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PODCAST

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.

society & culture

All Episodes

16:38

1003: Climate Change Has Made Allergy Season Worse....

Science Friday ·

2025/04/08

In many parts of the United States, spring has sprung. There’s nothing quite like those first few beautiful days of spring. They’re delightful—until the sneezing starts.According to the CDC, a quarter of US adults deal with seasonal allergies. And if you think they’re getting worse, it’s not just in your head. Previous research has shown that climate change is making pollen seasons start earlier and become more intense, a problem that’s expected to get worse. Joining Host Ira Flatow to discuss the

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18:00

1002: Microdosing Peanut Butter Could Alleviate Some...

Science Friday ·

2025/04/07

Over the past two decades, rates of peanut allergies in children have more than tripled. A variety of theories has been proposed to explain this, from a rise in industrialization keeping kids away from the germs that develop the immune system, to the previous pediatric guidelines that urged parents to restrict access to peanuts early in life. Whatever the cause, higher rates of peanut allergies means effective treatments are in higher demand. New research published in NEJM Evidence shows that a

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12:22

1001: The Department Of Health And Human Services...

Science Friday ·

2025/04/04

The cuts hit multiple agencies, affecting work on HIV, gun violence prevention, vaccines, minority health research, and more.On April 1, thousands of federal health workers woke up to find that they had been laid off. Scientists and civil servants at the Food and Drug Administration, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and National Institutes of Health were let go as part of Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s pledge to cut jobs at the country’s top disease-fighting agencies. Host Ira Flatow talks with

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18:13

999: Massive Iceberg Breaks Off Antarctica, Revealing...

Science Friday ·

2025/04/02

In January, an iceberg the size of Chicago splintered off from the Antarctic Peninsula and drifted away in the Bellingshausen Sea.As luck would have it, a team of scientists was nearby on a research vessel, and they seized the chance to see what was lurking on the seafloor beneath that iceberg—a place that had long been covered, and nearly impossible to get to. They found a stunning array of life, like octopuses, sea spiders, and crustaceans, as well as possible clues to the dynamics of ice

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18:27

998: TikTok Is Shaping How We Think About ADHD

Science Friday ·

2025/04/01

Mental health information on social media can be both revelatory and misleading. How do clinicians and their patients make sense of it? TikTok and other social media sites are full of mental health content—often short, grabby, first-person videos detailing symptoms for conditions like ADHD and autism. But what does this mean for teens and young adults who spend hours a day scrolling? A new study published in PLOS One analyzes the 100 most viewed TikTok videos about ADHD to assess both how accurate

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18:43

997: Engineering Lessons One Year After The Baltimore...

Science Friday ·

2025/03/31

Engineers take an in-depth look at why the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore collapsed and how to prevent future tragedies. In the early morning of March 26, 2024, the container ship Dali struck the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore. Within 30 seconds, the bridge collapsed into the river below. Six construction workers lost their lives. On the one-year anniversary of the accident, we talk about what went wrong, and how to improve the safety of our nation’s bridges and prevent another tragic

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18:45

994: Developing Faster, Simpler Tools To Treat...

Science Friday ·

2025/03/26

TB kills more than a million people each year. Dr. Mireille Kamariza has spent her career developing better detection and treatment tools.As the United States retreats from global health leadership—withdrawing from the World Health Organization, dismantling USAID—public health experts warn that there will be implications for the spread of certain diseases around the globe. One such disease is tuberculosis (TB), which is the deadliest infectious disease in the world. If you live in the United

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19:18

993: Author John Green On The Many Ways Tuberculosis...

Science Friday ·

2025/03/25

In a new book, author John Green traces how the disease has impacted culture, geography, and even fashion over the centuries.Tuberculosis (TB) has had an incredibly large impact on human history. One staggering statistic? It’s been estimated that by the start of the 1800s, the disease had killed one in seven people who had ever lived. Because of this, tuberculosis affected human culture, geography, and fashion—and even killed off some of literature and media’s most famous heroines. While TB

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18:38

992: DESI Data Strengthens Evidence Of Change In Dark...

Science Friday ·

2025/03/24

Researchers built the largest 3D map of our universe yet. What they found supports the idea that dark energy could have evolved over time. One of the mysteries of the universe is why it expands at the rate that it does. Back in 1998, two teams of researchers observed that not only was the universe expanding, but that the rate of expansion was increasing. That observation was the basis for a concept now known as dark energy. In the years since, cosmologists have been trying to get a handle on better

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19:20

991: NASA Astronauts Return To Earth After Extended...

Science Friday ·

2025/03/21

After nine months aboard the International Space Station, astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams have finally landed back on Earth. Also, a German physicist and homebrewer discovered brief, intense physical reactions that happen when you uncork a bubbly swing-top bottle.NASA Astronauts Return To Earth After Extended Stay On The ISS After 286 days aboard the International Space Station—278 days longer than their initial planned mission—NASA astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams landed

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18:48

989: How NIH Cuts Could Affect U.S. Biomedical Research

Science Friday ·

2025/03/19

Former NIH director Dr. Harold Varmus speaks out about what recent budget cuts and policy changes could mean for science.One of the areas targeted by President Trump’s administration for cuts has been the National Institutes of Health (NIH). Cost-cutting actions have included the layoffs of some 1,200 NIH employees, the termination of research grants, a pause in the “study sections” that evaluate and award grant funding, and a cap on indirect costs included in research grants. Some of those moves

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19:16

988: Fungi Create Complex Supply Chains | A Rookie...

