60-Second Science

When writer Stephen S. Hall was a child, he would capture snakes—much to his mother’s chagrin. Now the science journalist is returning to his early fascination In his latest book, Slither: How...

Measles cases are going up—and a federal scientist has warned that case counts have probably been underreported. Another vaccine-preventable illness, whooping cough, sees a troubling increase in...

Senior mind and brain editor Gary Stix has covered the breadth of science and technology over the past 35 years at Scientific American. He joins host Rachel Feltman to take us through the rise of...

Hypochlorous acid is a promising disinfectant that is difficult to commercialize because it is not very shelf-stable. Senior features editor Jen Schwartz takes us through what the science of this...

Caffeine-motivated researchers find that pour height may be the key to a perfect cup of coffee. A new study of plastics finds that less than 10 percent of such products are made with recycled...

Noninvasive prenatal blood testing, or NIPT, is a routine screening that is offered during pregnancy and looks for placental DNA to diagnose chromosomal disorders in a fetus. But in some cases,...

Bacterial vaginosis (BV), an overgrowth of pathogenic bacteria in the vagina, affects nearly one in three people with a vagina. While you can get BV without ever having sex, a new study has found...

We're surrounded by risks of all sizes, every day. Some people might be risk-takers, while others do whatever they can to avoid them. But how can we tackle the risks that impact society on a global...

The Trump administration continues to make cuts to U.S. science and health agencies. Now some states are fighting back, suing the Department of Health and Human Services for slashing $11 billion in...

The U.S. Department of State recently announced plans to dismantle the U.S. Agency for International Development, or USAID. While some of USAID’s functions will continue under the Department of...

The human body is capable of some truly incredible things. One of the most mysterious and debated phenomena is a release of fluid during sex that is often referred to as “squirting.” What’s...

Long-chain alkanes discovered by NASA’s Curiosity rover point to the possibility that there may have been fatty acids on Mars—and that they could have come from past microbial life. Paleontologists...

The cutting edge of research is very small—and very clean. In this episode, host Rachel Feltman joins Vladimir Bulović, director of MIT.nano, on a tour of this facility’s nanoscale capabilities....

When you hear “invasive plant,” you might picture an aggressive species taking over and harming the environment. But what if the way we think about invasive plants is part of the problem? Host...

Two NASA astronauts are finally back on Earth after an unexpected nine-month stay in space. What kept them up there so long? Meanwhile scientists have discovered that gray seals have a built-in...

What if you could completely separate your work and personal life—with the help of a brain implant? That’s the unsettling premise of Severance, the hit Apple TV+ show that just wrapped its second...

Colonoscopy gets a bad rap, but how much of what you’ve heard is actually true? In recognition of Colorectal Cancer Awareness Month, we’re tackling the biggest myths that keep people from getting...

The new Environmental Protection Agency administrator plans to get rid of or weaken critical environmental rules and policies, such as regulations around greenhouse gases and clean water...

Dennis Hong, a mechanical and aerospace engineering professor at the University of California, Los Angeles, discovered a love of robots at an early age while watching the “droid” characters in Star...

It’s been five years since COVID was declared a global pandemic. Local, national and global public health agencies mobilized to contain the spread of COVID, but experts worry that backlash against...