Loading...

PODCAST

Outside/In

Outside/In: Where curiosity and the natural world collide. Look around, and you’ll find everything is connected to the natural world. At Outside/In, we explore that idea with boundless curiosity. We report from disaster zones, pickleball courts, and dog sled kennels, and talk about policy, pop culture, science, and everything in between. From the backcountry to your backyard, we tell stories that expand the boundaries of environmental journalism. Outside/In is a production of NHPR. Learn more at

science natural sciences

All Episodes

31:56

Never add sodium to your pasta water

Outside/In ·

2026/06/03

Put salt (aka sodium chloride) in your pasta water and you’ll end up with delicious spaghetti. Put pure sodium in it instead… and it will explode.It’s the latest edition of “The Element of Surprise,” our occasional series about the hidden stories behind the periodic table’s most unassuming atoms, isotopes, and molecules. This time we’re talking all about sodium. It’s the periodic table’s saltiest element. It powers your body like a battery and you need it to survive. So why is too much of it bad

en

32:44

A cow named Speckles

Outside/In ·

2026/05/27

When 10-year-old Doug Crandell joined the 4-H program, he was supposed to learn about raising, feeding, and selling a cow. What he wound up learning was something else entirely.“I wanted to be a hog man, like my father,” he said. “But I knew pretty early on that you couldn’t have these animals forever.” From producer Shaina Shealy, this is the story of a boy and his cow, Speckles. Featuring Doug Crandell. Produced by Shaina Shealy. For full credits and transcript, visit

en

36:25

In defense of darkness

Outside/In ·

2026/05/20

Megan Eaves-Egenes grew up under the very starry skies of rural New Mexico. During those years, she developed a deep appreciation for astronomy. The fascination is, of course, not hers alone. But, a starry sky requires one pretty important ingredient: darkness. One study recently reported that since 2011, the night sky has gotten brighter at about 10% per year. All that light pollution has brought dire consequences to life on planet earth. Crickets can’t tell whether it’s day or night, bird

en

33:23

Life and death and psilocybin

Outside/In ·

2026/05/13

President Trump recently signed an executive order to make certain psychedelic drugs more available to treat mental health conditions like depression and PTSD. Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and Joe Rogan were in the oval office, and President Trump even joked during the signing ceremony, “can I have some, please?” Maybe this executive order wasn’t on your 2026 political bingo card… but interest in these substances for mental health isn’t new. In this episode, we’re revisiting the story of Kathy Kral. In

en

33:23

Silicon Planet

Outside/In ·

2026/05/06

Like a typecast actor who can’t escape the blockbuster franchise they’re known for, the element of silicon is inescapably associated with Silicon Valley. But that association undersells just how important, how foundational silicon is for human civilization.It’s another edition of “The Element of Surprise,” our occasional series about the hidden stories behind the periodic table’s most unassuming atoms, isotopes, and molecules. And this time, it’s all about silicon. From humankind’s early tools,

en

31:22

A Dry Hot American Summer

Outside/In ·

2026/04/29

In the spring of 1936, the producer of King Kong hauled a film crew to the desert of Arizona to shoot a sweeping romantic epic. But the heat was so punishing that it melted film stock, caused the lead actress to pass out, and killed the production’s mascot – a baby camel. It was the beginning of a heat wave that parked itself over America for months, quickly becoming one of the deadliest natural disasters in our country’s history. It blew up sidewalks, cooked onions in the ground, claimed at

en

39:20

Like a Dirty Rotten Whale

Outside/In ·

2026/04/22

We’re cleaning out the proverbial fridge, but instead of old food, it’s fantastic and forgotten questions from the Outside/Inbox. Conversation topics include Taylor’s humiliatingly old headlamp, the olfactory experience of a dead whale and, of course, the answers to the following queries… Why do dogs like to roll in dead stuff? Do humans have a mating season? Why do so many deer collisions happen in November? When did headlamps start to have red light? I live next to

en

33:43

The Dead Bird Rabbit Hole

Outside/In ·

2026/04/15

Every December, tens of thousands of volunteers look to the skies for an international census of wild birds. But during migration season, a much smaller squad of New York City volunteers take on a more sobering experience: counting dead birds that have collided with glass buildings and fallen back to Earth. In this episode, we find out what kind of people volunteer for this grisly job, visit the New York City rehab center that takes in injured pigeons, and find out how to stop glass from killing

en

31:27

The Microplastics Cleanse

Outside/In ·

2026/04/08

With the ubiquity of plastic products, it’s maybe no surprise that a growing body of research shows tiny pieces of plastic are getting inside of us. But what is all this plastic doing to our bodies? And once it’s there… is there any way to get it out? Producer Haleema Shah looks at what the research says (and doesn’t say) about plastic and health, and explores a new trend in wellness: the microplastics cleanse. Featuring Charmaine Dahlenburg, Marcus Garcia, Yael Cohen, and Sarah

en

32:36

A climate activist and a gas executive walk into a bar

Outside/In ·

2026/04/01

Zeyneb Magavi is a bona fide climate nerd; she drives an electric car, has solar panels on her roof, and worries about natural gas leaks because they’re a major source of planet-warming emissions.Bill Ackley is a lifelong natural gas guy; he grew up smelling heating oil in his kitchen, spent decades in the energy industry, and eventually became head of New England’s largest gas utility. So what brought this improbable duo together? The answer is under your feet. In this episode, how a geothermal

