Short Wave

Seeking Answers To The Universe Deep In A Gold Mine

08 Dec 2021

Contributed by Lukas

An underground lab is opening early next year in Australia. Its quest: to help detect dark matter and thereby also help answer some of physics' bigges...

What A New Antiviral Drug Could Mean For The Future Of COVID

07 Dec 2021

Contributed by Lukas

An advisory panel to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration advisory panel has voted to recommend that the FDA approve a new antiviral drug to treat CO...

The 2021 Hurricane Season Wrapped

06 Dec 2021

Contributed by Lukas

The end of the 2021 hurricane season was officially November 30. This year, there was a lot of hurricane activity. Today on the show, producer Thomas ...

Jane Goodall Says There's Hope For Our Planet. Act Now, Despair Later!

03 Dec 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Jane Goodall is a renowned naturalist and scientist. She's made a career studying primates and chimpanzees. But lately — something else has been on ...

No sperm? No problem.

02 Dec 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Scientists have discovered that some female condors don't need males to reproduce. This phenomenon is known as parthenogenesis, and it's been observed...

Using Math To Rethink Gender (encore)

01 Dec 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Gender is infused in many aspects of our world — but should that be the case? According to mathematician Eugenia Cheng, maybe not. In her new book...

Omicron's Arrival Is 'Wake-Up Call' That The Pandemic Is Ongoing

30 Nov 2021

Contributed by Lukas

The coronavirus is still circulating and mutating — case in point, the World Health Organization has designated a new variant of concern, called omi...

Why Puerto Rico Is A Leader In Vaccinating Against COVID-19

29 Nov 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Puerto Rico was still recovering from Hurricane Maria and a string of earthquakes when the pandemic started. The island was initially hit hard by COVI...

How To Choose A Health Insurance Plan

24 Nov 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Health insurance can be tremendously confusing, with its complexity, jargon and acronyms. But putting in a bit of time to learn what these health insu...

Celebrate The Holidays Safely This Pandemic

23 Nov 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Millions of Americans are planning to travel this week and gather inside for Thanksgiving — many in groups of 10 or more. At the same time, COVID-19...

A Mission To Redirect An Asteroid

22 Nov 2021

Contributed by Lukas

In movies, asteroids careening towards Earth confront determined humans with nuclear weapons to save the world! But a real NASA mission to change the...

Two Sides Of Guyana: A Green Champion And An Oil Producer

19 Nov 2021

Contributed by Lukas

For Guyana the potential wealth from oil development was irresistible — even as the country faces rising seas. Today on the show, Emily Kwong talks ...

Bee Superfood: Exploring Honey's Chemical Complexities

18 Nov 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Honey bees know a lot about honey, and humans are starting to catch up. Scientists are now looking at how the chemicals in honey affect bee health. Wi...

One Woman's Quest For The (Scientifically) Best Turkey

17 Nov 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Turkey is the usual centerpiece of the Thanksgiving dinner, but it's all too easy to end up with a dry, tough, flavorless bird. For NPR science corres...

Parents, We're Here To Help! Answers To Your COVID Vaccine Questions

16 Nov 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Now that the Pfizer COVID vaccine is authorized for children five to eleven years old, a lot of parents are deliberating about what to do next. NPR he...

Experiencing The Emergence, Life And Death of A Neuron

15 Nov 2021

Contributed by Lukas

A new exhibit in Washington, DC, mixes science and technology for an immersive art experience — taking visitors not to a distant land, but into thei...

Camilla Pang On Turning Fear Into Light

12 Nov 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Camilla Pang talks with Short Wave host Emily Kwong about her award-winning memoir, "An Outsider's Guide to Humans: What Science Taught Me About What ...

The secret history of DNA: Pus, fish sperm, life as we know it

11 Nov 2021

Contributed by Lukas

It's been 150 years since the first article was published about the molecule key to life as we know it — DNA. With help from researcher Pravrutha Ra...

Who pays for climate change?

10 Nov 2021

Contributed by Lukas

A coalition of wealthier countries have promised that they'll provide $100 billion each year to help developing countries tackle climate change. So fa...

Can climate talk turn into climate action?

09 Nov 2021

Contributed by Lukas

In the first week of COP26, the UN climate conference, world leaders took to the podium to talk about what their countries are going to do to fight cl...

