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May 16, 2025
The Department of the Interior seeks to remove the endangered species designation from the lesser prairie chicken. Plus, how well do we understand the long-term health risks to firefighters? And, highlights from SciFri’s live show in Columbia, Missouri.
7:47
Pyramid Remodeling and the Neighborhood Behavior of Sperm Whales
Annalee Newitz, the tech culture editor at Ars Technica, joins us to discuss the week’s science news, including how to find a hidden room in an ancient pyramid.
4:15
Turning Down the Greenhouse Gases in Your Air Conditioning
A global agreement will phase out heat-trapping HFCs in air conditioners, refrigerants, and other systems.
17:27
Is All Fair in Love and Cyber War?
With rumblings about possible U.S. retaliation for alleged Russian-backed hacks, we ask about the rules and norms that govern international cyber conflicts.
16:46
Introducing the Science Friday Educator Collaborative
Six inspiring science teachers have turned Science Friday media into innovative classroom resources.
12:10
Return of the Screwworm Is Bad News for Endangered Deer
A flesh-eating parasite, previously eradicated on U.S. soil, has decimated Florida’s Key deer. Can the screwworm be re-eradicated in time to save them?
11:37
Sorting Out the Numbers of Political Polls
What should you look for when reading a political poll?
5:23
‘It Was Totally Planet Nine’
Astronomer Konstantin Batygin returns with evidence that Niku’s orbit was influenced by Planet Nine.
17:36
These Black Women Helped Send Us To The Moon
Remembering the African American women mathematicians and engineers whose calculations got us into space.
7:44
Footprints in Time, a Stolen Gene, and a Mark on the Moon
Science writer Nadia Drake describes some of the week’s stories in science, including the discovery of more than 400 ancient footprints frozen in time in Tanzania.
4:11
A Carbon Contradiction
Reservoirs are both sources of renewable energy and one of the world’s biggest producers of greenhouse gases.