Science Friday Archives - browsing recent stories

International Space Station following most recent upgrade. Credit: STS-119 Shuttle Crew, NASA.

Water Power Cracks Ice Sheet: Researchers working on the Greenland Ice Sheet describe a flow of water exceeding that of Niagara Falls. (first broadcast Friday, April 18, 2008)

Jeffrey Sachs: Common Wealth: In this segment, Ira talks with Jeffrey Sachs, author of the new book "Common Wealth: Economics for a Crowded Planet." (first broadcast Friday, April 18, 2008)

Bat Die-Off Mystery: Bat experts are struggling to explain what's causing a massive die-off in hibernating bats across parts of the Northeast. (first broadcast Friday, April 18, 2008)

Looking forward to LHC: Physicists around the world are looking forward to the startup of the Large Hadron Collider at CERN later this year. We'll talk about the project, and a legal challenge to the collider that argues the work could be too risky. (first broadcast Friday, April 11, 2008)

Biofuels Research Roundup: Ira talks with several researchers looking at innovative ways to harvest energy from plant materials, including gasoline-like chemicals, ethanol, and hydrogen production. (first broadcast Friday, April 11, 2008)

Better Agriculture through...Charcoal?: Researchers presenting work at the American Chemical Society meeting say that adding charcoal to soil may provide a big boost to agriculture. (first broadcast Friday, April 11, 2008)

Public Access to NIH Research: New rules at the National Institutes of Health will make NIH-funded research more accessible to the public. (first broadcast Friday, April 11, 2008)

The Importance of Sleep: Ira and guests talk about research into links between sleep problems and other physical and mental health problems in children. (first broadcast Friday, April 11, 2008)

Hands-Only CPR: The American Heart Association releases new guidelines for 'hands-only CPR,' a simpler first aid technique that the group says can be quite effective as a life-saving tool. (first broadcast Friday, April 4, 2008)

Bacteria That Eat Antibiotics: It sounds like something out of science fiction -- instead of being killed by antibiotics, some bacteria instead eat antibiotics for lunch. (first broadcast Friday, April 4, 2008)

Phages Fight Bacteria: In this segment, Ira and guests talk about bacteriophages -- bacteria-fighting viruses -- and their place in modern medicine. (first broadcast Friday, April 4, 2008)

Cities Cutting Energy Use: How are cities around the world taking steps to cut energy use? Ira talks with a journalist who looked at the nine different approaches of nine different cities to the energy problem. (first broadcast Friday, April 4, 2008)

Genetic Testing: Genetic tests pointing the way to personalized medical care are one of the most prominent results of genetic sequencing research. But what protections are in place to make sure that those tests are safe and dependable? (first broadcast Friday, April 4, 2008)

Oldest Recorded Song is Heard: Audio historians have found a sound recording that pre-dates Edison's phonograph. We'll talk about the 'phonautograph' and take a listen to the recording. (first broadcast Friday, April 4, 2008)