 31, 2018•3 min
Dolphins Dumb Down Calls to Compete with Ship Noise
Bottlenose dolphins simplify and raise the pitch of their whistles to be heard above underwater shipping noise. Christopher Intagliata reports. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Oct 29, 2018•3 min
Asocial Octopuses Become Cuddly on MDMA
Octopuses react to MDMA much like humans do. And not surprisingly, given their anatomy, the animals are excellent huggers. Annie Sneed reports. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Oct 22, 2018•5 min
Wild Songbirds Can Pick Up New Tunes
Researchers taught two dozen wild sparrows new songs, by playing them the recordings of sparrows that live thousands of miles away. Jason G. Goldman reports. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Oct 18, 2018•5 min
Health Care Let Neandertals "Punch above Their Weight"
By caring for their sick and injured, Neandertals were able to expand into more dangerous environments and pursue more deadly prey. Christopher Intagliata reports. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Oct 17, 2018•3 min
Nice People Have Emptier Wallets
A study correlating personality traits with financial data found that agreeable people had lower savings, higher debt and higher bankruptcy rates. Christopher Intagliata reports. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Oct 15, 2018•4 min
Solar Eclipse Was a Buzzkill for Bees
Bees suddenly fell silent when the sun disappeared during last year's solar eclipse—perhaps because they were tricked into night mode. Christopher Intagliata reports. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Oct 12, 2018•3 min
Confident Tone Overcomes Accent Distrust
English as-a-first-language Canadian study subjects were less trusting of statements in English spoken with a foreign accent, unless the speaker sounded confident about their assertion. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Oct 11, 2018•4 min
Mom's Genes Make Some Giraffes Hard to Spot
Baby giraffes inherit aspects of their mothers' patterning—which could give them a survival advantage if good camouflage runs in the family. Christopher Intagliata reports. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Oct 10, 2018•3 min
Economics Nobel Highlights Climate Action Necessity
William Nordhaus shared the 2018 Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences, "for integrating climate change into long-run macroeconomic analysis,” with Paul Romer, "for integrating technological innovations into long-run macroeconomic analysis." Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Oct 09, 2018•3 min
Highway Crossings Protect Migrating Pronghorns—and Motorists
Twice a year, thousands of pronghorn antelope and mule deer migrate through Wyoming, and newly built highway crossings are sparing the lives of animals—and motorists. Jason G. Goldman reports. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Oct 06, 2018•4 min
Beer Fermentation Hops Along
The bittering agents called hops have enzymes that chew up starch and unleash more fermentable sugar—which can boost alcohol and CO2 in the finished brew. Christopher Intagliata reports. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Oct 04, 2018•4 min
Nobel in Chemistry for New and Useful Chemical Entities via Evolutionary Principles
Frances H. Arnold, George P. Smith and Gregory P. Winter share the 2018 chemistry Nobel for developing evolutionary-based techniques that lead to the creation of new chemical entities with useful properties. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Oct 03, 2018•4 min
Nobel in Physics for Controlling Laser Light
Arthur Ashkin, Gérard Mourou and Donna Strickland share the 2018 physics Nobel for their work with lasers that have led to numerous practical applications, such as eye surgery. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Oct 02, 2018•4 min
Nobel for Helping the Immune System Fight Cancer
James P. Allison and Tasuku Honjo share the Nobel Prize for their work on harnessing the cancer patient's own immune system to destroy tumors. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Oct 01, 2018•3 min
Blasey Ford Spells Out Trauma Memory Formation
Christine Blasey Ford's professional expertise came into play during her testimony regarding the Supreme Court nomination. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Sep 30, 2018•3 min
Scanning Ancient Civilizations from the Skies
An aerial laser scan of more than 800 square miles of Guatemalan jungle revealed Maya buildings, canals, roads and bridges. Christopher Intagliata reports. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Sep 27, 2018•4 min
Antifreeze Surface Fights Ice with Ice
Patterning a surface with tiny stripes of ice prevents frost formation on the rest of the surface—a technique that could keep planes or roads frost-free. Christopher Intagliata reports. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Sep 25, 2018•3 min
Scale Can Measure Medicine—and Play a Scale, Too
Researchers have designed a musical instrument that can detect counterfeit drugs by the pitch of its notes. Christopher Intagliata reports. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Sep 24, 2018•4 min
Diverse Tree Portfolio Weathers Droughts Better
Forests with numerous tree species, and therefore a mix of water-management strategies, appear more tolerant of drought. Christopher Intagliata reports. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Sep 21, 2018•3 min
Pirates Needed Science, Too
On International Talk Like a Pirate Day, here's an eye-patch-witness account of how science helps in all peg-leg walks of life, even piracy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Sep 19, 2018•3 min
Sea Otters' Powerful Paw Prey Perception
The marine mammals have extraordinarily sensitive touch—which helps them nab prey in the absence of other sensory cues. Christopher Intagliata reports. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Sep 18, 2018•4 min
Science News Briefs from Around the World
A few very brief reports about science and technology from around the globe. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Sep 17, 2018•3 min
Genetic Tweak Gave Early Humans a Leg Up
A mutation in a key gene may have endowed humans with superior endurance—allowing them to compete better with other animals on the savanna. Christopher Intagliata reports. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Sep 13, 2018•3 min
Earlier Springs May Mean Mistimed Bird Migrations
Springtime's arriving earlier across North America. But the degree of change isn't the same everywhere, which could spell trouble for migratory birds. Christopher Intagliata reports. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Sep 12, 2018•3 min
Survey the Wildlife of the "Great Indoors"
Biologists are enlisting citizen scientists to poke around under the sink and behind the curtains, for wildlife living in the "great indoors." Karen Hopkin reports. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Sep 10, 2018•3 min
When Neutron Stars Collide
Astrophysicists have gotten a better glimpse at what happens to crashing neutron stars by listening in on the electromagnetic echoes of the collision. Christopher Intagliata reports. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Sep 07, 2018•4 min
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