en

35:33

The Raw Milk Question

Outside/In ·

2026/03/25

In 2009, the state of Maine ordered farmer Dan Brown to stop selling his raw milk. It kicked off a five-year legal battle that stoked the flames of Maine’s dairy wars. But, after Farmer Brown lost his case and hung up his milking hat, things quieted down. Twenty years later, raw milk has surged back into the zeitgeist. Influencers are saying it tastes like ice cream, RFK Jr. is taking shots of it at the White House, and Gwyneth Paltrow is putting it in her coffee. All of which makes for a pretty

en

39:12

Hunting Party

Outside/In ·

2026/03/18

In 2023, dozens of strangers gathered together in the Catskill Mountains of upstate New York for three straight days. Their mission? Teach people of color how to kill, gut, and butcher a deer for the first time.Producer Felix Poon was there as a first-time hunter. He wanted to know: what does it feel like to take an animal's life to sustain your own? Given the opportunity… would he pull the trigger? In this episode we follow Felix out of his depth and into the woods, to find out if one weekend

en

59:47

Catching the Codfather

Outside/In ·

2026/03/11

A fishing tycoon is arrested in an elaborate sting operation, but claims he’s the real hero fighting back against an overbearing state. So who is Carlos “The Codfather” Rafael really – a folk hero, a crook, a righteous rebel, or a selfish conman?This week we’re sharing the first episode from “Catching The Codfather,” the third season of GBH’s hit podcast The Big Dig. It’s a series about fishing regulations disguised as a true crime caper unlike any you’ve heard before. Produced by Ian Coss and

en

31:47

Red is the warmest color

Outside/In ·

2026/03/04

There’s few certainties in life. But the sun will always rise, the seasons will change, and the Outside/Inbox will forever remain answered. From lighthouse paint hues to polar bear lovers, this week the team takes up your questions on all things red. What makes cardinals red? ⁠Why do albino animals have red eyes? ⁠ ⁠Why are so many lighthouses painted red? ⁠ Do our dogs love us? ⁠Do some animals have same-sex relationships?⁠ ⁠How do environmental changes

en

30:15

Reefer madness and the future of hemp

Outside/In ·

2026/02/25

Hemp used to be a staple of life in America. King James I demanded that colonists produce it. Hemp rope and fabric were ubiquitous throughout the 18th and 19th centuries. The USDA even produced a WWII newsreel called “Hemp for Victory.”But other materials came to replace hemp – wood pulp for paper, and cotton and synthetics for fabric. Why? For that matter, what is hemp? Is it different from weed? And does it actually have 25,000 uses as its proponents claim? Featuring Hector “Freedom” Gerardo,

en

54:44

Goats, Ghosts, and Roadkill [Live stories from...

Outside/In ·

2026/02/18

A few weeks ago, Nate gathered a group of storytellers in front of a live audience in Portsmouth, N.H. to celebrate 10 years of Outside/In. From goats to ghosts and ill-fated coloring book pages, this motley crew of storytellers explored the theme of metamorphosis in a changing world. If you’ve got a special moment or episode from Outside/In’s long history, we’d love to hear about it. Send us a note at outsidein@nhpr.org. Featuring Gretchen Legler, Kianny Antigua, Sara Lamagna, Jake Lewis,

en

32:47

That's so raven

Outside/In ·

2026/02/11

Ravens get a bad rap in western culture. They’re an ominous symbol of death, considered “unclean” by the bible, and star in Edgar Allen Poe’s haunting gothic poem, “The Raven.” A group of ravens is called an “unkindness.” What a burn.But host Nate Hegyi is on a mission to show that we should give the raven a bit more credit. It’s one of the most intelligent creatures on earth — an animal that can use tools like a chimpanzee, speak like a parrot, do tricks like a dog, and investigate murders like

en

32:02

The Emerald Forest

Outside/In ·

2026/02/04

After the Irish fought for and won their independence from the British in 1921, they had a problem. Centuries of exploitation had left the island one of the least forested nations in Europe, with less than 2% tree cover. So, they started planting a non-native American tree: fast-growing Sitka spruce capable of rebuilding their timber resources in record time. And it worked. Today, about 17% of the island is forested. But in the rural areas where iconic rolling hills have been replaced by rows and

en

32:53

Safe to Drink, Episode 1: You don’t know about this?

Outside/In ·

2026/01/29

A New Hampshire town finds out its water has been contaminated by a chemical. The most basic question — whether the water is safe to drink — doesn’t have a clear answer. Nobody seems to know much about this so-called forever chemical, which is weird… because all of this has all happened before.From the Document team at New Hampshire Public Radio, Safe to Drink is a four-part series about a water contamination story that keeps repeating in town after town — and about the people who fought for

en

31:13

Remembering Christa

Outside/In ·

2026/01/28

Last week, we talked about the ethics and regulations around sending private citizens to space, but one thing we didn’t linger on much was the lasting impact of Christa McAuliffe; the teacher slated to become the first private citizen to space before she was killed in the Challenger disaster. So today, we’ve got a series of stories and interviews that are all part of NHPR’s series “Remembering Christa: 40 Years After the Challenger.” We’ll hear from a local journalist that covered her story,

en

414 results

Similar Podcasts

NÖÖRDS - Der Podcast

NÖÖRDS

Speaking of Psychology

American Psychological Association

Natures Miracles Volume 2- Energy and Vibration

Elisha Gray

Outside/In

NHPR

New Books in Critical Theory

Marshall Poe