Science Friday

Science Friday, as heard on PRI, is a weekly discussion of the latest news in science, technology, health, and the environment hosted by Ira Flatow. Ira interviews scientists, authors, and policymakers, and listeners can call in and ask questions as well.

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Avg 17 min
English

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#1411
Yesterday · 12 min
1411: What is the Kelvin wave on the West Coast?
A Kelvin wave has reached California and is creeping up the West Coast, raising both sea levels and concerns from government officials. This kind of massive internal wave begins in the western Pacific Ocean and then travels eastward to the Americas...
#1410
Thursday · 18 min
1410: The punk rock life of cephalopods
Cephalopods https://www.sciencefriday.com/segments/punk-rock-life-of-cephalopods/ for being smart and majestic. And while that may be true, the life of a cephalopod can also be dark and gritty. Have you heard of octopus death spirals? How about...
#1409
Wednesday · 13 min
1409: The Nobel winner searching for deep-space neutrinos in Antarctica
It’s Nobel Prize week, and this year's https://www.nobelprize.org/prizes/physics/2026/press-release/ went to Francis Halzen “for decisive contributions to the IceCube Neutrino Observatory and the discovery of high-energy neutrinos of astrophysical...
#1408
Tuesday · 15 min
1408: How important ideas get reawakened, with David Byrne
On Science Friday, we love to talk about ideas, especially ideas that have the power to shape the future. But there are plenty of https://www.sciencefriday.com/segments/how-important-ideas-get-reawakened-with-david-byrne/ that almost don’t make it out...
Monday · 15 min
The History of Concrete with John Wilson
John Wilson’s new documentary, “The History of Concrete,” has a subject matter that to most people may seem gray, drab, and boring. The https://www.sciencefriday.com/segments/the-history-of-concrete-with-john-wilson/. Alongside facts about concrete’s...
#1406
October 2 · 12 min
1406: The tilcayo is the new wild cat on the block
Big news for tiny cats: an itty-bitty three-pound https://www.sciencefriday.com/segments/the-tilcayo-is-the-new-wild-cat-on-the-block/—called the tilcayo—is the first new wild cat species described in more than a hundred years. Tilcayo pics have been...
#1405
October 1 · 17 min
1405: Are natural history museums going extinct?
Leaders of the Academy of Natural Sciences of Drexel University say they can’t afford to keep the museum open to visitors. And there are rumors that https://www.sciencefriday.com/segments/are-natural-history-museums-going-extinct, in Hays, Kansas, may...
#1404
September 30 · 18 min
1404: Examining a new lunar crater + searching for signs of alien technology
In 2024, scientists using instruments on board the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter spacecraft spotted a new large impact crater on the surface of the moon. Tyler Powell joins host Flora Lichtman to describe what they found, and what scientists are...
#1404
September 29 · 21 min
1404: Did the COVID pandemic stunt kids’ development?
It’s a conversation at playgrounds and in classrooms: parents and teachers worry that kids who spent formative years at home during the COVID-19 pandemic are set back, emotionally, socially or academically. But...
#1403
September 28 · 18 min
1403: How do concussions affect the brain?
Football season is upon us and a new study is making headlines. Researchers found that roughly 1 in 4 NFL players will develop CTE, a neurodegenerative disease, in their lifetime. While most of us are not professional athletes, concussions are still a...
#1402
September 25 · 11 min
1402: Are new treatments for celiac disease on the horizon?
For celiac disease sufferers, avoiding gluten is the only way to avoid symptoms. But that’s not always easy to do. Researchers are working on https://www.sciencefriday.com/segments/are-new-treatments-for-celiac-disease-on-the-horizon/, including one...
#1401
September 24 · 22 min
1401: Everyone is calling for safer AI. So what does that mean?
AI safety has dominated the news cycle for weeks, precipitated in part by an AI attack where a bunch of OpenAI’s agents teamed up and hacked another AI platform, Hugging Face, without humans knowing. Since then, multiple AI researchers have come...
#1400
September 23 · 18 min
1400: Underwater archeology reveals clues about Ice Age humans
During the last ice age, America’s coastlines and waterways looked much different than they do today. When glaciers melted, coasts and shorelines were inundated, burying early human settlements underwater. This is where underwater archeology comes in....
#1399
September 22 · 12 min
1399: Climate change is increasing hurricane risk for Hawaiʻi
The Hawaiian Islands tend to be insulated from the worst effects of hurricanes, but this summer has been different. In mid-August, Hurricane Lala pummeled the Big Island, damaging homes and roads and causing flooding and power outages. Then a few...
#1398
September 21 · 18 min
1398: Bringing hard electronics into soft and squishy bodies
A lot of things in life are squishy, including your skin, your organs, and all the goo inside you. But technology tends to be rigid and hard. Figuring out how to get those two worlds to work together can be challenging. How do you connect an...
#1397
September 18 · 18 min
1397: What is lymphatic drainage, anyway?
There’s a new wellness trend focused on an obscure capillary system that moves fluid around the body. Things like lymphatic walking, vibration plates, and compression boots have been touted as ways to stimulate the lymphatic system to combat bloating,...
#1396
September 17 · 18 min
1396: Hot flashes and hormone therapy: the science of perimenopause
Perimenopause affects more than 4 billion people, but has historically been neglected by medicine. It’s the time before menopause when hormones start fluctuating wildly, leaving women with brain fog, hot flashes, dropping bone density, and mood...
#1395
September 16 · 25 min
1395: Telling the tale of human origins, one fossil tooth at a time
Where did we come from? How did humanity, with our complicated civilizations and all our human quirks and foibles, come to be? Much of what we know about those questions traces back to important fossil finds in Ethiopia. Paleoanthropologist Yohannes...
#1394
September 15 · 14 min
1394: Did the fire at the Library of Alexandria set humanity back?
In 48 B.C.E., a massive fire ripped through the Library of Alexandria in Egypt, one of the largest and most significant ancient libraries. An estimated 100,000 works of literature were lost. Throughout history, there...
#1392
September 14 · 18 min
1392: Black bears are moving into the neighborhood. How do we coexist?
Living with black bears is complicated. They’re huge, hungry, and they really don’t care about your hostas. After a long period of being overhunted, black bears are on the rebound. And as they begin...

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