Science

Laura Kemp, a technician at The Land Institute, hand harvests an experimental crop of Kernza in Kansas. Scientists think that this perennial crop could help fight climate change by trapping more carbon in the soil.

After A Long Day Of Fighting Climate Change, This Grain Is Ready For A Beer

4:00pm October 26, 2016

by Alastair Bland

Kernza is a kind of grassy wheat that traps more carbon in the soil than crops like wheat and rice. Now, a West Coast brewery is using the grain in its new beer called Long Root Ale.

Sociologist Brooke Harrington says that for the world's wealthiest people, many of the laws and rules followed by the rest of us simply don't apply.

Science

'Double Bind' Explains The Dearth Of Women In Top Leadership Positions

11:25am October 26, 2016

by Shankar Vedantam

Women in power often have to choose between being seen as likeable but incompetent, or competent but cold. We explore what's known as "double bind" — assumptions about men, women and leadership.

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Cori Bargmann is applying her training as a neuroscientist to shaping the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative's ambitious agenda.

Applying A Silicon Valley Approach To Jumpstart Medical Research

6:28pm October 25, 2016

by NPR Staff

Neuroscientist Cori Bargmann is leading the new Chan Zuckerberg Initiative's $3 billion effort to cure or prevent "all diseases" by the end of this century. She talks about that daunting task.

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Volkswagen Agrees To $14.7 Billion Settlement In Emissions Cheating Scandal

6:00pm October 25, 2016

by Sonari Glinton

Nearly 500,000 dirty diesel vehicles could be taken off the roads under a settlement approved by a judge in the Volkswagen emissions cheating scandal. VW has agreed to pay up to $14.7 billion to resolve claims from consumers and the U.S. government. Customers will be compensated under a VW buyback program, and the company will also pay to offset the pollution caused by the rigged diesel vehicles.

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This image taken in 2012 shows part of the Crosson Ice Shelf (center left) and Mount Murphy (foreground) on the western edge of Antarctica. Thwaites Ice Shelf lies beyond the highly fractured expanse of ice (center).

Antarctica's Ice Sheets Are Melting Faster — And From Beneath

4:23pm October 25, 2016

by Christopher Joyce

Researchers say the ice is melting more quickly than they've ever seen. They think it's because warm water is circulating under the ice shelf, and that the melting process appears to be irreversible.

A reconstruction of the head of Paranthropus boisei, based on a skull found at Olduvai Gorge, Tanzania, in 1959 by Mary Leakey. Initial analysis of the skull and fossilized teeth led scientists to think this ancestor ate nuts. More advanced analysis in la

Dental Detectives: What Fossil Teeth Reveal About Ancestral Human Diets

3:03pm October 25, 2016

by Erin Ross

From the thickness of tooth enamel to the molecular signatures on a tooth left behind by foods eaten by a human, fossil teeth hold many clues to the diets of our ancestors.

Hundreds of people flocked to the United States Botanic Garden to see (and smell) a corpse flower in full bloom.

What's In It For The Corpse Flower To Smell Like Death?

7:00am October 25, 2016

by Adam Cole

The corpse flower is a botanical rock star — prized by botanic gardens around the globe. In a new video, NPR's Skunk Bear explores the biology of the stinky giant, which thrives by playing dead.

Newborn baby is shown sleeping on a bed. A new report says it's much safer for a baby to sleep alone on a crib with no pillows or blankets.

Pediatricians Release New Guidance For Preventing Sudden Infant Deaths

6:27pm October 24, 2016

by Merrit Kennedy

Infants should sleep in the same room as their parents for the first six months of their lives, and ideally, the entire first year. That's a key recommendation from the American Academy of Pediatrics.

New research finds small self-serving lies can make people comfortable with larger deceptions.

Science

How Small Fibs Lead To Big Lies

5:46pm October 24, 2016

by Rebecca Hersher

A new study finds evidence of "a gradual escalation of self-serving dishonesty," in which small lies pave the way for larger deceptions.

Chad Sheridan, a cellarmaster at Lakefront Brewery and expert on braggots, helped re-create a recipe for an ancient alcoholic brew discovered in a 2,500-year-old burial plot in what's now Germany.

2,500 Years Ago, This Brew Was Buried With The Dead; A Brewery Has Revived It

5:38pm October 24, 2016

by Bonnie North

In an ancient burial plot in what is now Germany, scientists uncovered a cauldron with remnants of an alcoholic beverage. They teamed up with a Milwaukee brewery to re-create the recipe.