On Today's Podcast
Can We Just Throw Our Plastic Garbage Into A Volcano?
A volcanologist answers your questions about glass-shard hairballs, cooking breakfast over lava, Gollum's end on Mount Doom, and more.
Listen NowDecember 12, 2025
Over the past century, most cancer research has focused on the tumor itself. Rakesh Jain focused on the tumor’s environment instead. Plus, a glacier’s edge can be a dangerous place to do research. One team is using robots and sound samples to monitor the melting ice. And, when cases of plague pop up in the US, it can feel straight up medieval. It’s treatable, but how and why does it persist?
The Messy Math Of Mammograms
Math biologist Kit Yates breaks down the numbers behind breast cancer screenings—and the serious implications of false positive and negative results.
7:49
Our Bodies Are Cooling Down
98.6 F is no longer the average healthy body temperature. Is improving health the culprit?
3:54
Planning For Spring Waters Along The Missouri
Looking to repaired levees in the hopes of reducing future flood damage.
14:06
Why Native Fish Matter
How restoring native fish species can help Great Lakes ecosystems weather the next invasion.
12:14
Living Robots, Designed By Computer
Researchers have designed collections of frog skin and heart cells to carry out specific functions.
23:23
The Math Behind Big Decision Making
We encounter numbers in our everyday lives that can influence how we make decisions, from growing algal blooms, to cancer treatment, to courtroom verdicts. But what do these numbers really tell us?
10:34
Bird Love Letters, Planetary Potatoes, And The Science Comics Of Rosemary Mosco
Nature cartoonist Rosemary Mosco dreams up scenes from the funny side of science.
20:02
The Science Of Polling In 2020 And Beyond
Polling is changing as modern technology influences our behaviors. Can we continue to trust it?
The Seriously Silly Science Cartoons Of Rosemary Mosco
Comic artist Rosemary Mosco creates science cartoons that reveal the weird, wacky, and wonderful in the natural world.
Opinion: Michael Mann, Australia, And Climate Change
In an editorial for ‘The Guardian,’ Michael Mann recounts his recent visit to one of Australia’s biggest burn sites—and contemplates how climate change will affect its future.
7:52
Solving The Mystery Of Ancient Egyptian Head Cones
The physical evidence behind ancient Egyptian fashion choices.
4:01
Studying Drought, Under Glass
Scientists are using the enclosed Biosphere 2 ecosystem to investigate how carbon moves in a rainforest under drought conditions.
17:29
How Climate Change Is Fanning Australia’s Flames
Why the future holds more destructive fire seasons for Australia and the rest of the globe.
21:21
The Mysteries Of Migraines
Every person’s migraine feels different. Can there really be one drug for everyone?
23:10
How Do Galaxies Get Into Formation?
Researchers found a 9,000 light year-long wave of star forming regions running through the Milky Way.
16:26
Science Friday Book Club’s Winter Read Plunges Into The Great Lakes
Meet the heroes, villains, and sheer blunders that changed the world’s largest lakes forever in Dan Egan’s ‘The Death and Life of the Great Lakes.’
The Microbial Soup Plaguing The Great Lakes
Millions of residents rely on the waters from the Great Lakes—but communities face soupy bacterial blooms, toxic algal mats, and farm runoff that lurk beneath.
Dive Into The Great Lakes With Science Friday Book Club
On February 20th in NYC, the Science Friday Book Club dives deep into lakes, invasive species, and more with Dan Egan’s ‘The Death and Life of the Great Lakes.’
Out Of The Box Thinking, Out Of The Lab Research
How community labs are bringing biotechnology out of academic settings and into people’s hands.
6:28
Trump Administration May Dismantle Scientific Paywalls
Scientific publishing companies, which charge as much as $40 an article, are upset about the President’s push for open access.