Humans

Big Data Predicts Centuries Of Harm If Climate Warming Goes Unchecked

6:26pm November 30, 2015

by Nell Greenfieldboyce

It took about 30 teams of scientists worldwide, using supercomputers to churn through mountains of data, to see patterns aligning of what will happen decades and centuries from now.

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Kyoto Treaty Fizzled, But Climate Talkers Insist Paris Is Different

3:53am November 30, 2015

by Christopher Joyce

The 1997 Kyoto treaty set targets for cutting greenhouse gas emissions that many nations didn't meet. This time, stakes are higher and all countries will be asked to set and meet their own limits.

Loneliness May Warp Our Genes, And Our Immune Systems

7:18am November 29, 2015

by Angus Chen

Loneliness takes a toll on many aspects of health, in part because it activates a fight -or-flight immune response. That may have helped ancestors survive lonely exile, but can slowly kill us today.

What Will News Of Frank Gifford's CTE Mean For Football?

8:00am November 28, 2015

NPR's Scott Simon and Bloomberg View's Kavitha Davidson discuss the late Frank Gifford, concussions and the debate over locker room interviews.

A Controversial Rewrite For Rules To Protect Humans In Experiments

4:38pm November 25, 2015

by Rob Stein

One revision would crack down on studying tissue and blood samples without getting a person's consent. Another change would make it easier to conduct studies in many locations at once.

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The excavation at Ahihud in the Galilee region of Israel where archaeologists found fava beans dating back 10,000 years.

Some Ancient Farmers Grew Fava Beans Before They Grew Grains

2:13pm November 25, 2015

by Emily Harris

The fava bean is a key staple in much of the world. Researchers say they've found fava beans in the Galilee region of Israel dating over 10,000 years ago — before grains had been domesticated there.

Brain imaging experiments found patterns associated with attention span.

A Peek At Brain Connections May Reveal Attention Deficits

7:19pm November 23, 2015

by Jon Hamilton

By assessing the strength of certain connections in the brain with an MRI test, researchers were often able to tell whether children and adolescents had attention deficit hyperactivity disorder.

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Science

How We React To Threats Post World Tragedy – And Why

7:37am November 22, 2015

After the Paris attacks, some schools were quick to cancel trips to major cities. Rachel Martin spoke with NPR's Shankar Vedantam about the psychology of group fear.

Bryan Bashin, CEO of the LightHouse for the Blind and Visually Impaired, in San Francisco, started losing his sight in his teens. "Don't just hide," he advises others. "This is not some kind of deep loss. This is just another side of being human."

When A Stranger Leaves You $125 Million

8:02am November 21, 2015

by Amy Standen

A Seattle businessman left most of his fortune to a blindness organization he never contacted in life. Why the gift? Maybe, the evidence hints, to help others take the psychological leap he couldn't.

Reporter Christopher McDougall explains why humans are born to run.

Science

How Did Endurance Help Early Humans Survive?

2:10pm November 20, 2015

by NPR/TED Staff

Christopher McDougall explores the mysteries of the human instinct to run. How did endurance help early humans survive — and what urges from our ancient ancestors spur us on today?

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