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
SW
NPR

Short Wave

From NPR

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

Most Recent Episodes

A researcher holds up a sandy De Winton's golden mole. Nicky Souness/Endangered Wildlife Trust hide caption

toggle caption
Nicky Souness/Endangered Wildlife Trust

Once lost to science, these "uncharismatic" animals are having their moment

Historic numbers of animals across the globe have become endangered or pushed to extinction. But some of these species sit in limbo — not definitively extinct yet missing from the scientific record. Rediscovering a "lost" species is not easy. It can require trips to remote areas and canvassing a large area in search of only a handful of animals. But new technology and stronger partnerships with local communities have helped these hidden, "uncharismatic" creatures come to light.

Once lost to science, these "uncharismatic" animals are having their moment

  • Download
  • <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/1198909601/1241539587" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
Jackyenjoyphotography/Getty Images

Want to stop needle phobia in adults? Make shots less painful for kids

According to the CDC, about one in four adults has a fear of needles. Many of those people say the phobia started when they were kids. For some people, the fear of needles is strong enough that they avoid getting important treatments, vaccines or tests. That poses a serious problem for public health. Researchers have helped develop a five step plan to help prevent what they call "needless pain" for kids getting injections or their blood drawn. Guest host Tom Dreisbach talks with Dr. Stefan Friedrichsdorf of UCSF Benioff Children's Hospitals, who works with a team to implement the plan at his own hospital. Friedrichsdorf told us some of the most important research on eliminating pain has come from researchers in Canada. Learn more about their work here.

Want to stop needle phobia in adults? Make shots less painful for kids

  • Download
  • <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/1198909558/1241073712" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
  • Transcript

NASA astronaut and Expedition 70 Flight Engineer Loral O'Hara is pictured working with the Microgravity Science Glovebox, a contained environment crew members use to handle hazardous materials for various research investigations in space. NASA hide caption

toggle caption
NASA

What's it like to live in space? One astronaut says it changes her dreams

Few humans have had the opportunity to see Earth from space, much less live in space. We got to talk to one of these lucky people — NASA astronaut Loral O'Hara. She will soon conclude her nearly seven month stay on the International Space Station.

What's it like to live in space? One astronaut says it changes her dreams

  • Download
  • <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/1198909547/1240420878" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
  • Transcript

A post-reproductive toothed whale mother and her son. David Ellifrit/Center for Whale Research hide caption

toggle caption
David Ellifrit/Center for Whale Research

Most animals don't go through menopause. So why do these whales?

Across the animal kingdom, menopause is something of an evolutionary blip. We humans are one of the few animals to experience it. But Sam Ellis, a researcher in animal behavior, argues that this isn't so surprising. "The best way to propagate your genes is to get as many offspring as possible into the next generation," says Ellis. "The best way to do that is almost always to reproduce your whole life."

Most animals don't go through menopause. So why do these whales?

  • Download
  • <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/1198909539/1240072805" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
  • Transcript
Sinhyu/Getty Images

Syphilis cases are rising in babies. Illinois has a potential solution

The number of newborns born with syphilis – a serious sexually transmitted infection – has skyrocketed 755% from 2012 to 2021. These babies have congenital syphilis, which is when the infection is passed from mother to baby during pregnancy. It can have dire consequences if left untreated.

Syphilis cases are rising in babies. Illinois has a potential solution

  • Download
  • <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/1198909528/1239566072" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
  • Transcript

Shohini Ghose is the author of the 2023 book Her Space, Her Time: How Trailblazing Women Scientists Decoded the Hidden Universe. Throughout the book, Ghose highlights the stories of women who have transformed physics and astronomy. Courtesy of MIT Press hide caption

toggle caption
Courtesy of MIT Press

This Women's History Month, how physics connects two Bengali women born decades apart

When Shohini Ghose was studying physics as a kid, she heard certain names repeated over and over. "Einstein, Newton, Schrodinger ... they're all men." Shohini wanted to change that — so she decided to write a book about some of the women scientists missing from her grade school physics textbooks. It's called Her Space, Her Time: How Trailblazing Women Scientists Decoded the Hidden Universe. This episode, she talks to Short Wave host Regina G. Barber about uncovering the women physicists she admires — and how their stories have led her to reflect on her own.

This Women's History Month, how physics connects two Bengali women born decades apart

  • Download
  • <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/1198909519/1238909367" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
  • Transcript

The National Ignition Facility used lasers to generate net energy from a pellet of fusion fuel in 2022. But the experiment is still a long way from truly producing more electricity than it requires. Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory hide caption

toggle caption
Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory

Are we on the brink of a nuclear fusion breakthrough?

Nuclear fusion could one day change the world by producing energy at lower costs than we generate it now — without greenhouse gas emissions or long-term nuclear waste.

Are we on the brink of a nuclear fusion breakthrough?

  • Download
  • <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/1198909506/1238647983" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
  • Transcript

Millions of people are affected by long COVID, a disease that encompasses a range of symptoms — everything from brain fog to chronic fatigue — and that manifests differently across patients. The Washington Post/The Washington Post via Getty Images hide caption

toggle caption
The Washington Post/The Washington Post via Getty Images

What we know about long COVID — from brain fog to physical fatigue

"Long COVID has affected every part of my life," said Virginia resident Rachel Beale said at a recent Senate hearing. "I wake up every day feeling tired, nauseous and dizzy. I immediately start planning when I can lay down again." Beale is far from alone. Many of her experiences have been echoed by others dealing with long COVID. It's a constellation of debilitating symptoms that range from brain fog and intense physical fatigue to depression and anxiety. But there's new, promising research that sheds light onto some symptoms. NPR health correspondent Will Stone talks with Short Wave host Regina G. Barber about the state of long COVID research — what we know, what we don't and when we can expect treatments or even cures for it. Have more COVID questions you want us to cover? Email us at shortwave@npr.org — we'd love to hear from you.

What we know about long COVID — from brain fog to physical fatigue

  • Download
  • <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/1198909499/1238106222" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
  • Transcript

On July 16, 1945, scientists detonated "Gadget," the world's first atomic bomb. White Sands Missile Range Photo hide caption

toggle caption
White Sands Missile Range Photo

'Oppenheimer' is winning awards. Here's the science behind the atomic bomb

Coming down from the buzz of the Oscars, we're taking a look at Christopher Nolan's award-winning film 'Oppenheimer.' It chronicles the life and legacy of J. Robert Oppenheimer, the first director of Los Alamos National Laboratory and the so-called "Father of the Atomic Bomb." The movie does not shy away from science — and neither do we. We talked to current scientists at Los Alamos about the past and present science of nuclear weapons like the atomic bomb.

'Oppenheimer' is winning awards. Here's the science behind the atomic bomb

  • Download
  • <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/1198909488/1233604734" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">

Elephantnose Fish, Gnathonemus petersii, Congo ullstein bild hide caption

toggle caption
ullstein bild

The "shocking" tactic electric fish use to collectively sense the world

Neuroscientist Nathan Sawtell has spent a lot of time studying the electric elephantnose fish. These fish send and decipher weak electric signals, which Sawtell hopes will eventually help neuroscientists better understand how the brain filters sensory information about the outside world. As Sawtell has studied these electric critters, he's had a lingering question: why do they always seem to organize themselves in a particular orientation. At first, he couldn't figure out why, but a new study released this week in Nature may have an answer: the fish are creating an electrical network larger than any field a single fish can muster alone, and providing collective knowledge about potential dangers in the surrounding water.

The "shocking" tactic electric fish use to collectively sense the world

  • Download
  • <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/1198909479/1236789636" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
  • Transcript
or search npr.org