Humans

Science

What's In A Grunt — Or A Sigh, Or A Sob? Depends On Where You Hear It

7:07pm May 30, 2014

by Shankar Vedantam

New research suggests that different cultures do not hear the same emotions when they hear the same sounds. The "emotional grammar" of language is instead shaped by culture and local circumstances.

Queue Listen Now

Think Internet Data Mining Goes Too Far? Then You Won't Like This

7:32pm May 29, 2014

by Martin Kaste

Devices that scan your brain and read your emotions are no longer sci-fi. Researchers say the technology could threaten privacy by revealing things like your sexual orientation or political leanings.

Queue Listen Now

Rebecca Woolf takes a lot of photos of her children for her blog, Girl's Gone Child, but says she tries to not let the camera get in the middle of a moment.

Overexposed? Camera Phones Could Be Washing Out Our Memories

12:58pm May 23, 2014

by NPR Staff

When you snap lots of photos, psychologists say you're subconsciously relying on the camera to remember the experience for you. And your memory, they say, may suffer because of it.

Queue Listen Now

Work can be rough, but a researcher has found that for many people, being at home is more stressful than being at the office.

Health & Safety

Think Work Is Stressful? For Many, It's More Relaxing Than Home

9:41am May 23, 2014

by Jennifer Ludden

Many people say their jobs stress them out, but new research finds that for most people — parents and nonparents alike — the most relaxing part of the day is when they're at the office.

Queue Listen Now

Science

The First American Teenager, Millennia-Old And Underwater

6:28pm May 18, 2014

by Joe Palca

DNA from the skeleton of a 12,000-year-old teenage girl found on Mexico's Yucatan Peninsula shows that today's Native Americans are descended from Siberians who spread southward across North America.

Queue Listen Now

Navajo elder Stella Peshlakai Smith, 89, stands at a traditional dwelling on her homestead at Wupatki National Monument in 2014. The National Park Service says her children cannot stay when she dies.

National

Federal Goverment Jeopardizes Navajo Family's Ties To Its Home

10:46am May 17, 2014

by Laurel Morales

The National Park Service says that an 89-year-old Navajo elder will be the last to live at Wupatki National Monument. Stella Peshlakai Smith's family faces eviction when she dies.

Queue Listen Now

Lance Armstrong (left) and Tyler Hamilton compete in the 90th Tour de France in 2003. Hamilton later testified in the doping case brought against Armstrong and the U.S. Postal cycling team.

Athletes Chased By Technology In The Sport Of Anti-Doping

7:59pm May 10, 2014

by NPR Staff

As testing for doping in sports becomes more sophisticated, so do the drugs. Looking at the recent history of cycling can make you wonder how many cheaters continue to slip by undetected.

Queue Listen Now

Klotho (right) is one of the three Greek Fates depicted in this Flemish tapestry at the Victoria and Albert Museum in London.

Anti-Aging Hormone Could Make You Smarter

7:49pm May 08, 2014

by Jon Hamilton

Scientists have found that a hormone associated with long life also seems to make people smarter. The gene strengthens the connections between brain cells, a process that's essential for learning.

Queue Listen Now

Science

Max Planck Goes To Florida, Invites Brain Scientists To Join

6:35pm May 05, 2014

by Jon Hamilton

Germany's famous Max Planck Society has opened a brain research institute in Jupiter, Fla. It's another move in the international competition to attract the best brain researchers.

Queue Listen Now

New research could be promising for infertile men. Scientists were able to make immature sperm cells from skin cells. Their next challenge is to make that sperm viable.

'Provocative' Research Turns Skin Cells Into Sperm

4:20pm May 02, 2014

by Rob Stein

Scientists were able to make immature sperm cells. If they can make the sperm viable, researchers could help men who thought they'd never have kids. But the findings also raise ethical questions.

Queue Listen Now