Science Friday

A new study measuring microplastics in organs of the recently deceased found that about two dozen brain samples were 0.5% plastic by weight. Also, having an IUD inserted in the uterus is extremely painful for some people. The CDC now recommends that doctors use local anesthetics. Study Finds A Staggering Amount Of Plastic In Human Brains It only takes a quick look at our streets and waterways to b...

It’s been a hot and rainy summer in many parts of the US, and it’s been hard to spend as much time in nature as many of us would like. Heat waves and unpredictable weather have sometimes made it riskier to be outside. Maybe you’ve chosen an easier hike, or doubled up on water bottles, or stayed inside when you’d much rather be outdoors with friends and family. If you’ve been feeling apathetic abou...

The space elevator has been a staple of science fiction for decades, from The Fountains of Paradise by Arthur C. Clarke to the Apple TV show “Foundation.” But the work and theories to make it a reality have been in development since the late 19th century. It’s a simple concept: Imagine a long cable, stretching from the Earth’s surface to a satellite locked in orbit 22,000 miles high. It would work...

A new potential Alzheimer’s therapy uses 40-hertz frequencies of light and sound to stimulate the brain. Research applying this treatment to mice showed a substantial decrease in amyloid plaques, a key biomarker for the disease, and an improvement in cognitive function . Clinical trials testing the efficacy of this method in humans are underway. But how exactly does this treatment work? Could it b...

Dr. Anthony Fauci has a long history with Science Friday. Ira first met him in the early 1980s while covering the HIV/AIDS epidemic. He has been a frequent guest on the program, discussing everything from the common cold to SARS, food allergies to Ebola, and malaria to the recent COVID-19 pandemic. After leading the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases for 38 years, Fauci stepped...

Data from the Mars InSight lander points to the presence of liquid water underneath its crust. Also, some national and state parks are changing the way they open up campsite reservations online to make them more accessible to everyone. Scientists Find Strong Evidence For Liquid Water On Mars Scientists discovered that there could be oceans’ worth of liquid water hidden underneath Mars’ surface. Mo...

To gaze upon a full T. rex skeleton is to be transported back in time. Dinosaur fossils are key to understanding what these prehistoric creatures looked like, how they moved, and where they lived. But there’s one type of dinosaur fossil that’s sometimes overlooked: poop. Its scientific name is coprolite. These fossilized feces are rarer than their boney counterparts, but they’re key to better unde...

Solar holds great promise as a clean energy solution, as the sun is an incredibly abundant resource, and panels can be placed unobtrusively on roofs and in fields. And solar panel technology has advanced quite a bit over the past few decades: panels have become less expensive, more efficient, and more widely used. Panels also generally fare well, considering that they’re outside in inclement weath...

It’s become clear to farmers and home gardeners alike that climate change is affecting the gardening landscape, literally. The climate is warming, pests are moving into different regions, and there’s a growing need for vegetable varieties that are resilient to the stresses of this new age. In the world of organic farming, the job of creating those new varieties falls to a plant breeder : someone w...

On July 17, Apex the stegosaurus was sold at Sothebys in New York City for a record $44.6 million. The buyer was billionaire Ken Griffin, CEO of the hedge fund Citadel, who says he plans to loan the fossil to American institutions for display. But despite Griffin’s statement, some paleontologists aren’t too happy about the trend of fossils going up for auction. The sale of dinosaur fossils has bec...

The Boeing capsule is having issues with its thrusters and cannot bring astronauts back to Earth. Also, move over, Farmer’s Almanac. A more accurate long-term weather forecast could be on the horizon. Boeing’s Starliner Leaves Astronauts Stuck On The Space Station In another blow to Boeing’s Starliner program, which is meant to ferry astronauts and supplies to the International Space Station, NASA...

It may seem like everyone is either getting COVID-19 this summer , or knows someone who has. That’s because for the fourth year in a row, COVID cases are experiencing a summer surge. The CDC now tracks COVID-19 mostly through wastewater and found that viral activity has multiplied more than four times from the beginning of May to now. The CDC classifies the viral activity level as “high.” So what’...

New research suggests that polymetallic nodules found 13,000 feet deep produce “dark oxygen” by electrolyzing water. Also, at higher altitudes, the air is less dense, which makes it harder for birds in flight to generate lift. The turkey vulture has a solution.  Deep-Sea ‘Nodules’ May Produce Oxygen, Study Finds An international team of researchers recently discovered that some 13,000 feet below t...

