Science Friday

Data centers make controversial neighbors: They’re loud, they use a lot of water, and can drive electricity prices up. Following public concern and organizing efforts, Maine nearly implemented an 18-month ban on data center construction, before a governor veto .Joining Flora to talk about real changes communities can advocate for in regards to data centers are Pete McGuire, climate reporter at Mai...

The way ancient societies like the Greeks, Maya, and Khmer Empire built their cities can tell us a lot about how a place was governed. Did rulers live in ornate palaces or alongside other residents? Are there large, open spaces for community gatherings? In a new study, archaeologists document how they use the design of ancient temples, plazas, and cities to understand how a society was governed. S...

What did the universe look like before any stars turned on? Astronomers call that time the “dark ages,” and while they think it may be possible to see remnants of it in very low frequency radio signals, hearing those signals from Earth can be challenging.  One possibility is to put a radio telescope on the far side of the moon, where it would have periods of observation shielded from interference...

To mark Earth Day , we asked you to tell us about your favorite places on the planet. You took us to the woods near Traverse City, Michigan, to a lake in Oklahoma, to Long Island Harbor where you spent your summers as a kid. Basking in a sea breeze and admiring a sunset are basic human pleasures. But how do you take these moments and turn them into meaning? How do you pin those feelings down with...

What makes Earth special, and why are we here at all ? In his book “Why Do We Exist? The Nine Realms of the Universe That Make You Possible,” astrophysicist Hakeem Oluseyi tackles the conditions needed to put life on Earth, from the formation of stars, to self-organizing molecules, to quantum weirdness and the nature of time. He joins Host Flora Lichtman to celebrate our place in the cosmos. Read...

Nearly all Americans have some type of PFAS, commonly known as “forever chemicals,” in their blood. The chemicals, which are linked to numerous health issues, were first regulated in drinking water at the federal level two years ago (though some limits have been rolled back).But, back in 2018, New Jersey became the first state to adopt its own drinking water standards for PFAS . Now, researchers a...

A new imaging technique using a particle accelerator is giving researchers an unprecedented level of detail of our organs, producing scans 100 billion times brighter than a CT scanner. Those 3D models are now part of a public database called the Human Organ Atlas , available to researchers and the medically curious. Joining Host Ira Flatow to explain why they needed so much power and what kind of...

In the 2010s, inventor Simone Giertz (pronounced “Yetch”) began making videos that straddled the line between practical and absurd. What if you had a robot that could feed you soup? Or a drone that could cut your hair? As time went on, her projects became more polished and more ambitious, like converting a Tesla sedan into a pickup truck. Today, with almost 3 million subscribers to her YouTube cha...

What are dolphins actually saying with their iconic, high-pitched whistles? Dolphin communication researcher Laela Sayigh is trying to find out. She’s been compiling a database of whistles from a pod of dolphins in Sarasota, Florida, the longest-studied group of cetaceans in the world. She joins Flora to discuss fundamental questions about dolphin dialects , including how dolphins’ “signature” whi...

“This was not easy, being 200,000+ miles away from home. Like before you launch, it feels like it's the greatest dream on earth. And when you're out there, you just wanna get back to your families and your friends.” – Artemis II Commander Reid WisemanLast week, the crew of Artemis II made it safely home. Throughout the journey, we heard the astronauts talk about moonjoy, awe, wonder, and—without e...

If you’re a gardener, thinking about getting your soil in shape probably means thinking about compost. But composting can be a mysterious process. What can go into the pile? How do you balance carbon and nitrogen? And how do you do it in a city? Compost expert Cassandra Marketos joins Host Ira Flatow to break down the basics of what she calls “purposeful decomposition,” and give practical tips for...

How do we know what we know? That's where science comes in—it gives us a method for testing our ideas and getting trustworthy results. But some researchers have warned that many scientific studies can't be replicated. To find out how deep the problem goes, the US Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency funded one of the largest analyses of social science, called the SCORE project . They checked...

Movies may be a largely visual medium, but sound plays a huge role in setting tone, creating new worlds, and fleshing out characters. Sound designer Erik Aadahl has brought some of Hollywood’s iconic creatures to life with sound, like the Transformers, 2014’s Godzilla, and Rocky the alien from “Project Hail Mary.” He joins Flora to talk about the science of sound design , and how he uses his backg...

