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After 20 Years, This Scientist Uncovered The Physics Behind The Spiral Pass
Episode 1020
If you've ever watched part of a professional football game, you've probably seen a tight spiral pass. Those perfect throws where the football leaves the player's hand and neatly spins as it arcs thr…
Published on 1 year, 10 months ago
Wolves Are Thriving In The Radioactive Chernobyl Exclusion Zone
Episode 1019
In 1986 the Chernobyl nuclear power plant exploded, releasing radioactive material into northern Ukraine and Belarus. It was the most serious nuclear accident in history. Over one hundred thousand pe…
Published on 1 year, 10 months ago
This Scientist Figured Out Why Your Appendix Isn't Useless
Episode 1018
Back in the day, many of us heard that the appendix is a vestigial organ — at best, a body part that lost its purpose all those many years ago. At worst, an unnecessary clinger-on to the human body t…
Published on 1 year, 10 months ago
Murder, Mayhem At The Zoo: A Naked Mole Rat Succession War
Episode 1017
An all-out "naked mole rat war" has broken out at Smithsonian's National Zoo, after the queen of the colony was mortally wounded by one of her own children. Short Wave's Pien Huang and Margaret Cirin…
Published on 1 year, 11 months ago
Choose Your Lightning Protection: Lasers, Rockets or Rods?
Episode 1016
Every year, lightning is estimated to cause up to 24,000 deaths globally. It starts forest fires, burns buildings and crops, and causes disruptive power outages. The best, most practical technology a…
Published on 1 year, 11 months ago
Lessons on the limits of ecosystem restoration from the Everglades
Episode 1015
When the U.S. government and state of Florida unveiled a new plan to save the Everglades in 2000, the sprawling blueprint to restore the wetlands became the largest hydrological restoration effort in…
Published on 1 year, 11 months ago
When Tiny, Invasive Ants Go Marching In...And Alter An Ecosystem
Episode 1014
At the Ol Pejeta Conservancy, a wildlife preserve in central Kenya, lions and cheetahs mingle with zebras and elephants across many miles of savannah – grasslands with "whistling thorn" acacia trees …
Published on 1 year, 11 months ago
Experiencing Racism May Physically Change Your Brain
Episode 1013
Scientists know that Black people are at a greater risk for health problems like heart disease, diabetes and Alzheimer's disease than white people. A growing body of research shows that racism–in hea…
Published on 1 year, 11 months ago
This Wild Bird Will Lead You To Honey On Command
Episode 1012
Honeyguides are wild birds that team up with humans and then lead them to honey. Researchers recently found that the calls these birds respond to are unique and tied to their location. NPR science co…
Published on 1 year, 11 months ago
After Domestic Abuse Ends, the Effects of Brain Injuries Can Persist
Episode 1011
At least one in four women — and a much smaller proportion of men — experiences intimate partner violence in their lifetime. For people in violent relationships, brain injuries are unfortunately comm…
Published on 1 year, 11 months ago