Science Friday ·

2025/03/18

Fungal networks in the ground ferry crucial nutrients to plants. But how do brainless organisms form complex supply chain networks? Also, in this year’s baseball spring training, the new Automated Ball-Strike System is helping settle challenges to home plate pitch calls.Scientists Observe Fungi Creating Complex Supply Chains As the leaves start to pop out, it’s natural to look up and admire the trees. But actually, there’s a lot of action happening underneath your feet. Beneath you is a complex

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25:24

987: 10% Of NOAA Staff Laid Off | Frozen Funds Leave...

Science Friday ·

2025/03/17

Layoffs at the agency, which releases weather forecasts and monitors extreme weather, could have serious implications. Also, funds for climate and sustainability-focused farming projects have been indefinitely frozen, even though the USDA has already signed contracts. 10% Of NOAA Staff Laid Off, With More Cuts Possible The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, better known as NOAA, impacts and provides services for Americans every day. The agency releases daily weather forecasts and

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19:01

986: Pi, Anyone? A Celebration Of Math And What’s New

Science Friday ·

2025/03/14

It’s March 14, or Pi Day, that day of the year where we celebrate the ratio that makes a circle a circle. The Greek letter that represents it is such a part of our culture that it merits our irrational attention. Joining Host Ira Flatow to help slice into our pi’s is Dr. Steven Strogatz, professor of math at Cornell University and co-host of Quanta Magazine’s podcast “The Joy Of Why.” They talk about how pi was “discovered,” the ways it’s figuring into recent science, and how AI is changing the

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17:12

984: How Narwhals Use Their Tusks To Hunt And Play |...

Science Friday ·

2025/03/12

An international team of researchers used drones to study narwhals and learn more about their behavior. And, a total lunar eclipse will be visible across most of North and South America in the early morning hours of March 14.New Footage Shows How Narwhals Use Tusks To Hunt And Play We’re taking a polar plunge into the science of sea unicorns, also known as narwhals! Narwhals are mysterious arctic whales with long, twirly tusks protruding from their foreheads, like a creature out of a fairy tale

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28:12

981: Protesters ‘Stand Up For Science’ At Rallies...

Science Friday ·

2025/03/07

Scientists aren’t always encouraged to be politically active. But recent political interference by the Trump administration has many fired up. And, the Blue Ghost lunar lander, part of NASA’s CLPS initiative, completed the first fully successful commercial moon landing.Protesters ‘Stand Up For Science’ At Rallies Across The Country Scientists and defenders of science are gathering in cities across the U.S. today as part of Stand Up for Science rallies, events to protest recent political

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17:59

978: An Animal’s Size And Its Cancer Risk |...

Science Friday ·

2025/03/04

A study finds that Peto’s Paradox, which states that larger animals are no more likely to get cancer than smaller ones, may not hold up. Also, a nearly complete predator skull was found in the Egyptian desert. Its lineage indicates that it was a top carnivore of the age.What Does An Animal’s Size Have To Do With Its Cancer Risk? If you throw a huge party, there’s more of a chance of problems than if you host a quiet get-together for a couple of friends. The logic is simple: Having more people

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18:54

977: How Trump’s DEI Ban Will Affect Medical Research

Science Friday ·

2025/03/03

Changes limiting programs, grants, and even the nature of studies are already underway at the NIH, NSF, FDA, CDC, and more. On President Trump’s first day in office, he signed an executive order to end what he calls “illegal and immoral discrimination programs,” referencing diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) in the federal government. The repercussions of this are already being felt across science agencies. Things are changing fast: Last week, a federal judge in Maryland temporarily blocked

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25:42

976: Conflicting Directives Sow Confusion For NIH...

Science Friday ·

2025/02/28

The acting head of the NIH reportedly pushed back against legal guidance to resume grant funding, leaving federal workers in the lurch. Also, though fungi make up a tiny part of the human microbiome, they play an important role in both the prevention and development of many diseases.Cuts And Conflicting Directives Sow Confusion For NIH Workers Just over a month after President Trump’s inauguration, federal science in the US is in a state of disarray. Executive orders to halt grant funding at the

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18:48

973: Why Are Flu And Other Viral Infection Rates So...

Science Friday ·

2025/02/25

It’s been an unusually tough winter virus season. Rates of flu-like infections are higher than they’ve been in nearly 30 years. And for the first winter since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, flu deaths have surpassed COVID deaths. Add to that a higher-than-average year for norovirus, a nasty type of stomach bug.Then there’s the emerging threat of avian flu. While there is no evidence of human-to-human transmission of the virus, about 70 people in the US have contracted the virus from livestock

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