Short Wave
Episodes
In Mozambique, Meteorologists Can't Keep Up With Climate Change
15 Jan 2020
Contributed by Lukas
Accurate weather forecasting can be a matter of life or death. So countries with less money like Mozambique face a big challenge. They can't build and...
Your Brain On Storytelling
14 Jan 2020
Contributed by Lukas
Storytelling can be a powerful tool to convey information, even in the world of science. It can also shift stereotypes about who scientists are. We ta...
Space Junk: How Cluttered Is The Final Frontier?
13 Jan 2020
Contributed by Lukas
Since the dawn of Sputnik in 1957, space-faring nations have been filling Earth's orbit with satellites. Think GPS, weather forecasting, telecommunica...
Animal Slander! - "Blind As A Bat" And "Memory Of A Goldfish"
10 Jan 2020
Contributed by Lukas
Host Maddie Sofia and reporter Emily Kwong evaluate what truth there is to the popular phrases "blind as a bat" and "memory of a goldfish." Hint: The ...
The Link Between Kitchen Countertops And A Deadly Disease
09 Jan 2020
Contributed by Lukas
It's called silicosis, and it's been known about for decades. So why is it now emerging in new numbers among workers who cut kitchen countertops? NPR ...
What's Behind Australia's Historic Fires
08 Jan 2020
Contributed by Lukas
Biologist Lesley Hughes from Macquarie University in Australia explains why the recent bushfires there could change the country forever. Hughes is a f...
Food Waste + Poop = Electricity
07 Jan 2020
Contributed by Lukas
Some dairy farmers in Massachusetts are using food waste and manure to create renewable energy. Each farm produces enough to power about 1,500 homes. ...
A Star In Orion Is Dimming. Is It About To Explode?
06 Jan 2020
Contributed by Lukas
Okay, it wouldn't technically be an explosion. And if it's "about" to happen, it already happened. About 650 years ago. We'll explain, with astronomer...
Short Wave Presents: Life Kit Tips For Dealing With Anxious Kids
03 Jan 2020
Contributed by Lukas
When is your kid just scared of the dark and when are they dealing with a larger anxiety disorder? On today's Short Wave, we're featuring our friends ...
Compost Your Loved Ones
02 Jan 2020
Contributed by Lukas
There aren't that many options for putting your loved ones to rest. There's burial. There's cremation. Now, later this year in Washington state, it'll...
Happy New Year!
01 Jan 2020
Contributed by Lukas
We're back with a new episode tomorrow! Hope you had a safe and happy orbit around the sun.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.co...
Tennessine's Wild Ride To The Periodic Table
31 Dec 2019
Contributed by Lukas
There are rare chemical elements, and then there is tennessine. Only a couple dozen atoms of the stuff have ever existed. For the 150th anniversary of...
The Decade In Science
30 Dec 2019
Contributed by Lukas
As 2019 draws to a close, we enlisted the help of two NPR science correspondents — Nell Greenfieldboye and Joe Palca — to look back on some of the...
Sci-Fi Movies Of The Decade (Sort Of)
27 Dec 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Astrophysicist Adam Frank is a big fan of science and movies. He's even been a science adviser to Marvel's "Doctor Strange." So we asked Adam to give ...
One Of The Germiest Places In The Airport
26 Dec 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Hint: it's not the bathroom. Niina Ikonen and Carita Savolainen-Kopra from the Finnish Institute for Health and Welfare studied high-traffic areas in ...
Happy Holidays!
25 Dec 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Maddie and Emily wish you Happy Holidays and share some science facts you can show off at your next holiday party. Plus, a little reminder of how you ...
A Shortwave Christmas Carol
24 Dec 2019
Contributed by Lukas
On Christmas Eve, scientists at field stations across Antarctica sing carols to one another...via shortwave. On today's episode, the Short Wave podcas...
Iridium's Pivotal Role In Our Past And ... Maybe Our Future?
23 Dec 2019
Contributed by Lukas
The story of how a father and son team - one a physicist, one a geologist - helped solve a big scientific mystery. What brought the reign of dinosaurs...
What Happened To The American Chestnut Tree?
20 Dec 2019
Contributed by Lukas
In the early 20th century, a blight fungus wiped out most of the 4 billion American chestnut trees on the eastern seaboard. The loss was ecologically ...
The First African American Face Transplant
19 Dec 2019
Contributed by Lukas
In 2013, Robert Chelsea was hit by a drunk driver and sustained third-degree burns on more than half of his body. Nearly six years later, he became th...
And The Winner Is...Science!
18 Dec 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Camille Schrier, a 24-year-old pharmacy student, competed in the Miss Virginia pageant over the summer with a "talent" that caught our attention. It p...
The Science Behind Whakaari/White Island's Eruption
17 Dec 2019
Contributed by Lukas
The volcano of Whakaari or White Island in New Zealand erupted just over a week ago. More than a dozen people were killed, including tourists to the p...
