Short Wave
New discoveries, everyday mysteries, and the science behind the headlines — in just under 15 minutes. It's science for everyone, using a lot of creativity and a little humor. Join hosts Emily Kwong and Regina Barber for science on a different wavelength.
If you're hooked, try Short Wave Plus. Your subscription supports the show and unlocks a sponsor-free feed. Learn more at plus.npr.org/shortwave
- Update frequency
- every 2 days
- Average duration
- 12 minutes
- Episodes
- 1344
- Years Active
- 2019 - 2025
Detecting Pests By Eavesdropping On Insects
From Indonesia to Wisconsin, farmers all over the world struggle with a huge problem: pests. On top of that, it's tough for farmers to identify where exactly they have the pests and when. Reporter Li…
00:13:36 |
Fri 30 Aug 2024
What's Missing From The Invasive Species Narrative?
At first glance, the whole narrative of aquatic invasive species may seem straightforward: A bad non-native species comes into a new ecosystem and overruns good native species. But the truth? It's a …
00:12:33 |
Wed 28 Aug 2024
Preserving Your Humanity In The Age Of Robots
Human beings are hardwired for social connection – so much so that we think of even the most basic objects as having feelings or experiences. (Yup, we're talking to you, Roomba owners!) Social robots…
00:14:21 |
Tue 27 Aug 2024
This Unremarkable Ant From Europe Quietly Conquered NYC
New York: The city that never sleeps, the concrete jungle where dreams are made of and more recently ... home to a mysterious ant spreading across the city — before continuing across metropolitan and…
00:13:52 |
Mon 26 Aug 2024
Feeling Bored? Stop Swiping
Have you ever scrolled through a TikTok without finishing it? Switched between YouTube videos halfway through one or the other? Pressed "fast forward" on a Netflix episode that just wasn't holding yo…
00:08:54 |
Fri 23 Aug 2024
What COVID Going Endemic Means For You
U.S. health officials now say COVID-19 is an endemic disease. That means it's here to stay – circulating fairly regularly like the flu. Even though that changes how public health officials think abo…
00:12:34 |
Wed 21 Aug 2024
Solve A Moon Mystery! With Radiolab
All summer long, we've been on a 10-episode odyssey through the changing universe (check out the series). But there was one big set of objects that we skipped over: moons. So now we're back, with spe…
00:14:42 |
Tue 20 Aug 2024
The Power Of Braille Literacy
For blind and low vision adults, the ability to read braille can be life-changing. Braille literacy is directly linked to higher rates of academic success and better employment outcomes for them. But…
00:12:55 |
Mon 19 Aug 2024
Firing A Weapon Might Hurt Your Brain
Some weapons used by the United States military are so powerful, they can pose a threat to the people who fire them — even in training. When weapons are fired, an invisible blast wave travels through…
00:13:03 |
Fri 16 Aug 2024
How To Beat The Heat, Olympian-Style
Over the next week, forecasts project extreme heat across much of the South, Midwest and parts of the West. So, this episode, health correspondent Pien Huang helps us take heat training cues from Oly…
00:12:19 |
Wed 14 Aug 2024
How Will the Universe End?
Today, we're bringing you the final installment of our space summer series ... with the end ... of EVERYTHING. Will the universe end in a huge cosmic unraveling? A slow and lonely dissolution? Or a q…
00:12:43 |
Tue 13 Aug 2024
To Save The Grizzly Bear, You Gotta Think Like One
Grizzly bears in the contiguous United States have been taken off — then put back on — the endangered species list twice since they were first labeled as threatened almost 50 years ago. Now, the issu…
00:13:12 |
Mon 12 Aug 2024
What Is An Unfair Advantage In Sports?
We at Short Wave have been following all things Olympics, from the medals and new records to the ugly accusations that two women boxers aren't really women. Last year, the boxers failed gender tests,…
00:14:02 |
Sat 10 Aug 2024
These Sea Lions Are Basically Scientists
How do you study unmapped areas of the ocean and identify critical habitat for an endangered species? You include the study animal in the scientific process! Researchers from the University of Adelai…
00:08:58 |
Fri 09 Aug 2024
Was The Paris Olympic Pool Slow?
In the last week, we've seen swimmers diving headfirst into the 2024 Paris Olympics pool, limbs gracefully slicing through the water. And yet, world and Olympic records weren't broken at quite the ra…
00:12:01 |
Wed 07 Aug 2024
We're All Swimming In Big Bang Juice
The Big Bang: The moment when our universe — everything in existence — began....Right?
Turns out, it's not quite that simple.
Today, when scientists talk about the Big Bang, they mean a period of tim…
Turns out, it's not quite that simple.
Today, when scientists talk about the Big Bang, they mean a period of tim…
00:14:22 |
Tue 06 Aug 2024
The Toll Of Social Media On Mental Health
Rates of depression and anxiety have risen among teens over the last decade. Amid this ongoing mental health crisis, the American Psychological Association issued guidelines for parents to increase p…
00:12:42 |
Mon 05 Aug 2024
What Makes Simone Biles The GOAT, Scientifically
Another Olympics, another set of stellar performances by the U.S. women's artistic gymnastics team. Thursday, the team won two medals in the women's all-around final: a gold for Simone Biles and a br…
00:12:54 |
Fri 02 Aug 2024
The Mathematical Marvel Of The Rubik's Cube
The Rubik's Cube was created 50 years ago by Hungarian inventor Ernő Rubik. Since then, over 500 million of them have been sold. We dive into this global phenomenon that's captured the imagination of…
00:13:35 |
Wed 31 Jul 2024
The Curious Case Of The Supermassive Black Hole
Black holes are one of the most mysterious cosmological phenomena out there. Astrophysicist Priya Natarajan calls them "the point where all known laws of physics break down."
On the list of perplexing…
On the list of perplexing…
00:14:08 |
Tue 30 Jul 2024
Disclaimer: The podcast and artwork embedded on this page are the property of NPR ([email protected]). This content is not affiliated with or endorsed by eachpod.com.