What happens in the brain when we grieve

08 Nov 2021

Contributed by Lukas

When we lose someone or something we love, it can feel like we've lost a part of ourselves. And for good reason--our brains are learning how to live i...

Why Aduhelm, a new Alzheimer's treatment, isn't reaching many patients

05 Nov 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Aduhelm, known generically as aducanumab, is the first drug to actually affect the underlying disease process associated with Alzheimer's. Yet sales h...

Housing and COVID: Why helping people pay rent can help fight the pandemic

04 Nov 2021

Contributed by Lukas

When people can't afford rent, they often end up in closer quarters. NPR health policy correspondent Selena Simmons-Duffin shares two stories from her...

Planning for a space mission to last more than 50 years

03 Nov 2021

Contributed by Lukas

In 1977, NASA sent out two Voyager probes to study Jupiter and Saturn. The spacecrafts were designed to last about five years, but they are still, to ...

A new step toward ending 'the wrath of malaria'

02 Nov 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Scientists have been trying to figure out how to eradicate malaria for decades. Globally, a child under the age of five dies from the disease every tw...

The history and future of mRNA vaccine technology (encore)

01 Nov 2021

Contributed by Lukas

(Encore) The Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna COVID-19 vaccines are the first authorized vaccines in history to use mRNA technology. In light of the autho...

The countries left behind in climate negotiations

29 Oct 2021

Contributed by Lukas

NPR climate correspondents Lauren Sommer and Dan Charles join the show before the UN Climate Change Conference in Glasgow, Scotland (COP26) starts on ...

How metaphors and stories are integral to science and healing

28 Oct 2021

Contributed by Lukas

New York's Bellevue Hospital is the oldest public hospital in the country, serving patients from all walks of life. It's also the home of a literary m...

Spiders can have arachnophobia!

27 Oct 2021

Contributed by Lukas

If you're not so fond of spiders, you may find kindred spirits in other spiders! Researcher Daniela Roessler worked with jumping spiders and found th...

The opioid epidemic

26 Oct 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Over the last 25 years, the opioid epidemic has been devastating to families and communities all over the U.S., and has caused half a million deaths. ...

The zombies living in our midst

25 Oct 2021

Contributed by Lukas

The idea of human zombies probably seems pretty far-fetched. But there are real zombies out there in the animal kingdom. To kick off Halloween week, s...

Code Switch: Archaeological skeletons in the closet

22 Oct 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Today, we present a special episode from our colleagues at Code Switch, NPR's podcast about race and identity. In a small suburb of Washington, D.C., ...

An ode to the Pacific lamprey

21 Oct 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Pacific lamprey may have lived on Earth for about 450 million years. When humans came along, a deep relationship formed between Pacific lamprey and Na...

A biodiesel boom (and conundrum)

20 Oct 2021

Contributed by Lukas

There's a biodiesel boom happening! It's fueled by incentives and policies intended to cut greenhouse emissions, and is motivating some oil companies ...

COVID-19 boosters are here

19 Oct 2021

Contributed by Lukas

The United States is on the verge of dramatically expanding the availability of COVID-19 vaccine boosters to shore up people's immune systems. As NPR ...

How do we make sense of the sounds around us?

18 Oct 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Our colleagues at All Things Considered chatted with neuroscientist Nina Kraus about her new book Of Sound Mind. She shares how our brains process and...

The Mighty Mangrove

15 Oct 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Along certain coastlines near the equator, you can find a tree with superpowers. Mangroves provide a safe haven for a whole ecosystem of animals. They...

The mystery of the mummified Twinkie

14 Oct 2021

Contributed by Lukas

A box of Twinkies, left alone for eight years, held some surprises for Colin Purrington. Upon having a sugar craving, combined with being "just so bor...

White scholars can complicate research into health disparities

13 Oct 2021

Contributed by Lukas

The COVID-19 has exposed longstanding and massive health disparities in the U.S., resulting in people of color dying at disproportionately higher rate...

Cockroaches are cool!

12 Oct 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Cockroaches - do they get a bad rap? Producer Thomas Lu teams up with self-proclaimed lesbian cockroach defender Perry Beasley-Hall to convince produ...

Bonobos and the Evolution of Nice

08 Oct 2021

Contributed by Lukas

How did humans evolve some key cooperative behaviors like sharing? NPR Science Correspondent Jon Hamilton reports back from a bonobo sanctuary in the ...