A Polar Expedition To The Top Of The World: Part 2
16 Dec 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Our journey continues on MOSAiC: the Multidisciplinary drifting Observatory for the Study of Arctic Climate. Physicists, chemists, and biologists are ...
A Polar Expedition To The Top Of The World: Part 1
13 Dec 2019
Contributed by Lukas
A massive scientific mission is underway in the Arctic. Physicists, chemists, and biologists are studying the changing region, so they can better pred...
Invasive Species: We Asked, You Answered
12 Dec 2019
Contributed by Lukas
We couldn't stop at the spotted lanternfly! (We covered that invasive species in an earlier episode.) We wanted to hear about the invasives where you ...
The Congolese Doctor Who Discovered Ebola
11 Dec 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Jean-Jacques Muyembe is a Congolese doctor heading up the response to the current Ebola outbreak in Congo. Back in 1976, he was the first doctor to co...
Aluminum's Journey From Precious Metal To Beer Can
10 Dec 2019
Contributed by Lukas
We've been celebrating 150 years of the Periodic Table. This episode, the rise of aluminum! The element is incredibly common, but was once hard to ext...
Getting Closer To The Sun Than Ever Before
09 Dec 2019
Contributed by Lukas
An ambitious mission to get a spacecraft close to the sun has revealed a strange region of space filled with rapidly flipping magnetic fields and rogu...
If You Give An Orangutan A Kazoo...
06 Dec 2019
Contributed by Lukas
If you give an orangutan a kazoo, will it produce a sound? Researchers discovered that this simple instrument could offer insights into the vocal abil...
Is CBD Safe? The FDA Can't Say
05 Dec 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Use of CBD — cannabidiol, the non-psychoactive component in cannabis — has exploded in the last few years. But while it's marketed as a solution f...
The Evolution Of HIV Treatment
04 Dec 2019
Contributed by Lukas
A lot has changed since the first cases of AIDS were reported in 1981. Globally, AIDS-related deaths have dropped by more than 55% since 2004, the dea...
An Interstellar Wanderer Is Coming Our Way
03 Dec 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Comet 2I/Borisov will reach its closest approach to the sun on December 8, 2019. We talk to planetary astronomer Michele Bannister about where the hec...
Does Your Dog REALLY Love You?
02 Dec 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Clive Wynne, founding director of the Canine Science Collaboratory at Arizona State University, draws on studies from his lab and others around the wo...
The Science Of Smell And Memory
29 Nov 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Why can a smell trigger such a powerful memory? Biological anthropologist Kara Hoover explains what's going on in the brain when we smell, how smell i...
Happy Thanksgiving!
28 Nov 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Maddie and Emily wish you a Happy Thanksgiving, and explain how you can support the show. Find and donate to your local public radio station at donate...
One Small Step For Cookie Baking
27 Nov 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Imagine having your Thanksgiving meal in microgravity? That's the reality for the six astronauts aboard the International Space Station. Today, we loo...
The Nightmare Of Sleep Paralysis
26 Nov 2019
Contributed by Lukas
As a teenager, Josh Smith was plagued by sleep paralysis. Now he's afraid his kid might be experiencing it too. In this listener questions episode, Jo...
Uganda's Solution For Treating Extreme Pain
25 Nov 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Uganda has come up with a low-tech solution to treat patients in a lot of pain: drinkable liquid morphine. Nurith Aizenman tell us how this model work...
The CDC, Its 'F-Word' (Firearms) & Suicide Prevention
22 Nov 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Congress prohibits the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention from using any of its funding to promote or advocate for gun control. NPR science co...
Solving The Sleep & Alzheimer's Puzzle
21 Nov 2019
Contributed by Lukas
We know that people with Alzheimer's often have sleep problems. But does it work the other way? Do problems with sleep set the stage for this degenera...
That Revolutionary Gene-Editing Experiment? So Far So Good.
20 Nov 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Earlier this month NPR health correspondent Rob Stein introduced us to Victoria Gray, the woman at the center of a groundbreaking medical treatment us...
Saving Water One Flush At A Time
19 Nov 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Happy World Toilet Day! Flushing toilets can consume a lot of water, so Tak-Sing Wong, a biomedical engineer at Penn State University, is trying to mi...
Bye Bye, Bei Bei: Giant Panda Heads to China
18 Nov 2019
Contributed by Lukas
The Smithsonian's National Zoo is bidding farewell to Bei Bei. The 4-year-old giant panda will be sent to China on Tuesday, Nov. 19. While born in cap...
An Eyewitness to Extinction
15 Nov 2019
Contributed by Lukas
While doing field work in Central America in the 1990's, biologist Karen Lips noticed the frogs she was studying were disappearing. Scientists in othe...
You Asked About The Flu
14 Nov 2019
Contributed by Lukas
How can you tell if you have the flu, or the common cold? Why does your arm hurt after you get the flu shot? And can getting the flu shot actually giv...
