NASA's Attempt To Inflate Its Expandable Space Module Fizzles
The module known as BEAM can be folded so it takes up less room in a cargo rocket, and then expanded once it reaches space. Or at least that's the hope.
Science
It's Still Hard To Get Birth Control Pills In California Without A Prescription
California law now permits pharmacists to sell many types of hormonal birth control methods without a doctor's OK. But good luck finding a drugstore that will dispense the contraceptives that way.
Mysterious Cave Rings Show Neanderthals Liked To Build
Deep in a French cave, researchers have found numerous ovals of broken stalagmites. They believe the rings were arranged by ancient Neanderthals.
For Female Fruit Flies, Mr. Right Has The Biggest Sperm
It's not unusual for males to try to impress females with big body parts. Consider antlers on deer, or elaborate tails on peacocks. Some male fruit flies take a different approach: giant sperm.
Exxon Mobil, Chevron Shareholders Reject Resolutions Aimed At Battling Climate Change
But shareholders at Exxon Mobil approved one resolution that could make it easier to one day nominate an environmentalist to the board.
When Cars Collide, Safety Advocates Say It's No 'Accident'
The New York Times reported this week on the movement to get people to stop using the word "accident" when describing auto incidents and instead use the word "crash," as a way to hold people responsible for their actions. NPR's Audie Cornish talks with Peter Norton, a historian of engineering and society, about how the word "accident" came to be used by the manufacturing and auto industries.
Rising Seas Push Too Much Salt Into The Florida Everglades
Rising sea levels put extra pressure on coastal bedrock in South Florida. Eventually, as seawater moves in, it could contaminate plants on the surface and the region's stores of freshwater beneath.
What Is The Meaning Behind The Moo?
Researchers are trying to figure out what cows are saying to each other — and us. Often, it seems that cows moo to communicate that something is wrong, or different.
Gig Economy Reduces Lower Quality Entrepreneurial Activity, Study Shows
The gig economy might allow entrepreneurs more freedom to earn a living working hours that suit start-up activities, but it also discourages lower quality ventures — the type that fail on Kickstarter.
When Great Minds Think Unlike: Inside Science's 'Replication Crisis'
Lots of psychology studies fail to produce the same results when they are repeated. Does that mean we shouldn't trust science?