Why Music Sticks in Our Brains

07 Oct 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Why do some songs can stick with us for a long time, even when other memories start to fade? Science reporter (and former Short Wave intern) Rasha Ari...

Here's a better way to talk about hair

06 Oct 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Humans have scalp hair. But why is human scalp hair so varied? Biological anthropologist Tina Lasisi wanted to find out. And while completing her PhD ...

How foraging reconnected Alexis Nikole Nelson with food and her culture

05 Oct 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Our colleagues at the TED Radio Hour introduce us to forager and TikTok influencer Alexis Nikole Nelson. She shares how the great outdoors has offered...

The Toll Of Burnout On Medical Workers — And Their Patients

04 Oct 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Burnout has long been a problem among health care workers. The pandemic has only made it worse. Some were hopeful COVID vaccines would provide some re...

SURPRISE! It's A...Babbling Baby Bat?

01 Oct 2021

Contributed by Lukas

A paper published recently in the journal Science finds similarities between the babbling of human infants and the babbling of the greater sac-winged ...

Goodbye, Climate Jargon. Hello, Simplicity!

30 Sep 2021

Contributed by Lukas

People are likely to be confused by common climate change terms like "mitigation" and "carbon neutral," according to a recent study. So how can everyo...

How To Help Someone At Risk Of Suicide

29 Sep 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Suicide was the 11th leading cause of death in the U.S. in 2020, according to the most current data. But research shows that suicide is preventable. H...

Scientists Are Racing To Save Sequoias

28 Sep 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Based on early estimates, as many as 10,600 large sequoias were killed in last year's Castle Fire — up to 14% of the entire population. The world's ...

A Science Reporter And A 'Mild' Case Of Breakthrough COVID

27 Sep 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Will Stone is a science reporter for NPR. He's been reporting about the pandemic for a while now, so he knows the risks of a breakthrough infection, i...

After Years Of Delays, NASA's James Webb Space Telescope To Launch In December

24 Sep 2021

Contributed by Lukas

In December, NASA is scheduled to launch the huge $10 billion James Webb Space Telescope, which is sometimes billed as the successor to the aging Hubb...

The Surf's Always Up — In Waco, Texas

23 Sep 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Some of the world's best artificial waves are happening hundreds of miles from the ocean—in Waco, Texas. They're so good, they're attracting top pro...

Mapping The Birds Of Bougainville Island

22 Sep 2021

Contributed by Lukas

In the early 1900s, the Whitney South Sea expedition gathered 40,000 bird specimens for the American Museum of Natural History. The collection is an i...

How Long Does COVID Immunity Last Anyway?

21 Sep 2021

Contributed by Lukas

With booster shots on the horizon for some people, one of the biggest questions is: Am I still protected against COVID-19 if I've only had two doses ...

Afraid of Needles? You're Not Alone

20 Sep 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Many people are afraid of needles in some capacity — about 1 in 10 experience a "high level" of needle fear, says clinical psychologist Meghan McMur...

A Great Outdoors For Everyone

17 Sep 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Fatima's Great Outdoors, a new children's book, centers on a girl named Fatima, who's struggling to adjust to her new life in the U.S. But on her very...

A Lotl Love For The Axolotl

16 Sep 2021

Contributed by Lukas

It is found in only one lake in the world, never grows up, and occasionally takes bites of its friends: who could we be talking about? The axolotl of ...

Climate Change Means More Subway Floods; How Cities Are Adapting

15 Sep 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Millions of people rely on subways for transportation. But as the world warms, climate-driven flooding in subways is becoming more and more common. NP...

Breakthrough Infections, Long COVID And You

14 Sep 2021

Contributed by Lukas

In rare cases, the delta variant of the coronavirus is causing vaccinated people to get sick — so-called "breakthrough infections." Now researchers ...

The Pervasiveness Of Transgender Health Care Discrimination

13 Sep 2021

Contributed by Lukas

A new report from the Center for American Progress finds that nearly half of transgender people have experienced mistreatment at the hands of a medica...

9/11 First Responders Have Higher Cancer Risks But Better Survival Rates

10 Sep 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Twenty years later, first responders during the 9/11 attacks have an increased risk of getting some kinds of cancer. But, research shows that they're ...

