Science, Spoken

If the US brought back the Great Depression’s massive worker program, it could put millions of Americans back to work—and help stave off disasters like wildfires. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

The carnivorous plant is believed to have something akin to a short-term "memory." A team of scientists has uncovered new details on how it works. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

The carnivorous plant is believed to have something akin to a short-term "memory." A team of scientists has uncovered new details on how it works. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

Normally, the 'birthplace of ice' freezes by late October. For the first time in recorded history, it hasn't. That could have knock-on effects across the Arctic. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

A new pair of studies reveals that the resource isn’t limited to large shadowy craters. That's good news for the upcoming crewed missions. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

The puny insect can withstand forces 39,000 times its body weight. Scientists just discovered its super-strength secret—which could inspire new materials. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

Nagging, giving unsolicited advice, and “ecopiety” are out. But there are better ways to get people to adopt green habits. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

An enormous new data set peers into the health of the world’s population before 2020—and how the coronavirus turned that into a global disaster. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

A new study shows that some big carnivores are getting up to half their diet from sources like trash, crops, or small mammals that live near people. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

Finnish researchers just published the first big test of the “biodiversity hypothesis”—that exposure to the microbes in dirt is good for young immune systems. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

It … let's just say it would not be good. Here, let's do the math. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

For centuries, scientists thought meteorites were too fantastical to exist. A new book reveals that they hold even more mysteries. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

Using a network of sensors, researchers found that the Los Angeles high-rises most likely to rock in a future quake aren’t downtown. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

Instead of shutting down all of New York City, this time officials are taking a block-by-block approach to home in on areas with increasing case numbers. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

Dozens of case reports have hinted that the coronavirus might trigger the onset of diabetes in people with no history of the disease. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

Mikie Sherrill’s new bill would tie federal reimbursement to testing result times—and reward labs for extra quick turnarounds. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

Scientists 3D-printed sea turtle eggs and stuffed transmitters inside. When poachers pulled them out of nests, the devices tracked their every move. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

During Day 3 of WIRED25, the public health rock star emphasized the importance of masks, distancing, handwashing … and a positive outlook. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

On Day 3 of WIRED25, Audrey Tang explains how the Asian nation used open data and transparent governance to empower its citizens to code their own way out of a pandemic. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

Patients have long reported the sudden inability to smell. But restrictions on in-person exams are complicating efforts to figure out what's going on. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

Curling is one of the world's most precise sports. An ice-going, stone-throwing robot just mastered it. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

On Day 2 of WIRED25, coder Avi Schiffmann talks about his plans for a site that aggregates candidates' positions—in a way users can understand. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

A clever new system called Whale Safe listens for the cetacean chorus to alert vessels to slow down, potentially preventing deadly ship strikes. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

The return of non-Covid respiratory illnesses is putting a new strain on testing supplies around the world—and is a preview of what’s in store for the US. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

For one thing, let's build a model of air drag and how it affects the ball differently when it's traveling faster and slower than the speed of sound. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

Thousands of migrating birds have died, perhaps starved by drier conditions related to climate change or by having to fly inland to avoid wildfire smoke. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

When the San Francisco Bay Area locked down, urban noise levels plummeted. In response, the white-crowned sparrow changed its tune. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

Researchers have long experimented with “lean burn” engines, which boost efficiency and reduce the emissions from combustion. But getting them to ignite is tricky. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

A growing number of studies are raising concerns about the coronavirus’ long-term effects on the heart. Athletes especially need to heed the warnings. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

Blazes on the West Coast are spewing a haze clear across the country. Along the way, the complex chemistry of what we inhale gets even more complex. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

Despite a lack of scientific studies on its efficacy for Covid-19, interest in the treatment has surged alongside case numbers. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

Shape memory alloys and a kind of plastic crystal chill quickly under force or pressure. They could lead to eco-friendly fridges and air conditioners. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

When you wash denim, tiny fibers shed and flow into the environment. Scientists just found that Arctic waters are now loaded with little bits of jeans. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

Sure, it was wildfire smoke that made parts of California and Oregon change hue. But inside that smoke was alchemy—the chemistry and physics of molecules and wavelengths. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

Catastrophic wildfires are spewing smoke all over the West Coast. This website lets you track the respiratory crisis in real time—with a few caveats. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

Starting at a corner, could you walk around the surface of this Platonic solid without crossing other corners? To get the answer, you need an 81-holed doughnut. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

Hospitals in the US are already stressed. Now, they must brace for a wave of flu patients needing more beds, lab tests, and ventilators. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

On a “body farm,” researchers are exploring whether the nutrients from human cadavers can change the look of plants, which authorities might use to locate missing persons. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

They migrated north to escape the heat but lost their genetic diversity, making them vulnerable to extinction. Today, some species face the same problem. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

In a recent study, scientists could tell if people were intoxicated just by looking at their phones’ motion data. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

Unoccupied buildings, abandoned during the coronavirus shutdowns, give fungi a great opportunity to move in. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

California’s blazes have sent a haze across the United States. An experimental model shows where that cloud ends up. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

The state's apocalyptic blazes have burned 2,000 square miles in 10 days. Here's how they almost claimed a 130-year-old astronomical icon. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

Sparked by freak thunderstorms, the blazes changed wind patterns and could potentially lead to fire tornadoes and pyrocumulonimbus clouds. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

Musk tweeted that his “V2” update will blow our minds. But how close is he to putting computer chips in them? Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

Formula has come a long way, but it still lacks many nutrients and takes a toll on the environment. A few companies are hoping to provide an alternative. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

Many seniors, veterans, and chronically ill people rely on the USPS for prescriptions and medical supplies. During Covid-19, they can’t just go to a drugstore. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

Reducing the cobalt content in lithium-ion batteries is good for the environment, human rights, and maybe even the performance of the battery itself. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

As temperatures soar into the the triple digits, the Extreme Heat Resilience Alliance says such names will spark public awareness and encourage safety measures. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

Rare thunderstorms have peppered the California landscape with conflagrations, pouring smoke into the Bay Area—all as the state struggles with the pandemic. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices