On Today's Podcast
The secret powers of flowers
Flowers are known for their beauty, but biologist David George Haskell argues they are also critical to the diversity of life as we know it.
Listen NowMarch 20, 2026
Move over, Ryan Gosling: Rocky the alien is the breakout star of the movie adaptation of "Project Hail Mary." Plus, how a particle accelerator, a robot, and 2,000 ants came together to paint a picture of biological diversity. And, a mathematician analyzed 150 years of women’s fashion to understand 20-year trend cycles, and how “optimal distinctiveness” drives change.
19:20
Canine Conundrum: How Dog Became Man’s Best Friend
Scientists have long debated how—and when—dogs first became domesticated.
22:42
Shoring Up the Nation’s Crumbling Coastlines
Can beaches be rebuilt to face fiercer storms and rising seas? Is there even enough sand to do it?
4:27
Months After Sandy, Mucking and Gutting
Mold has become a concern for residents of a Sandy-damaged neighborhood in Queens.
7:12
Cold Snap Shakes Up Winter Weather Outlook
Climatologist Jeff Weber explains why this winter could pack a punch.
9:57
Shakespeare’s Sonnets, Encoded in DNA
If all the world’s information were encoded as DNA, it would fit in the back of a station wagon.
5:06
Turning Girl Scout Cookies Into Graphene
Scientists have transformed baked goods into graphene, worth two million times the price of gold.
24:17
The Book Club Catches ‘The Andromeda Strain’
The Science Friday book club chats about Michael Crichton’s 1969 classic sci-fi thriller.
Mold Compounds Sandy’s Destruction
The Rockaways, a Queens, N.Y. neighborhood, is still recovering from Sandy. Debris from fires lingers on the streets, and buildings torn apart by the storm are crumbling on the beach. But those with restored heat and power have another concern: mold.
Water on Mars, Sea Creatures, NFL Concussions
Once more, lots of intriguing stories making the news this week. Here are a few of my favorites.
An Illustrated Guide to the Mysterious
In a new book, artists illustrate the big (and not-so-big) questions in science.
Researchers Dig In to the Genetics of Burrowing
Complex behaviors, such as the way some mice dig burrows, can be affected by changes to just a handful of genes.
12:04
Inventors Design Lamp Powered Entirely by Gravity
The gravity-powered device uses a weight to generate up to 30 minutes of light as it descends.
17:01
Colossal Quasar Clump Too Huge to Exist, in Theory
Astronomers have discovered a clump of 73 quasars spanning four billion light years at its widest point — that’s like 40,000 Milky Way galaxies lined end-to-end.
17:35
How Do You Fend Off the Flu?
Aside from getting the flu shot, how do you outsmart the wily flu virus? Hoard hand sanitizer? Dodge door knobs? Or quietly slink away from a coughing commuter?
11:59
Dementia Takes the Stage in ‘The Other Place’
Laurie Metcalf is a scientist suffering from the dementia she studies in the play ‘The Other Place.’
23:52
Edward Tufte Wants You to See Better
The “Galileo of graphics” discusses his latest project: helping people to see information through “fresh” eyes.
10:22
Beijing Grapples with Record Air Pollution
Severe smog is raising concerns about the cost of China’s rapid industrialization.
A Spider Charade
The octopus may be the king of camouflage, but if there’s an animal whose name is synonymous with deception, it’s the spider.
Cyberspace Sneaking: Sending Secret Messages Via Skype
Polish researchers have devised a way to send encrypted messages using Skype.
What 17 Months in Isolation Looks Like (On a Mars Mission)
For 520 days, six men lived together in a simulated mission to Mars. Here’s what their home away from home looked like.