For Successful Wildfire Prevention, Look To The Southeast

09 Sep 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Another destructive fire season has Western states searching for ways to prevent it. As climate correspondent Lauren Sommer reports, some answers migh...

Fewer COVID Vaccine Doses Materialized Last Fall Than The U.S. Government Hoped

08 Sep 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Manufacturers can expect to face unforeseen hurdles when they begin to mass-produce a brand new pharmaceutical product, and in a pandemic, there are b...

The Peculiar Case Of Dark Matter

07 Sep 2021

Contributed by Lukas

The universe is so much bigger than what people can see, and astrophysicist Priyamvada Natarajan is trying to figure out that which we can not see. Pr...

So Long, Sofia

03 Sep 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Today, we bid farewell to our founding host, Maddie Sofia! In this special episode, the Short Wave team and some of our listeners remind Maddie of the...

Nudibranchs Do It Better

02 Sep 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Maddie and Emily get super nerdy one last time as they dive into the incredible world of nudibranchs. Not only are these sea slugs eye-catching for th...

Pandemic Dispatches From The ER

01 Sep 2021

Contributed by Lukas

We're marking Maddie's last week on Short Wave! Today, Maddie wanted to highlight a COVID-related episode from earlier this year. The pandemic has bee...

You Mite Want To Shower After This

31 Aug 2021

Contributed by Lukas

It's Day 2 of our trip down Maddie Sofia memory lane! Today's encore episode is all about how you're never really alone. We look at the tiny mites tha...

Why A Good Scare Is Sometimes The Right Call

30 Aug 2021

Contributed by Lukas

This week is our last with Maddie as a host, so we're spending it with a trip down memory lane. The first episode Maddie invites us to relive and enjo...

Is It Muggy Out? Check The Dew Point!

27 Aug 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Going on a run and curious about how muggy it's going to be out? Maddie Sofia chats with producer Thomas Lu about relative humidity and why some meteo...

The Fight To Save Sunflower Sea Stars

26 Aug 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Sunflower sea stars play a key role in ocean ecosystems on the West Coast - and they are disappearing in record numbers. Science correspondent Nell Gr...

How To Start Hormone Replacement Therapy

25 Aug 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Medical transition-related treatments like hormone replacement therapy are associated with overwhelmingly positive outcomes in terms of both physical ...

Ultracold Soup - The 'Superfluid' States Of Matter

24 Aug 2021

Contributed by Lukas

(Encore episode) Class is back in session. We're going "back to school" to dig a little deeper on a concept you were taught in school: states of matte...

To Build, Or Not To Build? That Is The Question Facing Local Governments

23 Aug 2021

Contributed by Lukas

NPR climate correspondent Lauren Sommer talks with Emily about a dilemma facing many local governments now. Should they develop in areas vulnerable to...

Micro Wave: Build Your Own Sandcastle Dreamhouse

20 Aug 2021

Contributed by Lukas

It's summer, which for some means spare time at the beach, splashing in the waves and...building sandcastles. On today's episode, Emily Kwong asks: Sc...

When Sea Levels Rise, Who Should Pay?

19 Aug 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Facebook's campus on the shoreline of San Francisco Bay is at risk from rising sea levels. So is a nearby low-income community. That's raising questio...

Spinosaurus: The Aquatic Dinosaur

18 Aug 2021

Contributed by Lukas

(Encore episode) We chat with National Geographic Explorer and paleontologist Nizar Ibrahim about his team's discovery of the Spinosaurus, the first k...

COVID-19 News: A Hospital System Overwhelmed, Booster Shots Update

17 Aug 2021

Contributed by Lukas

In the last two weeks or so, the number of new daily COVID-19 cases in the United States has increased by about 40 percent. Compared to a year ago —...

Three (Hopeful!) Takeaways From The UN's Climate Change Report

16 Aug 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Last week, the U.N. published a landmark report — detailing the current state of global climate change. One thing's for sure, humans are causing a l...

Mirror, Mirror, On The Wall: Can Animals Recognize Their Reflection At All?

13 Aug 2021

Contributed by Lukas

(Encore episode) The mirror self-recognition test has been around for decades. Only a few species have what it takes to recognize themselves, while ot...

Does Your Cat Like You — Or Just Tolerate You?

