Humans

Forget Talent, Success Comes From 'Grit'

10:04am May 01, 2016

Rachel Martin talks with Angela Duckworth, the psychologist who brought the idea of "grit" as a marker of success into the American mainstream. Her book posits that achievement is about persistence.

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Tighter Alcohol Curbs For All Help Reduce Teen Motor Vehicle Deaths

5:00am April 30, 2016

by Katherine Du

Raising the cost of alcohol with taxes makes it less likely that teenagers will die in a drunk-driving accident, a study finds. Some teen-specific policies like graduated drivers licenses help, too.

Neanderthal hunters cutting up their kill.

Science

When It Came To Food, Neanderthals Weren't Exactly Picky Eaters

4:21pm April 29, 2016

by Maanvi Singh

During the Ice Age, it seems Neanderthals tended to chow down on whatever was most readily available. Early humans, on the other hand, maintained a consistent diet regardless of environmental changes.

Science

Reborn At 40, She Uncovered New Life In A 'Dream' — Looking At Skulls

1:36pm April 29, 2016

by NPR Staff

But not just looking at skulls — reconstructing human faces from them. This forensic artist once worked several jobs, hating "every morning I got up." Then, she took a class in anthropology.

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Tracy Smith, 38, and her children Hazel, 8, and Finley, 5, at their home in Houston. Smith is pregnant with twins and says she's a little more worried than usual about the approach of mosquito season.

In Houston, Pregnant Women And Their Doctors Weigh Risks Of Zika

7:09pm April 28, 2016

by Carrie Feibel

Mosquitoes infected with Zika haven't turned up along the U.S. Gulf Coast yet, but could thrive in the region's sultry summer weather. Pregnant women and their doctors are already taking precautions.

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Science

Ashley Madison Hack Inspires Social Scientists To Look Behind The Names

6:49pm April 28, 2016

by Shankar Vedantam

A leak of names from one of the world's most famous "adultery" sites, Ashley Madison, got social scientists thinking. They've recently tried to see if people who like to cheat in their marriages also have a propensity to cheat at work.

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Genetic Variations Help Make Fraternal Twins More Likely

2:22pm April 28, 2016

by Madeline K Sofia

Scientists identified two genetic variants that make it more likely that a woman will give birth to fraternal twins. Knowing this might help develop safer fertility treatments.

MRI scans suggests words stimulate different regions of the brain depending on their meaning.

Scans Show 'Brain Dictionary' Groups Words By Meaning

8:32pm April 27, 2016

Brain maps constructed by MRI show that language meaning is distributed throughout the brain's outer layer. And it turns out that different people organize language in similar ways.

Months after a concussion or other traumatic brain injury, you may sleep more hours, but the sleep isn't restorative, a study suggests.

A Concussion Can Lead To Sleep Problems That Last For Years

8:10pm April 27, 2016

by Jon Hamilton

Eighteen months after a concussion or other traumatic brain injury, two-thirds of the patients in a recent study were still sleepy during the day. And most were unaware of their symptoms.

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Just because you win a lawsuit after an injury doesn't mean you'll see any cash from the court award.

Ruling May Help Patients Keep More Of The Winnings When They Sue

5:11pm April 27, 2016

by Michelle Andrews

When someone's been hurt and gets cash as part of a legal decision, health plans routinely demand to be reimbursed for medical costs they covered. But a Supreme Court ruling may hinder that strategy.