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 shortwave@npr.org . Learn more about sponsor message choi...
Jul 03, 2023•12 min•Ep 919•Transcript available on Metacast 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 shortwave@npr.org . Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices NPR Privacy Policy...
Jun 30, 2023•9 min•Ep 918•Transcript available on Metacast 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. Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices NPR Privacy Policy...
Jun 28, 2023•12 min•Ep 917•Transcript available on Metacast 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 shortwave@npr.org ! We'd...
Jun 26, 2023•12 min•Ep 916•Transcript available on Metacast 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. Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices NPR Privacy Policy...
Jun 23, 2023•13 min•Ep 915•Transcript available on Metacast 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...
Jun 21, 2023•11 min•Ep 914•Transcript available on Metacast 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 f...
Jun 19, 2023•15 min•Ep 913•Transcript available on Metacast 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 shortwave@npr.org . Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices NPR Privacy Policy...
Jun 16, 2023•9 min•Ep 912•Transcript available on Metacast 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 shortwave@npr...
Jun 14, 2023•10 min•Ep 911•Transcript available on Metacast 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. Learn more about spo...
Jun 12, 2023•15 min•Ep 910•Transcript available on Metacast 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. Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoice...
Jun 09, 2023•12 min•Ep 909•Transcript available on Metacast 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. Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices NPR Privacy Policy...
Jun 07, 2023•12 min•Ep 908•Transcript available on Metacast 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 shortwave@npr.org ! We'd love to hear from you. Learn mo...
Jun 05, 2023•14 min•Ep 907•Transcript available on Metacast 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 shortwave@npr.org . Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices NPR Priva...
Jun 02, 2023•10 min•Ep 906•Transcript available on Metacast 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 . Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastc...
May 31, 2023•13 min•Ep 905•Transcript available on Metacast 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 shortwave@npr.org . Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices NPR Privacy Pol...
May 29, 2023•12 min•Ep 904•Transcript available on Metacast 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 u...
May 26, 2023•12 min•Ep 903•Transcript available on Metacast 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....
May 24, 2023•12 min•Ep 902•Transcript available on Metacast 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. Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices NPR Privacy Policy...
May 22, 2023•12 min•Ep 901•Transcript available on Metacast 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 shortwave@npr.org . Learn more about spon...
May 19, 2023•9 min•Ep 900•Transcript available on Metacast 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 shortwave@npr.org . Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com...
May 17, 2023•13 min•Ep 899•Transcript available on Metacast 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 shortwave@npr.org — we'd lov...
May 15, 2023•13 min•Ep 898•Transcript available on Metacast 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. Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adc...
May 12, 2023•12 min•Ep 897•Transcript available on Metacast 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 an...
May 10, 2023•13 min•Ep 896•Transcript available on Metacast 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). Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices NPR Privacy Policy...
May 08, 2023•11 min•Ep 895•Transcript available on Metacast 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) debu...
May 05, 2023•10 min•Ep 894•Transcript available on Metacast 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 shortwave@npr.org ! Learn more about sponsor message choices: p...
May 02, 2023•12 min•Ep 893•Transcript available on Metacast 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. Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices NPR Privacy Policy...
May 01, 2023•13 min•Ep 892•Transcript available on Metacast 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 cli...
Apr 28, 2023•15 min•Ep 891•Transcript available on Metacast 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 ...
Apr 26, 2023•15 min•Ep 890•Transcript available on Metacast 
