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
- 1345
- Years Active
- 2019 - 2025
'Where We Come From': Emily Kwong's Story
Nearly 1 billion people speak Mandarin Chinese. But Short Wave host Emily Kwong is not among them. As a third generation Chinese American, Emily's heritage language was lost through the years when he…
00:24:30 |
Sun 20 Jun 2021
We're Off For Juneteenth
Hey, Nerd! NPR takes Juneteenth off. We'll be back Sunday with a special episode from NPR's Where We Come From series. It focuses on Emily Kwong's relationship to her heritage language and journey to…
00:00:33 |
Fri 18 Jun 2021
#BlackBirdersWeek 2021: Celebrating The Joy Of Birds
#BlackBirdersWeek emerged last year from a groundswell of support for Christian Cooper, a Black man and avid birder, who was harassed by a white woman while birding in Central Park. This year is all …
00:13:11 |
Thu 17 Jun 2021
'I'm Willing To Fight For It': Learning A Second Language As An Adult
Becoming fluent in a second language is difficult. But for adults, is it impossible? Short Wave hosts Maddie Sofia and Emily Kwong dissect the "critical period hypothesis," a theory which linguists h…
00:14:46 |
Wed 16 Jun 2021
The Disordered Cosmos
Maddie talks with physicist Chanda Prescod-Weinstein about her new book, The Disordered Cosmos: A Journey into Dark Matter, Spacetime, and Dreams Deferred. In the episode, we talk quarks (one of the …
00:15:45 |
Tue 15 Jun 2021
Migrating Monarchs
It is one of the Earth's great migrations: each year, millions of monarch butterflies fly some 3,000 miles, from their summer breeding grounds as far north as Canada to their overwintering sites in t…
00:15:42 |
Mon 14 Jun 2021
Yep, We Made Up Vegetables
After hearing a vicious rumor on the internet that vegetables aren't real, Maddie goes looking for answers. Turns out, vegetables are a mere culinary construct. Still healthful and delicious, but a k…
00:12:37 |
Fri 11 Jun 2021
The Science Behind That Fresh Rain Scent
(Encore episode.) Scientists have known for decades that one of the main causes of the smell of fresh rain is geosmin: a chemical compound produced by soil-dwelling bacteria. But why do the bacteria …
00:12:10 |
Thu 10 Jun 2021
Cleveland - What Climate Equity Could Look Like
The Biden Administration is working to fight climate change in a way that also address the country's economic and racial disparities. Emily talks with NPR correspondent Dan Charles about why the grou…
00:13:17 |
Wed 09 Jun 2021
COVID News Round-Up: Vaccination Progress, Booster Shots, Travel
Nationwide, almost 65% of adults have had at least one vaccine shot, but vaccination rates vary significantly depending on the state. NPR health correspondent Allison Aubrey gives us the latest on th…
00:09:25 |
Tue 08 Jun 2021
Taking A New Look At Some Old Bones
Paleontologist Yara Haridy looks at fossilized bones for a living. When she randomly walked by a scientific poster one day, she discovered an entirely new way to take pictures of her fossils. The res…
00:11:32 |
Mon 07 Jun 2021
Bringing The Sensation Of Touch To A Robotic Limb
There's big change that's happening in the field of artificial limbs: artificial limbs that both move — and feel. NPR correspondent Jon Hamilton explains why touch is so important for people who are …
00:12:50 |
Fri 04 Jun 2021
Scientific Sankofa And The Complexities Of Genetic Ancestry
Short Wave reporter Emily Kwong speaks with Janina Jeff, the host and executive producer of In Those Genes, a "science and culture podcast that uses genetics to decode the lost histories of African d…
00:15:15 |
Thu 03 Jun 2021
It's Okay To Let Go Of Herd Immunity
Researchers say the concept of achieving herd immunity threshold isn't the right finish line to end the pandemic. It's an elusive number to define in the first place, and it changes under various cir…
00:12:41 |
Wed 02 Jun 2021
Rainbows! How They Form And Why We See Them
Happy Pride, Short Wave Listeners! Here's a fun episode from our archives to celebrate the month!
It's another "Back To School" episode where we take a concept you were maybe taught in school as a kid…
It's another "Back To School" episode where we take a concept you were maybe taught in school as a kid…
00:08:42 |
Tue 01 Jun 2021
Disabled Scientists Are Often Excluded From The Lab
Scientists and students with disabilities are often excluded from laboratories — in part because of how they're designed. Emily Kwong speaks to disabled scientist Krystal Vasquez on how her disabilit…
00:14:14 |
Fri 28 May 2021
Big Vape: The Incendiary Rise of Juul E-cigarettes
Juul Labs seemingly started out with the aim to reduce smoking, but the company's e-cigarettes came to symbolize something very different: a teen vaping epidemic.
Host Maddie Sofia talks with Time he…
Host Maddie Sofia talks with Time he…
00:14:03 |
Thu 27 May 2021
The Curious Stardust At The Ocean Floor
Researchers report in the journal Science that they appear to have some clues about the origin of Earth's plutonium - which has been long debated. Correspondent Nell Greenfieldboyce explains that tra…
00:12:47 |
Wed 26 May 2021
The State Of Vaccinations In The U.S.
Eight states have passed an important milestone: getting 70% of all adults vaccinated with at least one shot. That's a number President Biden wants the country to reach by July Fourth. As cases of CO…
00:09:13 |
Tue 25 May 2021
'Off The Charts' Rise In Alcoholic Liver Disease Among Young Women
**Heads up. This episode discusses addiction and alcoholism.**
Some doctors are seeing a disturbing spike in lethal alcoholic liver disease, especially among young women. The recent trend has been sup…
Some doctors are seeing a disturbing spike in lethal alcoholic liver disease, especially among young women. The recent trend has been sup…
00:14:08 |
Mon 24 May 2021
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