Humans

Never Mind Eyesight, Your Nose Knows Much More

8:14am March 24, 2014

by Richard Harris

The human nose may be able to distinguish more than a trillion different odors and fragrances, research hints. If true, our noses are much more discerning with smells than our eyes are with color.

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Science

Does Diversity On Research Team Improve Quality Of Science?

7:45am March 21, 2014

by Shankar Vedantam

As science becomes more diverse, scientific collaborators are growing more diverse, too. New research exploring the effect of this change suggests the diversity of the teams that produce scientific research play a big role in how successful the science turns out to be.

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Science

Ripples In Space Could Point To The Universe's Beginnings

5:24am March 18, 2014

by Geoff Brumfiel

Physicists say they've discovered a faint signal from just moments after the universe began. If confirmed, it could revolutionize our understanding of the cosmos. But not everyone is convinced.

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Genetic Sequencing May Not Be Ready To Become Routine

6:51pm March 11, 2014

by Rob Stein

Sequencing someone's genetic code may seem a good way to raise warnings on health risks. But results can be a confusing mess of information that only leaves patients and doctors needlessly scared.

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Joaquin Phoenix stars in the film Her, in which his character falls in love with an operating system. When will artificial intelligence programs like Siri evolve to the point where we'll fall in love with them?

That's Just Like 'Her': Could We Ever Love A Computer?

5:36pm February 25, 2014

by Laura Sydell

There are hurdles to overcome before we can form relationships with artificially intelligent beings.

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The title of Jennifer Senior's book — All Joy and No Fun — contrasts the strains of day-to-day parenting with the transcendent experience of having a child.

Books
Arts

Are We Having Fun Yet? New Book Explores The Paradox Of Parenting

4:09pm February 04, 2014

Kids can be magical and maddening. The title of Jennifer Senior's book — All Joy and No Fun — contrasts the strains of day-to-day parenting with the transcendent experience of raising a child.

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The Big Impact Of A Little-Known Chemical In W.Va. Spill

10:06am January 14, 2014

by Elizabeth Shogren

At the time of the accident, the CDC didn't have a standard for how much of the coal-cleaning chemical is safe in drinking water. So the agency had to come up with one.

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Science Becomes 'Sexy' With Fast Cars And Gangsta Physics

6:19pm December 14, 2013

Can science be cool? This week, Ozy co-founder Carlos Watson tells NPR about a gangster-turned-astrophysicist and a race car driver working to making science "sexy" again. Plus, a look at the changing landscape of African art — no tribal masks allowed.

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Bickering In Bangladesh; Curling; Glow-In-The-Dark Tattoos

3:31pm December 07, 2013

by NPR Staff

Ozy editor Eugene Robinson tells NPR's Arun Rath about two dueling divas in Bangladeshi politics, the rising popularity of an obscure winter sport, and tattoos that you can wear to work.

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Brain Cells 'Geotag' Memories To Cache What Happened — And Where

6:13am December 02, 2013

by Jon Hamilton

Scientists have identified special cells in the brain's hippocampus that mimic a trick of some digital cameras. These cells automatically 'tag' the memory of each event in our lives with information about where that event took place — the better to recall, perhaps, where we left our lost keys.

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