One of the hottest fields in astronomy right now is the search for exoplanets. NASA’s Exoplanet Archive currently lists over 5,700 confirmed planets orbiting distant stars. And more discoveries will be on the way. PLATO, which stands for PLAnetary Transits and Oscillations of stars , is a satellite made by the European Space Agency that will help put more exoplanets on the map. Scheduled for launc...

“Cancer” is a dreaded word in the doctor’s office. But about 40% of us will be diagnosed with cancer at some point during our lives, the most common being breast, prostate, and lung cancer, according to the National Institutes of Health. But in the last few decades, major progress has been made in the world of cancer treatment and prevention. Cancer death rates have decreased by about 30% over the...

The University of Hawaiʻi study will be the largest of its kind to investigate the health and social impacts of the Maui wildfires. Also, fiberglass is washing up on Nantucket’s shores, and residents are concerned about the long-term environmental impact of this debris. Hawaiʻi Wildfire Survivors To Join Long-Term Health Study Nearly a year ago, Maui experienced a series of wildfires that caused m...

You know that disappointing feeling when you’re ready to make a delicious meal, but you crack open the refrigerator only to find mushy tomatoes, dried-out bread, or oozing strawberries? Refrigeration fundamentally changes the chemistry of our food, but at this point, most of the United States’ food system relies on the use of refrigerators. Almost three-quarters of the food on an average American’...

If nations are to meet their sustainable energy goals, experts argue that batteries will be a crucial part of the equation. Not only are batteries key for many technologies, they’ll also be necessary to meet energy demands with a power grid that is mainly supplied by renewable energy sources like wind and solar. Without batteries, power from those sources can’t be stored for use when the sun isn’t...

Last year, almost half of the honeybee colonies in the U.S. died, making it the second deadliest year for honeybees on record. The main culprit wasn’t climate change, starvation, or even pesticides, but a parasite: Varroa destructor. “The name for this parasite is a very Transformer-y sounding name, but … these Varroa destructor mites have earned this name. It’s not melodramatic by any means. [The...

What A Rodent Brain Shows Us About Love–And Loss Love has the reputation of being a fairly unique human emotion. If we’re lucky, we can experience lots of love in our lives: with romantic partners, children, family, friends. But with love comes the possibility of another, less desirable emotion: heartbreak. Neuroscientists at the University of Colorado Boulder have found that these feelings seem t...

In a first, NASA's Curiosity rover has discovered pure sulfur on Mars. And, we revisit a conversation from 2015 about Alexander von Humboldt and Andrea Wulf's “The Invention of Nature,” which is our August book club pick. Curiosity Rover Discovers Pure Sulfur On Mars NASA’s Mars Curiosity rover ran over a rock, which cracked open to reveal pure sulfur crystals . This was the first time pure sulfur...

According to a 2022 study, just over 4% of Americans said they had consumed raw milk in the past year. That might not sound like a lot, but it adds up to around 15 million people. And those numbers seem to be increasing. According to data from the market research agency NielsenIQ from May, sales of raw milk increased by as much as 65% compared to that time last year. This increase coincides with a...

Researchers developed a prototype of a space suit that could replace the high-absorbency diapers that astronauts wear on space walks. And, a bitcoin mine's cooling fans are so loud they rattle windows. Residents of Granbury, Texas, are having migraines, panic attacks, and hearing loss. A ‘Dune’-Inspired Space Suit To Turn Astronaut Pee Into Water On the International Space Station, resources are p...

Many kids dream of becoming marine biologists. But even folks who commit fully to studying life in the sea face a lot of barriers to entry in this competitive field—especially if they aren’t white and male. Jasmin Graham has an unparalleled passion for sharks, but a few years ago she started to feel that the traditional path in academia wasn’t designed for her to succeed. Instead of giving up, she...

Last month, the first psychedelic therapy treatment came before the Food and Drug Administration for a vote. It entailed using MDMA, also known as ecstasy or molly, to treat PTSD. MDMA therapy has looked promising as a treatment for PTSD and other mental health conditions in some studies. But the FDA scientific advisory panel that evaluated this treatment voted overwhelmingly against approving it....