Researchers isolated a bacterial enzyme that could break down nicotine before smokers get the buzz that keeps them coming back for more. Christopher Intagliata reports Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Indoor climate control systems are based on 1960s standards that envisioned the typical office worker to be a 40-year-old, 68-kilogram man Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
A single-point mutation in corn's ancestor teosinte got rid of the hard shell that used to encase every kernel Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Researchers have developed a new ecofriendly sunscreen molecule that protects against both UV-A and UV-B rays, and could also be used to create more durable paints and plastics. Christopher Intagliata reports Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Microbes 2,500 meters below the seafloor in Japan are most closely related to bacterial groups that thrive in forest soils on land, suggesting that they might be descendants of ones that survived when their terrestrial habitat was flooded 20 million years ago Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
In a study of nearly half a million volunteers in China, those who ate chilies just a couple times a week had a 10 percent lower risk of death. Christopher Intagliata reports Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Animal communication studies have shown only fixed vocalizations, such as alarm cries. But Bonobo chimps appear to have a call that has different meanings in different contexts Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Adults of the west African Baka people and east African Efé and Sua peoples average less than five feet tall. But while the Efé and Sua are born small, the Baka have slow growth rates in infancy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Tree growth lags below normal for several years following droughts, a detail about carbon sequestration that climate models currently overlook. Christopher Intagliata reports Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Certain vaccines prevent sickness and death, but don't block transmission—meaning they may actually give some viral strains an extra shot at survival. Christopher Intagliata reports Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
An analysis of the acoustical characteristics of screams found that the sounds are unusually rough, that is, they rapidly change in frequency, which has an alarming effect on the listener's brain Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
In his induction speech at the Baseball Hall of Fame, pitcher John Smoltz hoped that the number of such procedures could be lessened in the future Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Mediocre main dishes taste even worse when they follow delectable appetizers—an example of the so-called "hedonic effect." Erika Beras reports Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
A survey of nearly 5,000 13- to 15-year-olds in the U.K. found that 40 percent of overweight and obese teens did not self-identify as “too heavy.” Cynthia Graber reports Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Entrepreneur and former physicist Yuri Milner talks about the just-announced $100-million Breakthrough Listen Project to search for extraterrestrial technological civilizations Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
The Southern Ocean is the cloudiest place on Earth, a condition caused in part by phytoplankton particles kicked up by sea spray. Christopher Intagliata reports Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
During courtship, male black widow spiders snip and bundle up the female's web in their own silk, which discourages other suitors from stopping by. Christopher Intagliata reports Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Researchers gathered data from various Army databases to analyze nearly 10,000 attempted suicides of active duty personnel. Cynthia Graber reports Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Researchers suggest farmers should consider harvesting when fields are dry, to prevent dangerous bacteria blooms from contaminating food. Christopher Intagliata reports Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Nematode worms hitch rides inside the guts of slugs and other invertebrates, and emerge alive and well after exiting with the rest of the digestive track's products. Karen Hopkin reports Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
The rock of the Campi Flegrei Caldera, west of Naples, Italy, has an intricate network of mineral fibers—just like the famed Roman concrete. Christopher Intagliata reports. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Astronomers have discovered more than 800 so-called "ultradiffuse galaxies" that are virtually invisible because they have relatively few stars and are mostly dark matter. Clara Moskowitz reports Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Male nightingales use singing virtuosity to signal prospective mates that they will be the most doting dads. Sabrina Imbler reports Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
We currently have a maximum of about 60 minutes to prepare for tech disruptions on Earth due to coronal mass ejections from the sun, but an improved forecasting system could lengthen that lead time by hours. Maria Temming reports Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
People who smoke pot and drink are twice as likely to do both at the same time than to do just one, with the combo associated with bad decision-making; and chronic pot smokers who had not indulged in a month were still more likely to have faulty memories than were nonsmokers. Erika Beras reports Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Mexican Jays compare peanuts to determine which one has the most meat inside before choosing one for a meal. Karen Hopkin reports Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
We all perceive smells differently—and two people’s preferences may give clues to their degree of genetic similarity. Christopher Intagliata reports Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Background app updates, cell tower pings and other hidden activity accounts for almost half the battery drain on Android phones. Christopher Intagliata reports Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
The vast majority of ice loss in Alaska glaciers comes from those that sit completely on land—which contributes meltwater to sea level rise. Julia Rosen reports Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Sangeeta Bhatia of M.I.T. talks about efforts to get bacteria to home in on tumors and let us know they're there. Cynthia Graber reports Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
