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
1425 episodes transcribedA curious symptom of COVID-19 that can stick with patients for a long time is loss of smell. Researchers don't know exactly how prevalent the loss of...
"Dialects" is one of those words tossed around a lot when talking about human language. They indicate where a speaker is from. But dialects aren't exc...
More than 61 million people in the U.S. are fully vaccinated against COVID-19. We're also now averaging over 3 million shots per day. But at the same...
Currently, suicide is the 10th leading cause of death in the US. But research shows that suicide is preventable. Host Emily Kwong talks with NPR healt...
We ask allergy expert Dr. Juanita Mora if seasonal allergies are getting worse. Plus, some quick tips for managing those pesky allergy symptoms.Email...
Many skin conditions, from rashes to Lyme disease to various cancers, present differently on dark skin. Yet medical literature and textbooks don't oft...
When lightning strikes the ground, it can leave behind a root-like rock called a fulgurite. Host Maddie Sofia talks with NPR science correspondent Nel...
Our colleagues at the TED Radio Hour introduce us to wildlife filmmaker Ariel Waldman. She says the coldest continent is brimming with invisible life...
NPR science correspondent Geoff Brumfiel takes us to IonQ, one of the companies betting on a quantum computing future. Along the way, Geoff explains w...
NPR climate correspondent Lauren Sommer explains how scientists are getting creative to deal with the hordes of urchins overtaking kelp forests in the...
(Encore episode.) In 2006, while hiking around the Root Glacier in Alaska, glaciologist Tim Bartholomaus encountered something strange and unexpected...
NPR's international correspondent Lauren Frayer takes us on a tour of the factory of the world's largest vaccine maker: Serum Institute of India. The...
In North Carolina, a rural electric cooperative is reliving its New Deal history, bringing technologies like fast Internet and clean, low-carbon heati...
(Encore episode.) The coronavirus is all over the headlines these days. Accompanying those headlines? Suspicion and harassment of Asians and Asian Ame...
It's been about a year since the World Health Organization declared the coronavirus a pandemic. The world has learned a lot in that time — about how t...
Submarines can descend thousands of feet below the surface of the ocean, but to do so, they have to deal with an enormous amount of pressure. In this...
Encore episode. The surface of the Earth is constantly recycled through the motion of plate tectonics. So how do researchers study what it used to loo...
It's been about a year since the coronavirus pandemic started to take hold in the United States. Recently, NPR science correspondent Rob Stein has bee...
In the year since the pandemic began, the coronavirus has severely impacted inmates and staff in U.S. jails and prisons. According to The Marshall Pr...
Alzheimer's disease affects more than 6 million Americans and a disproportionate number are Black. NPR science correspondent Jon Hamilton explains why...
