On Today's Podcast
What The Label Of ‘Genius’ Tells Us About Our Society
In “The Genius Myth,” Helen Lewis argues that who we call a genius reveals more about our values than any objective measure of brilliance.
Listen NowSeptember 12, 2025
Octopuses can use their suckers to detect harmful microbes on the surface of objects like crab shells, or their own eggs. Plus, a new book charts the millennia-old history of our fascination with aliens, and how myth transformed into research. And, golden oyster mushrooms have escaped from home growing kits into the wild. Could they affect fungal diversity in North American forests?
Fermenting with Sandor Katz
Sandor Ellix Katz, self-proclaimed “fermentation revivalist” and author of “The Art of Fermentation” (Chelsea Green Publishing, 2012) discusses the two “cultures.”
Living Inside the Box
Michele Bertomen and David Boyle bought an empty 20-by-40-foot lot in Williamsburg, Brooklyn and built a home constructed from shipping containers.
Is Cooking Baked Into Our Biology?
According to the “cooking hypothesis,” the advent of cooked food altered the course of human evolution.
The SciFri Book Club Takes a Walk
Get ready to trail along with writer Bill Bryson.
Time Crystals, Canine Conservationists, Copycat Monkeys, and More
A roundup of science stories or studies that blow our mind, tickle our funny bone, or generally strike our fancy.
Science Project: Coffee
Get the scoop on coffee flavor with Harold McGee’s counter-top chemistry experiment.
April 19th SciFri Broadcast to Air at Later Date
NPR’s continuing live coverage of events in Boston will preempt today’s Science Friday. The recorded April 19th program will be broadcast nationwide in our regularly scheduled timeslot on a later date.
29:30
Utah’s Fossil Finds Describe an Ancient World
A panel of paleontology experts describes some of Utah’s ancient treasures.
16:27
Studying Earth to Learn About Mars
Planetary scientists and future explorers are trying to learn about our neighboring planet without ever leaving Earth.
21:35
Great Salt Lake Is No ‘Dead Sea’
Parts of the giant lake are 10 times saltier than the ocean—but life has found a way to thrive.
17:34
James Webb Space Telescope Wings It
The telescope’s massive mirror will unfurl on a newly completed set of wings.
6:20
The Bird That Struts Its Stuff
Every year at this time, the greater sage-grouse performs a striking dance routine each morning at dawn.
The Case Of The Barfing Blue Jay
For some predators, chowing on a monarch butterfly can have digestive repercussions.
Go West, Young Man, and Grow Up With the Dinosaurs
A writer follows a childhood passion, surrounding herself with dinosaurania, in this excerpt from “My Beloved Brontosaurus.”
Every Spring, This Bird Struts its Stuff
Across Utah, the Greater sage-grouse performs a striking dance routine each morning at dawn.
These Dinosaurs Should Appear in Jurassic Park 4
Author and dino-lover Riley Black suggests several reptilian relics that deserve the spotlight.
Why Do I Get Nostalgic?
That bittersweet longing for the past can have an important impact on the present.
12:16
Red Meat’s Heart Risk Goes Beyond the Fat
A chemical in red meat, L-carnitine, may increase the risk of heart disease in people and mice.
28:17
Down the Gullet: A Guided Tour of Your Guts
In Gulp., science writer Mary Roach travels through the intestines–and out the other end.