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.
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- Update frequency
- every 2 days
- Average duration
- 12 minutes
- Episodes
- 1344
- Years Active
- 2019 - 2025
Choose Your Own Adventure — But Make It Math
Ever read those Choose Your Own Adventure books of the '80s and '90s? As a kid, mathematician Pamela Harris was hooked on them. Years later she realized how much those books have in common with her f…
00:11:44 |
Mon 09 Oct 2023
Body Electric: The Body Through The Ages
Being inside, hunching in front of a computer screen for hours at a time – these things take a toll on our minds and our bodies. Today on the show, TED Radio Hour's Manoush Zomorodi brings their new…
00:15:16 |
Sat 07 Oct 2023
It's Fat Bear Week!
Y'all, it's the most wonderful time of the year: Fat Bear Week! Brown bears in Katmai National Park and Preserve are putting on the pounds before they hibernate. During this time, their metabolism, …
00:09:17 |
Fri 06 Oct 2023
Why Chilean Mummies Are Decomposing After 7,000 Years
Here on Short Wave, we're getting into the Halloween spirit a little early with a look at the world's oldest mummies. They're found in modern-day northern Chile. The mummies are well-preserved, so ov…
00:12:19 |
Wed 04 Oct 2023
Seaweed is piling up on beaches. This robot might be its match
A new robot is designed to sink sargassum before the stinky seaweed comes ashore. Blooms of sargassum, a leafy brown seaweed, have increased in size and number over the past decade. As the blooms hav…
00:13:00 |
Mon 02 Oct 2023
The Tiny Worm At The Heart Of Regeneration Science
A tiny worm that regenerates entire organs. A South American snail that can regrow its eyes. A killifish that suspends animation in dry weather and reanimates in water. These are the organisms at the…
00:14:47 |
Fri 29 Sep 2023
Osiris-REx and the quest to understand the solar system's origin
In 2016, NASA launched a spacecraft to do something rarely attempted before: Collect space rocks from a potentially dangerous asteroid. The mission, named OSIRIS-REx, was successful. Tuesday, scienti…
00:12:19 |
Wed 27 Sep 2023
Itchy? Here's why
Ever had an itch you can't scratch? It can be maddening. And even though itch has a purpose — it's one of our bodies' alert systems — it can also go very wrong. Dermatologist Dr. Shawn Kwatra talks t…
00:13:23 |
Mon 25 Sep 2023
Can't Match The Beat? Then You Can't Woo A Cockatoo
Today on the show, All Things Considered co-host Mary Louise Kelly joins Regina G. Barber and Maria Godoy for our bi-weekly science roundup. They talk through some of the latest eye-catching science …
00:09:18 |
Fri 22 Sep 2023
Why Sustainable Seafood Is A Data Problem
The last several decades have taken a toll on the oceans: Some fish populations are collapsing, plastic is an increasing problem and climate change is leading to coral bleaching — as well as a host o…
00:14:07 |
Wed 20 Sep 2023
The James Webb Space Telescope Is Fueling Galactic Controversy
We're entering a new era of astrophysics. The James Webb Space Telescope is helping scientists test existing ideas and models of how the universe was created—on a whole new level. This telescope is s…
00:13:04 |
Mon 18 Sep 2023
The Latest COVID Booster Is Here. Should You Get It?
This week, the Food and Drug Administration approved new COVID vaccines this week. It comes at a time when COVID cases, hospitalizations and deaths are on the rise. It's also the first time that the …
00:12:35 |
Fri 15 Sep 2023
Animal Crossing: The Destructive Nature of Roads
40 million miles of road unite us. They also cause mass destruction for many species. Today, environmental journalist Ben Goldfarb and host Aaron Scott go on a tour of that destruction — the subject …
00:12:31 |
Wed 13 Sep 2023
Why A Proposed Marine Sanctuary Could Make History
More than 5,000 square miles of central California coast could soon become the newest national marine sanctuary in the United States. It could also make history as one of the first federal sanctuarie…
00:10:46 |
Mon 11 Sep 2023
Air Pollution May Be Increasing Superbugs
Today on the show, All Things Considered co-host Ari Shapiro joins Aaron Scott and Regina G. Barber for our science roundup. They talk about how antibiotic resistance may spread through particulate a…
00:09:31 |
Fri 08 Sep 2023
Recurring UTIs: The Infection We Keep Secretly Getting
Have frequent, burning pee? Cramping or the urge to pee even though you just went? If you haven't yet, you probably will eventually—along with an estimated 60% of women and 10% of men. That's the lar…
00:13:35 |
Wed 06 Sep 2023
The Deadly Toll Heat Can Take On Humans
This year, the hottest July ever was recorded — and parts of the country were hit with heat waves that lasted for weeks. Heat is becoming increasingly lethal as climate change causes more extreme hea…
00:10:49 |
Mon 04 Sep 2023
Food Allergies Are On The Rise. Are You Affected?
Food allergies have risen in the United States over the last few decades. Research suggests that 40 years ago the actual prevalence of food allergies was less than 1%. But this year, the Centers for …
00:12:43 |
Fri 01 Sep 2023
'Speedboat Epidemiology': Eradicating Disease One Person At A Time
Smallpox is a deadly virus. At one point, it killed almost 1 in 3 people who had it. Almost 300 million of those deaths were in the 20th century alone. It was extremely painful, highly contagious and…
00:12:28 |
Wed 30 Aug 2023
What Do We Do With Radioactive Wastewater?
Workers in Japan started releasing treated radioactive water from the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant into the Pacific Ocean on Thursday. Reactors at the plant began melting down after a 2011 e…
00:12:22 |
Mon 28 Aug 2023
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