Kathleen Davis is a producer at Science Friday, which means she spends the week brainstorming, researching, and writing, typically in that order. She’s a big fan of stories related to strange animal facts and dystopian technology.
Before joining the Science Friday team, Kathleen reported on tech and other news at WESA, Pittsburgh’s NPR station. She got her feet wet in the public radio world during her time at the University of Michigan, home of Michigan Radio.
Kathleen is from the great state of Michigan, and is always eager to extoll the virtues of freshwater lakes and Coney Island diners. She can often be found taking long walks to run errands that would be done much faster by other modes of transportation.
10:08
Using AI To Help Find Ancient Artifacts In The Great Lakes
Researchers in Michigan modeled a prehistoric land bridge and used AI to predict where caribou–and humans–might have traveled along it.
11:59
Top Technologies To Watch In 2024
Weight-loss drugs, AI, clean-energy tech and more: digging into MIT Technology Review’s annual list with executive editor Amy Nordrum.
8:35
To Get Ready For Mars, NASA Studies How The Body Changes In Space
Spending time in space affects everything from eyesight to bone health. NASA’s CIPHER program will measure these changes and more.
34:25
Orchids, Snails, And Wolves: The Ongoing Benefit Of The Endangered Species Act
The Endangered Species Act established protections for plant and animal species at risk of extinction. It’s still working 50 years later.
16:03
Music’s Emotional Power Can Shape Memories—And Your Perception Of Time
Researchers used music to elicit different emotions, then looked at how shifts in emotion influenced participants’ memory formation.
7:49
Flame Retardant Could Be Made From Discarded Cocoa Husks
Scientists are using leftover cocoa husks to extract lignin, an organic polymer that can become flame retardant, foam, or a straw.
9:02
The Oozy Physics Of Oobleck
Non-Newtonian fluids challenge our ideas of what’s liquid and what’s solid. We now have a better understanding of how they work.
7:52
Pennsylvania Drug Laws May Limit Syringe Services
Pennsylvania will receive more than $1.6 billion in opioid settlement funds. But state laws may prevent that money from going to syringe services.
12:05
What Causes Red Wine Headaches? It May Be Quercetin
Forget sulfites and tannins. A new theory pins the throbbing pain of a red wine headache on quercetin, an antioxidant in grape skins.
12:14
COP28 Host Had Plans to Promote Oil and Gas, Documents Show
The United Nations climate summit will happen for the next two weeks in Dubai—a city known for its oil money.