Science

Ecuador's economy is faltering thanks to a year of record low oil prices and fears of a "godzilla" El Niño forming in the Pacific Ocean. The situation is drawing bizarre parallels to the last major financial crisis to hit the small South American country in the late 1990s.

Squash taste best when they achieve the ideal balance of starch and sugar. But how long you should wait depends on whether you're cooking a small delicata or a big, bold butternut.

Gasoline prices have been plunging this fall, which is great for consumers. But it has been very hard on oil producers, who have been laying off legions of skilled workers. To hang on to their key employees, some companies are offering unpaid sabbaticals or trimming pay across the board to reduce labor costs without layoffs. But for many employers, times are so hard that they have no choice but to keep cutting employee ranks.

The Environmental Protection Agency wants to withdraw approval of a controversial herbicide made by Dow AgroSciences. The firm made conflicting claims to EPA and the Patent Office about the product.

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.

Beekeepers lost 42 percent of their hives last year. NPR and PBS NewsHour investigate what's behind the plight of the pollinators. Some scientists say pesticides called neonics are being overused.

California farmers are pumping groundwater faster than it can be replenished. One farmer is spending millions of dollars trying to restore it by deliberately flooding his crops when there is water to spare. It's caught the attention of other farmers, especially since new state laws could soon restrict groundwater use.