Short Wave

Do you avoid small talk in the office, or with your neighbor in the elevator? If so, you m... more

Neuroscientist [Paul Nuyujukian] (https://bil.stanford.edu/paul-nuyujukian) likens the bra... more

When you go to the doctor’s office, your doctor has to figure out which treatment is best ... more

Talking about poop can be taboo, and this social norm may be hurting our health. [Dr. Tris... more

How did plastic become so ubiquitous? The answer lies deep beneath the surface of the eart... more

Subatomic particles, gravity wells and the beginning of the universe – these are difficult... more

In a new National Geographic docuseries, viewers get a look inside a bee hive. The series ... more

Lots of people count on helium. From MRI machines and semiconductor manufacturing to press... more

Scientists estimate somewhere between 5%-35% of people do not get sick from the flu despit... more

NASA’s Artemis II mission is set to launch this week, which could bring humanity close to ... more

Do you ever wish you could predict the future? The National Park Service in Washington D.C... more

Short Wavers, we hear your requests. You want MORE! SPACE! So this is the first installmen... more

Would you drink recycled wastewater? It could be a solution to the global water crisis. Bu... more

Around the world, the planet’s freshwater is getting saltier. And it’s because of people. ... more

Groundwater is responsible for about half of the water people use globally. It’s drying up... more

In honor of World Water Day, Short Wave is exploring the ways water touches our lives. Fro... more

A multi-year megadrought in the Western U.S. has claimed untold populations of wild plants... more

The  [new food pyramid] (https://realfood.gov/)  was released earlier this year. It emphas... more

US-Israeli airstrikes on oil depots culminated in ‘black rain’ in Iran early last week – a... more

It’s likely you have at least one “guilty pleasure.” Maybe it’s romance novels. Or reality... more

When producer [Berly McCoy] (https://www.npr.org/people/985775371/berly-mccoy) was out on ... more

In 1999 hundreds of gray whales washed up along the west coast of North America. More in 2... more

Today, guest host  [Selena Simmons-Duffin] (https://www.npr.org/people/349308023/selena-si... more

Paleontologists have often determined how old a dinosaur was by counting the growth rings ... more

Teens aren’t getting enough sleep! And a two-decade study suggests it’s getting worse. Sci... more

In his role as secretary of Health and Human Services, Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is changing h... more

If you’ve been on the internet in the past few weeks, chances are you’ve seen him: a tiny ... more

Lakes are freezing later, thawing earlier and experiencing dramatic temperature swings in ... more

Over half a billion people live by lakes that freeze over in the winter. But as the climat... more

Folks over 65 are putting in a lot of screen time. In 2019, the Pew Research Center found ... more