On Today's Podcast
Could bird flu still spark a pandemic?
As local reports of dead birds rise, the greatest human risk continues to fall on some of the most vulnerable: farm workers.
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.
4:36
A Glimpse Before It’s Gone
Why tourists traveling to threatened places may be making the problem worse.
17:04
Myth-Busting Your Fitness Routine
Some health experts tout the benefits of standing desks and walking five miles a day. Science says otherwise.
11:27
The Fog and the Redwood
The redwood trees lining northern California’s coastline depend on fog as a seasonal water source.
17:40
Amphibians Versus Fungus: Saving the Yellow-Legged Frog
What one frog’s fight against the deadly chytrid fungus could mean for the survival of imperiled amphibians around the globe.
17:06
Making the Most of A.I.’s Potential
As artificial intelligence advances, it could transform our world. How do we ensure that it does so in the best possible way?
16:16
Of Fashion, Faith, and Physics
Theoretical physicist Roger Penrose argues against some prominent theories about the universe, calling them fashion, faith, and fantasy.
Reimagining the Astronomical Objects of Messier
An artist finds inspiration in the celestial frustrations of astronomer Charles Messier.
Remaster the Golden Record
Nearly 40 years ago, two Voyager spacecraft left our planet carrying gold-plated records of information about Earth’s organisms and cultures. This activity challenges your students to craft a contemporary Golden Record of sounds, images, and information portraying the diversity of life and culture on Earth.
7:09
Charon’s Red Cap, Mapping the Milky Way, and Crafty Crows
Pluto may be the source of the wispy red cap on the north pole of its moon Charon.
4:43
Taking a Telepresence Robot for a Spin
Can a robotic avatar let you remotely experience a trip to the zoo?
12:18
Can International Diplomacy Help Combat the World’s Superbugs?
The U.N. will meet next week to discuss the growing problem of antibiotic resistance around the world.
17:08
A ‘David and Goliath’ Story for Personal Computers
How the “Silicon Cowboys” of Compaq’s early days took on the behemoth IBM with a 28-pound portable computer.
16:38
Apps That Turn Your Workout Into a Game
Activity trackers like the Fitbit and the Apple Watch aim to make fitness more fun by incorporating elements of gameplay. But does it work?
35:13
How To Make A Golden Record
Two of the creators of the Voyager Golden Record remember how they crafted a message for alien civilizations.
The Golden Record Decoded
Voyager 1 and 2 will drift for billions of years in the emptiness carrying a Golden Records, inscribed with our message to any intelligent spacefaring civilization that discovers it.
The Comeback Kits: Saving California’s Island Foxes
Several subspecies of island fox have shown the fastest recovery of any mammal on the Endangered Species List.
Breakthrough: A Re-Sounding Remedy
Under the care of hearing researcher Rene Gifford, Allyson Sisler-Dinwiddie became one of the first test subjects of a new technique to improve cochlear implants, devices that use electrodes to stimulate cells in the inner ear.
6:44
Reaching for a Space Rock, Nanoparticles in the Brain, and a Missing Audio Jack
Journalist Amy Nordrum outlines the week in science, including NASA’s mission to collect a piece of an asteroid.
5:28
Is a Seaweed Boom a Boon?
Why more seaweed production could be good for the ocean and people—if done right.
17:07
Breakthrough: Hearing A Whole New World
In the first video of our new series, an audiologist describes overcoming her hearing loss. Plus, how new research could expand the aural world for patients with hearing loss.