SpaceX's Satellite Swarm: Could It Hurt Astronomy?
13 Nov 2019
Contributed by Lukas
The private space company run by Elon Musk launched 60 satellites into orbit this week. Science correspondent Geoff Brumfiel explains why astronomers ...
Most U.S. Dairy Cows Come From 2 Bulls. That's Not Good.
12 Nov 2019
Contributed by Lukas
NPR science correspondent Dan Charles explains why most of the dairy cows in America are descended from just two bulls, creating a lack of genetic div...
Can Global Shipping Go Zero Carbon?
11 Nov 2019
Contributed by Lukas
A lot of the stuff we buy in the U.S. comes by ship — ships that use a particularly dirty kind of fuel. Now a big shipping company says it wants to ...
The Mind-Bending Ascent Of Helium — And Why It's Running Low
08 Nov 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Helium is the second-most common element in the cosmos, but it's far rarer on planet Earth. As part of our celebration of the periodic table's 150th b...
Life After Whale Death
07 Nov 2019
Contributed by Lukas
What happens after a whale dies? Their carcasses, known as "whale falls," provide a sudden, concentrated food source for organisms in the deep sea. Bi...
Fighting An Insect Invasion With... An Insect Invasion
06 Nov 2019
Contributed by Lukas
The spotted lanternfly is eating its way through trees and crops in eastern Pennsylvania. NPR science correspondent Dan Charles explains how scientist...
The U.S. Wants Out Of The Paris Agreement
05 Nov 2019
Contributed by Lukas
It's official, but not a surprise. The U.S. has told the United Nations it wants to withdraw from the Paris Agreement, the global accord to fight clim...
A Revolutionary Experiment To Edit Human Genes
04 Nov 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Victoria Gray has sickle cell disease, a painful and debilitating genetic condition that affects millions of people around the world. But an experimen...
When A Listener Calls...
01 Nov 2019
Contributed by Lukas
It's our first-ever listener questions episode! On this Short Wave, listener Charlotte asks why some people seek out scary experiences. We reached out...
The Zombies That Walk Among Us
31 Oct 2019
Contributed by Lukas
The idea of human zombies probably seems pretty far-fetched. But there are real zombies out there in the animal kingdom. Ed Yong of The Atlantic creep...
Crows Don't Forget
30 Oct 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Crows have gotten a bad rap throughout history. Think about it. A group of them is called a "murder." To get some insight into crows and perhaps set t...
Wildfire Season Is Here To Stay
29 Oct 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Californians face a terrible new normal as wildfire season grows longer and more intense. Jennifer Montgomery, head of the California's Forest Managem...
Meet Two MacArthur 'Genius Grant' Scientists
28 Oct 2019
Contributed by Lukas
We meet two scientists working on opposite sides of the world, both thinking creatively about rising sea levels and our changing oceans. Andrea Dutton...
Seen Any Nazi Uranium? These Researchers Want To Know
25 Oct 2019
Contributed by Lukas
NPR science correspondent Geoff Brumfiel shares the story of Nazi Germany's attempt to build a nuclear reactor — and how evidence of that effort was...
Adversarial AI
24 Oct 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Artificial intelligence might not be as smart as we think. University and military researchers are studying how attackers could hack into AI systems b...
Logging 'The Lungs' of North America
23 Oct 2019
Contributed by Lukas
The world's largest intact temperate rainforest is in a place you may not expect: southeast Alaska. The Trump administration wants to eliminate a long...
Finally, An All-Female Spacewalk
22 Oct 2019
Contributed by Lukas
NASA astronauts Christina Koch and Jessica Meir completed the first all-female spacewalk last week. The historic moment came 35 years after Kathryn Su...
Randall Munroe's Absurd Science For Real-World Problems
21 Oct 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Randall Munroe, the cartoonist behind the popular Internet comic xkcd, finds complicated solutions to simple, real-world problems. In the process, he ...
Exploring The Rainforest With 'TreeTop Barbie'
18 Oct 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Pioneering ecologist Nalini Nadkarni takes us up into the canopy — the area above the forest floor — where she helped research and document this u...
The Squishy Science Behind ASMR
17 Oct 2019
Contributed by Lukas
The science is nascent and a little squishy, but researchers like Giulia Poerio are trying to better understand ASMR — a feeling triggered in the br...
What We Know (And Don't) About The Dangers Of Vaping
16 Oct 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Amid an outbreak of lung injury cases, there's a new spotlight on the dangers of vaping, a practice that's been marketed as an alternative to smoking....
Kicking The Habit With 'Shrooms
15 Oct 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Magic mushrooms — they're not just for getting weird with your friends. Researchers are increasingly looking at psychedelics to treat conditions suc...
Introducing Short Wave
06 Oct 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Short Wave, NPR's new daily science podcast, starts October 15th. Join host Maddie Sofia for new discoveries, everyday mysteries, and the science behi...