12 Aug 2021

Contributed by Lukas

(Encore episode) It's another installment of our series, "Animal Slander," where we take a common phrase about animals and see what truth there is to ...

Bringing Service Animals Into The Lab

11 Aug 2021

Contributed by Lukas

(Encore episode) Joey Ramp's service dog, Sampson, is with her at all times, even when she has to work in a laboratory. It wasn't always easy to have ...

Does Your Dog Love You? Science Has Some Answers

10 Aug 2021

Contributed by Lukas

(Encore episode) Clive Wynne, founding director of the Canine Science Collaboratory at Arizona State University, draws on studies from his lab and oth...

Siriusly, It's The Dog Days Of Summer!

09 Aug 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Ever wonder why we call it the Dog Days of Summer? Today on the show — Emily gives Maddie an astronomical reason why we associate the sweltering hea...

Gravitational Waves: Unlocking The Secrets Of The Universe

06 Aug 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Science correspondent Nell Greenfieldboyce gives us the latest in gravitational waves and shares what scientists have learned (and heard) from these t...

How To Correct Misinformation

05 Aug 2021

Contributed by Lukas

(Encore episode) The World Health Organization has called the spread of misinformation around the coronavirus an "infodemic." So what do you do when i...

COVID And Aduhelm On The Agenda At Denver Alzheimer's Meeting

04 Aug 2021

Contributed by Lukas

The Alzheimer's Association International Conference took place in Denver this year. Today on the show, NPR science correspondent Jon Hamilton talks t...

Whales' Vital Role In Our Oceans

03 Aug 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Whales are more than just beautiful creatures — they play a vital role in the ocean's ecosystem. Today, Asha de Vos, marine biologist and pioneer of...

Caregiving During The Pandemic Takes A Toll On Mental Health

02 Aug 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Caregivers in the "Sandwich Generation" have reported a steep decline in mental health, as did others who had to juggle changes in the amount of careg...

Lightning Bugs, Fireflies - Call Them What You Will, They're Awesome

30 Jul 2021

Contributed by Lukas

There are thousands of species of lightning bug and they live all over the world except in Antarctica. Maddie and Emily discuss lots of other amazing ...

Breaking Down The New CDC Mask Guidance

29 Jul 2021

Contributed by Lukas

On Tuesday, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention changed its guidance on wearing masks. Short Wave co-host Maddie Sofia and NPR health corre...

Managing Wildfire Through Cultural Burns

28 Jul 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Fire has always been part of California's landscape. But long before the vast blazes of recent years, Native American tribes held controlled burns tha...

Sweat: A Human Superpower

27 Jul 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Sweating is critical to helping humans avoid overheating, and it's different than how most animals cool down. Sarah Everts wanted to understand more a...

Can We Predict Earthquakes? (Hint: No)

26 Jul 2021

Contributed by Lukas

It's a listener questions episode! Chuck, Short Wave fan, asks, "What is the current state of earthquake prediction systems?" For some answers, Emily ...

The Great California Groundwater Grab

23 Jul 2021

Contributed by Lukas

California is in the middle of a terrible drought. The rivers are running low, and most of its farmers are getting very little water this year from th...

Who Runs The World? Squirrels!

22 Jul 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Squirrels are everywhere — living in our suburban neighborhoods to our city centers to our surrounding wilderness. Rhitu Chatterjee talks with resea...

How Tall Is Mount Everest? Hint: It Changes

21 Jul 2021

Contributed by Lukas

We talk to NPR's India correspondent Lauren Frayer about the ridiculously complicated science involved in measuring Mount Everest, the world's highest...

The Delta Variant And The Latest Coronavirus Surge

20 Jul 2021

Contributed by Lukas

COVID-19 cases are on the rise in the last month due to the Delta variant. NPR correspondent Allison Aubrey talks with Emily Kwong about where the vir...

Building A Shark Science Community For Women Of Color

19 Jul 2021

Contributed by Lukas

As a kid, Jasmin Graham was endlessly curious about the ocean. Her constant questioning eventually led her to a career in marine science studying shar...

The Joy Of Ice Cream's Texture

16 Jul 2021

Contributed by Lukas

July is National Ice Cream Month — and Sunday, July 18 is National Ice Cream Day (in the US)! Flavors range from the classics — vanilla and chocol...