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Short Wave New discoveries, everyday mysteries, and the science behind the headlines — in just under 15 minutes. It's science for everyone, using a lot of creativity and a little humor. Join hosts Emily Kwong and Regina Barber for science on a different wavelength.

If you're hooked, try Short Wave Plus. Your subscription supports the show and unlocks a sponsor-free feed. Learn more at plus.npr.org/shortwave
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New discoveries, everyday mysteries, and the science behind the headlines — in just under 15 minutes. It's science for everyone, using a lot of creativity and a little humor. Join hosts Emily Kwong and Regina Barber for science on a different wavelength.

If you're hooked, try Short Wave Plus. Your subscription supports the show and unlocks a sponsor-free feed. Learn more at plus.npr.org/shortwave

Most Recent Episodes

Body Electric: How AI is changing our relationships
Daniel Hertzberg

Body Electric: How AI is changing our relationships

Hey, Short Wavers! Today, we have a special present for all of you: An episode from our good friends at NPR's Body Electric podcast all a bout artificial intimacy! Thanks to advances in AI, chatbots can act as personalized therapists, companions and romantic partners. The apps offering these services have been downloaded millions of times. If these relationships relieve stress and make us feel better, does it matter that they're not "real"? On this episode of Body Electric, host Manoush Zomorodi talks to MIT sociologist and psychologist Sherry Turkle about her new research into what she calls "artificial intimacy" and its impact on our mental and physical health.

Body Electric: How AI is changing our relationships

Listen · 26:45
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How to get a haircut in space

Aboard the International Space Station, astronauts cut their hair using a pair of electrical sheers connected to a vacuum. NASA astronaut Frank Rubio says, "It's not a pretty haircut, for sure." Getty Images hide caption

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Getty Images

How to get a haircut in space

Hey, Short Wavers! Today we're sharing an excerpt of the new NPR podcast How To Do Everything.

How to get a haircut in space

Listen · 5:48
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Ghost particles are blasting through you. Can they solve an antimatter mystery?

Matter and its weird, opposite antimatter annihilate each other "in a blaze of glory," says Jessica Esquivel, an experimental particle physicist at Fermilab. PeteDraper/Getty Images hide caption

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PeteDraper/Getty Images

Ghost particles are blasting through you. Can they solve an antimatter mystery?

At the beginning of the universe, annihilation reigned supreme. Equal amounts of matter and antimatter collided. There should have been nothing left. And, yet, here we all are. Matter won out. The question is: why? Scientists are probing the mysteries of a ghostly subatomic particle for answers. To do it, they'll need to shoot a beam of them 800 miles underground.

Ghost particles are blasting through you. Can they solve an antimatter mystery?

Listen · 12:18
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It's Short Wave's 5th birthday! Here are science questions 5-year-olds asked us

It's Short Wave's 5th birthday! To celebrate, we answer our 5-year-old listeners' science questions. NickS/Getty Images hide caption

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NickS/Getty Images

It's Short Wave's 5th birthday! Here are science questions 5-year-olds asked us

In honor of our show turning 5 (!!) today...

It's Short Wave's 5th birthday! Here are science questions 5-year-olds asked us

Listen · 17:55
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Monarch butterflies may soon get protections under Endangered Species Act

A migratory species, many monarch butterflies overwinter in Mexico. Here, some monarch butterflies are seen pollinating flowers at a butterfly sanctuary in Mexico. HegedusPeter / 500px/Getty Images hide caption

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HegedusPeter / 500px/Getty Images

Monarch butterflies may soon get protections under Endangered Species Act

Monarch butterfly populations have plummeted due to habitat loss, pesticide use and climate change. In early December, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is going to decide whether the monarch should be listed under the Endangered Species Act. If that comes to pass, the migratory butterfly would be one of the most widespread species to receive this listing.

Monarch butterflies may soon get protections under Endangered Species Act

Listen · 15:25
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SpaceX wants humans on Mars. Environmentalists say it's hurting Earth

Tuesday, SpaceX's rocket Starship lifted off from Starbase in Boca Chica, Texas for its sixth test flight. Eric Gay/AP hide caption

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Eric Gay/AP

SpaceX wants humans on Mars. Environmentalists say it's hurting Earth

SpaceX's Starship rocket took off again Tuesday for its sixth test flight. Crowds, including President-elect Donald Trump, gathered at the launch site in Texas to watch it fly part way around the world to the Indian Ocean.

SpaceX wants humans on Mars. Environmentalists say it's hurting Earth

Listen · 14:01
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Why are so many Coho salmon dying? The answer might be in your tires

Coho salmon spawn in freshwater, strike off for the open seas, trek back to the place of their birth – but researchers noticed that over the years, some would die before they could spawn. Arctic-Images/Getty Images hide caption

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Arctic-Images/Getty Images

Why are so many Coho salmon dying? The answer might be in your tires

For decades, Coho salmon were turning up dead in urban streams the Pacific Northwest. The salmon would stop swimming straight, and then die before they had a chance to spawn. Researchers worried that unless they figured out the cause, the species would eventually go extinct. Enter a formidable crew of biologists, modelers, community scientists, environmental chemists. After eventually ruling out the obvious suspects — things like temperature, oxygen levels and known toxins — researchers eventually zeroed in on a prime suspect: chemicals in tires. But the question remained: Which one?

Why are so many Coho salmon dying? The answer might be in your tires

Listen · 11:57
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Here's the science of jet lag — and how to avoid it during the holidays

Traveling across multiple time zones can cause jet lag, a temporary sleep problem that happens when the body's circadian rhythm hasn't caught up to the destination time zone. Simon Marcus Taplin hide caption

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Simon Marcus Taplin

Here's the science of jet lag — and how to avoid it during the holidays

Getting enough sleep regularly can be tough — and even harder when you're traveling for the holidays. "We need sleep like we need water," says Jade Wu, a behavioral sleep medicine psychologist and author of the book Hello Sleep. She and host Regina G. Barber discuss what's happening to our bodies when we get jet lag and the clocks in our body get out of whack. They also get into the science of the circadian rhythm and how to prepare for a long flight across time zones.

Here's the science of jet lag — and how to avoid it during the holidays

Listen · 13:41
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Here are science-backed tips on how to navigate holiday arguments

A 2022 study from the Pew Research Center found that a growing number of Republicans and Democrats view the other party as dishonest, immoral and close-minded. Jackie Lay/NPR hide caption

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Jackie Lay/NPR

Here are science-backed tips on how to navigate holiday arguments

Many people are gearing up for holiday conversations with loved ones who may disagree with them — on everything from politics to religion and lifestyle choices. As the conversations unfold, these divisions are visible in our brains too. These conversations can get personal and come to a halt fast. But today on the show we get into research in neuroscience and psychology showing that as much as we disagree, there are ways to bridge these divides – and people who are actively using these strategies in their daily lives.

Here are science-backed tips on how to navigate holiday arguments

Listen · 14:40
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Scientists unveil decades-long research about the deep-diving 'mystery mollusc'

The mysterious Bathydevius caudactylus was observed by MBARI's remotely operated vehicle Tiburon in the outer Monterey Canyon off the coast of California, at a depth of approximately 1,900 meters. 2002 MBARI hide caption

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2002 MBARI

Scientists unveil decades-long research about the deep-diving 'mystery mollusc'

This critter lurks in the ocean's midnight zone, has a voluminous hood, is completely see through and is bioluminescent. It's unlike any nudibranchs deep sea experts have ever seen before — and now, the researchers who spent twenty years studying them have finally published their findings.

Scientists unveil decades-long research about the deep-diving 'mystery mollusc'

Listen · 8:55
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