Humans

Foods that fit the ketogenic diet are high in fat and low in sugar.

Fighting Cancer By Putting Tumor Cells On A Diet

5:37pm March 05, 2016

by Bret Stetka

While genetic mutations are nearly ubiquitous in cancer, they may not always be the driving force for disease, some researchers say. They suggest looking at disruptions in cellular metabolism.

How Can We Prevent The Next Global Health Epidemic?

9:54am March 04, 2016

by NPR/TED Staff

Entrepreneur and philanthropist Bill Gates stresses our dire need for a system that can take on the challenges of the next global health epidemic.

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Historian Yuval Harari speaking at TEDGlobalLondon.

Science
Arts

Why Did Humans Become The Most Successful Species On Earth?

9:53am March 04, 2016

by NPR/TED Staff

Historian Yuval Harari explains how human imagination powered the growth and spread of homo sapiens around the world.

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Nicholas Christakis at speaking at TED in 2010.

How Do Our Social Networks Affect Our Health?

9:52am March 04, 2016

by NPR/TED Staff

Physician and social scientist Nicholas Christakis explains how face-to-face social networks and their structures influence behaviors and phenomena in human society and the natural living world.

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Arts

What Makes An Idea Go Viral?

9:51am March 04, 2016

by NPR/TED Staff

Entrepreneur and blogger Seth Godin describes how the marketing of ideas has changed since the invention of sliced bread, as well as the type of ideas that stick in consumer's minds.

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Science

Why Is Laughter Contagious?

9:50am March 04, 2016

by NPR/TED Staff

Neuroscientist Sophie Scott studies laughter, specifically its effect on our body and brain. She discusses laughter's contagious nature, as well as its role in maintaining social bonds.

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Could You Hack Your Brain To Get More Motivated?

6:27pm March 03, 2016

by Angus Chen

Volunteers learned to activate a part of the brain linked to motivation when they got feedback from an MRI. It's much more specific than older forms of biofeedback. But could it help change habits?

Signs warn not to drink the lead-contaminated water from a water fountain in Flint, Mich.

America's 'Lead Wars' Go Beyond Flint, Mich.: 'It's Now Really Everywhere'

5:39pm March 03, 2016

David Rosner and Gerald Markowitz chronicle America's poisonous relationship with lead in Lead Wars. "We've created a terribly toxic environment in all sorts of ways," Rosner says.

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Science

How Does Gender Affect One's Willingness To Compete?

6:48pm March 01, 2016

by Shankar Vedantam

New research looks at how gender shapes competitions. Multiple strands of social science research suggest highly competitive settings are likely to dissuade qualified women from tossing their hats in the ring. NPR explores the consequences, the implications and also the causes for this disparity in the willingness to compete.

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Noooo. But you can blame Mom and Dad for that gray hair, at least some of the time.

This Gene Could Turn Your Hair Gray

3:23pm March 01, 2016

by Nancy Shute

Is stress turning your hair gray? Your ancestors may have something to do with it, too. Scientists say they've found the first genetic variant associated with going gray.