Episodes

  • Love Fruit? Thank (Dinosaur) Mass Extinction

    Love Fruit? Thank (Dinosaur) Mass Extinction
    Mar 14 2025
    Move over, TikTokers. It's time to shine a spotlight on some of the earliest influencers around: dinosaurs. When these ecosystem engineers were in their heyday, forest canopies were open and seeds were small. But around the time most dinosaurs were wiped out, paleontologists noticed an interesting shift in the fossil record: Seeds got bigger — much bigger. There was a fruit boom. Did the death of these dinosaurs have something to do with it? And who are the modern day equivalent of dinosaur influencers? To find out, host Emily Kwong talks to Chris Doughty, an ecologist at Northern Arizona University.

    Tell us what other tales of dino past you want us to regale you with by emailing us at shortwave@npr.org!

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    12 mins
  • Let's Talk About (Biological) Sex, Baby

    Let's Talk About (Biological) Sex, Baby
    Mar 12 2025
    Biological sex is all over the news lately. Whether it's via President Trump's executive order affecting passport policy, moving trans inmates between prisons or shifting the requirements for women in sports — appeals to "the biological reality of sex" are constant. In truth, biological sex, like a lot of scientific categories, is nuanced. It's defined by multiple criteria – including chromosomal, chemical and physical factors – that can, and do, change over a person's lifetime. And it's a reality that's definitely not limited to male and female.

    Want the episode to cover more nuances of human biology? Let us know by emailing shortwave@npr.org! We're also always open to other story ideas you have.

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    15 mins
  • Is The Trump Administration Breaking Science?

    Is The Trump Administration Breaking Science?
    Mar 11 2025
    In its first 50 days, the Trump administration made sweeping changes to scientific arms of the government like the Department of Health and Human Services, which oversees the National Institutes of Health, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and the Food and Drug Administration. The president issued executive orders to terminate all work that was related to DEI, environmental justice and gender inclusivity. In response, research was halted and thousands of people were fired — some of which was reversed. It's a lot to keep track of, so we called in reinforcements. Here to recount it all and analyze what these ongoing changes mean for the future of scientific research in the United States are NPR science correspondents Rob Stein, Pien Huang and Jonathan Lambert.

    Want to hear more about policy changes affecting science? Let us know by emailing shortwave@npr.org! We're also always open to other story ideas you have.

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    17 mins
  • The Great Antarctic Food Web Puzzle

    The Great Antarctic Food Web Puzzle
    Mar 10 2025
    Tourists to Antarctica are fueling research on some of the tiniest, most influential organisms on Earth: phytoplankton. These itty bitty critters make their own food and are the base of the food web in most of the ocean, but tracking how well they're doing is historically tricky. So, researchers with the program FjordPhyto are using samples collected by these tourists to understand how the balance of power in the Antarctic food web could be shifting — could ripple across the food web of the entire ocean.

    Want to hear more community science at work or about polar ecosystems? Let us know by emailing shortwave@npr.org! We're also always open to other story ideas you have. <3

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    13 mins
  • Stone Age To Bone Age?

    Stone Age To Bone Age?
    Mar 7 2025
    Archeologists know early humans used stone to make tools long before the time of Homo sapiens. But a new discovery out this week in Nature suggests early humans in eastern Africa were also using animal bones – one million years earlier than researchers previously thought. The finding suggests that these early humans were intentionally shaping animal materials – like elephant and hippopotamus bones – to make tools and that it could indicate advancements in early human cognition.

    Want more on early human history? Email us at shortwave@npr.org.

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    8 mins
  • Will Bark For Science

    Will Bark For Science
    Mar 5 2025
    On their second job ever, Collette Yee and her partner were assigned a difficult job: locate transient whale poop in the ocean before it sinks. Luckily, Collette was partnered with Jack, a blue heeler mix trained to sniff out cryptic odors from things that conservation biologists have trouble collecting on their own. Producer Berly McCoy reports on Jack and the growing field of dog detection conservation that helps science by sniffing out everything from invasive crabs to diseased plants to endangered species.

    Interested in more biotech stories? Let us know by dropping a line to shortwave@npr.org.

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    14 mins
  • Reviving The Woolly Mammoth ... With Mice

    Reviving The Woolly Mammoth ... With Mice
    Mar 4 2025
    You've heard of the woolly mammoth. But have you heard of woolly mice? These critters were genetically modified by the Dallas-based biotech company Colossal Biosciences to have the same "woolly" and fat appearance as the ancient mammoths. The mice are a key step in the longer journey to de-extinct the woolly mammoth. NPR's Rob Stein takes us to the lab where it all happened.

    Interested in more biotech stories? Let us know by dropping a line to shortwave@npr.org.

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    10 mins
  • What It's Like Taking Alzheimer's Drugs

    What It's Like Taking Alzheimer's Drugs
    Mar 3 2025
    There are now two fully approved drugs on the market that can, sometimes, slow down the progression of Alzheimer's disease. Both have been shown to slow down the mental decline of Alzheimer's by more than 25%. But that's in a group of patients—an individual may do much better, or not be helped at all. NPR Science Correspondent Jon Hamilton has been talking to people who've taken these drugs. Today he has the story of two patients to receive them.

    Interested in more human health stories? Contact us at shortwave@npr.org.

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    13 mins