GLP-1 drugs like Ozempic, Wegovy, and Zepbound are prescribed for weight loss, diabetes, and blood-sugar management. But as more people use them, patients are reporting a decrease in cravings for drugs and alcohol. Researchers are now investigating whether GLP-1s might be effective for treating alcohol and drug addiction. How much do we know? What are the risks? And do these drugs tell us anything...

Scientists recently published the first footage of a sperm whale birth , and it was a crowded ordeal. More than 10 other sperm whales were there for the delivery and helped keep the baby whale afloat—and not all of them were related to mom. How much do we actually understand whale culture? And how should we think about altruism in the animal kingdom? Host Flora Lichtman chats with whale biologist...

Last year, Chinese carmaker BYD sold millions of electric vehicles, overtaking Tesla to become the world’s biggest seller of EV cars. And BYD cars weren’t just for the Chinese market. They went to Europe, Asia, and Mexico, and may soon be available in Canada. But thanks to tariffs and regulations, BYDs are not available to U.S. buyers. China policy expert Kyle Chan joins Host Ira Flatow for a look...

Microplastics and nanoplastics have been found just about everywhere: in our soil, our bodies, and our water. Recent research involving bioengineered algae has had success in capturing and removing microplastics from water. Environmental reporter Kate Grumke joins Producer Kathleen Davis to talk about the latest approaches to addressing microplastics, and researcher Susie Dai discusses her work us...

On Wednesday, NASA’s Artemis II mission launched, kicking off on a roughly 10-day trip that will carry four astronauts around the moon and back to Earth . The flight is another test of the Space Launch System rocket and the Orion capsule that are intended to be used for an eventual crewed lunar landing. Space reporter Brendan Byrne joins Producer Kathleen Davis to share his impressions of the laun...

In 2006, a vote by the International Astronomical Union determined that Pluto was no longer a planet. The decision sparked a heated public debate, and many planetary scientists disagreed with kicking Pluto out of the planet club. Twenty years later, Pluto is back in the news : NASA administrator Jared Isaacman said he wants to make Pluto great again by declaring it… a planet again. And he’s urging...

For many of us, what happens in the bathroom stays in the bathroom: According to a recent survey, 1 in 3 Americans are too embarrassed to talk about their poop or gut issues with their doctor. Gastroenterologists like Trisha Pasricha say that’s a problem, and that that stigma is getting in the way of our health and happiness. She joins Host Flora Lichtman to share some crucial gut knowledge , and...

A listener recently called in asking how they might get a pair of functioning web shooters so they could operate as a local Spider-Man. While web shooters (sadly) don’t exist, we can say that the ways real spiders use silk put Peter Parker’s powers to shame. Spiders can use their sticky threads to sail through the air, capture prey larger than them, and even live underwater. And scientists trying...

Researchers at the Large Hadron Collider in Switzerland have announced that they discovered a new subatomic particle . Roughly four times more massive than a standard proton, this short-lived piece of matter called Ξcc⁺(Xi-cc-plus) is like an extra-heavy proton, researchers say. Physicist Hassan Jawahery joins Host Flora Lichtman to unpack how the particle was found, and what its discovery means f...

When ChatGPT first came onto the scene, it wowed users with its writing abilities, but drew laughs for generating images of seven-fingered hands and struggling with basic math , where 2+2 didn’t always equal 4. But more recently, things have changed: Google and OpenAI’s models bagged gold medals at the International Mathematical Olympiad last year, and now some experts say AI could pose an existen...

When Punch the monkey was abandoned by his mother, zookeepers gave him a surrogate and unexpected source of comfort: a stuffed animal. Videos of Punch snuggling the stuffie went viral, and, as his stardom rose, millions of us began wondering,  “Is Punch OK? Does he have a girlfriend?” Primatologist Christine Webb joins Host Flora Lichtman to talk about the ways humans relate to our closest relativ...

Bird flu has flown off the national news radar, with only scattered, local reports of dead birds in parks and poultry farms. Is it simply no longer a concern, or have cuts to federal science funding disrupted monitoring for this disease? Airborne pathogens expert Seema Lakdawala gives a flyover view on where bird flu stands today, and whether the government’s current monitoring efforts are enough...