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TV Cop Shows Affect Real-World Policing, Study Says

6:09pm June 13, 2020

by Andrew Limbong

Police procedurals are standard fare on television. But a recent study says the way TV portrays police and the criminal justice system at large can get in the way of attempts at reform.

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Researchers Discover People Are Not So Good At Detecting Sick People By Their Coughs

4:09pm June 12, 2020

Researchers at the University of Michigan have conducted an experiment to discover how well people could detect people with illnesses from healthy people by the sound of coughs and sneezes.

A sea otter hangs onto kelp off the coast of Vancouver Island, British Columbia, Canada.

Sea Otters Can Be Money Makers, But Not Everyone Benefits

4:04pm June 11, 2020

by Nell Greenfieldboyce

The return of sea otters to historic habitats can restore ecosystems and bring economic benefits, but hungry otters can also threaten the food security of remote indigenous communities.

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A researcher at the German Center for Immunity Therapy holds a bag containing blood plasma from a recovered COVID-19 patient at the University Hospital Erlangen on April 27, 2020 in Erlangen, Germany. This plasma could be used to treat people with COVID-1

Five Coronavirus Treatments In Development

12:05pm June 11, 2020

by Joe Palca

While only remdesivir has been scientifically shown to help treat COVID-19, it is not a particularly effective drug. More drugs like it and fundamentally different ones are in the pipeline.

Hydroxychloroquine is used to treat autoimmune diseases like lupus and is being studied for use in treating and preventing COVID-19.

Authors Retract Hydroxychloroquine Study, Citing Concern Over Data

8:06pm June 04, 2020

by Jane Greenhalgh

A paper suggesting hydroxychloroquine increases the risk of death for patients with COVID-19 has been retracted by three of its authors because they were not able to verify the data used in the study.

The first patient enrolled in Pfizer's COVID-19 coronavirus vaccine clinical trial at the University of Maryland School of Medicine in Baltimore, receives an injection in May. Pfizer's candidate for a coronavirus vaccine is one of number that are in vario

NIH Director Hopes For At Least 1 Safe And Effective Vaccine By Year's End

5:00am June 04, 2020

by Sarah McCammon

Dr. Francis Collins says some candidates for a coronavirus vaccine will be ready to start large-scale human trials as early as next month. Scaling up production may start before tests are complete.

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President Donald Trump announced in May that he was taking hydroxychloroquine as a preventive measure against COVID-19. But a study published Wednesday finds no evidence the drug is protective in this way.

No Evidence Hydroxychloroquine Is Helpful In Preventing COVID-19, Study Finds

5:04pm June 03, 2020

by Joe Palca

A study of more than 800 health workers, first responders and others finds that taking hydroxychloroquine to prevent COVID-19 is no better than a placebo in preventing the illness.

The ancient Gondwana Rainforests of Australia were damaged by recent wildfires. A new study finds the world lost roughly one-third of its old growth forest in the past century.

Climate Change And Deforestation Mean Earth's Trees Are Younger And Shorter

11:09am May 29, 2020

by Nathan Rott

A new study finds rising temperatures and climate-driven disasters are helping transform the very makeup of the world's forests. This has major implications for biodiversity and more warming.

Science

Hidden Brain: Heat And Learning. What's The Connection?

5:13am May 29, 2020

by Shankar Vedantam

As the planet gets warmer students around the globe are dealing with hotter days. A study finds that heat stands in the way of learning, and contributes to the racial achievement gap.

Bilal Chaudhry, 16, picks up a dozen eggs to give to a person in a car during a free egg distribution in Cumru Township, PA. The distribution was held to help people during the COVID-19 outbreak.

Theory Vs. Reality: Why Our Economic Behavior Isn't Always Rational

6:02pm May 28, 2020

We don't always behave the way economic models say we will. We don't save enough for retirement. We give money to charity. This week, why we act in ways that go against our "rational" self-interest.

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