Science

Dealer Omar Abu-Eid adjusts a stack of chips before the first day of the World Series of Poker's main event in Las Vegas last July. Humans still reign in most versions of poker. Whew.

Look Out, This Poker-Playing Computer Is Unbeatable

9:20pm February 09, 2015

by Geoff Brumfiel

Forget chess. Poker may be even harder for a computer. But a software program has now "solved" a variant of Texas Hold'em, the bot's creators say. And nothing can keep it from winning.

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How would you sound in front of an NPR microphone?

How A Position Of Power Can Change Your Voice

6:37pm February 09, 2015

by Nell Greenfieldboyce

Once you become the boss, it's likely that you'll start to speak quite differently. The pitch, resonance and intensity of your speech change in ways that listeners can detect as signs of power.

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In West Africa, Fewer New Ebola Cases But Epidemic Still Uncontained

6:27pm February 09, 2015

Robert Siegel speaks with Brice de le Vingne, director of operations dealing with the Ebola outbreak for Doctors without Borders.

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The Pseudomonas stutzeri bacterium, commonly found in soil, was the most prevalent subway microbe. Lower Manhattan was its prime hangout.

What Microbes Lurk In The Subways Of New York? Mysteries Abound

1:53pm February 09, 2015

by Nancy Shute

Think expedition to the rain forest, but one where you'll need a MetroCard to get around. The microbial life of the New York subways turns out to be as rich, odd and confounding as the city itself.

Residents of ShantiNiketan, a retirement community near Orlando, Fla., walk in a Hindu religious procession.

Being With People Like You Offers Comfort Against Death's Chill

1:52pm February 09, 2015

by Lulu Miller

Iggy Ignatius bet that immigrants from India would long to live with other Indians in his Florida condos. He was right. Psychologists say intimations of mortality make us want to be with our own kind.

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Science

Medical Research And The End Of Privacy

9:29pm February 07, 2015

Scientists can no longer guarantee privacy for patients donating tissue and DNA for medical research. NPR's Arun Rath talks with Jennifer Couzin-Frankel of Science Magazine.

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NASA says this "blue marble" image is the most detailed true-color image of the entire Earth to date.

Satellite Set To Stream Daily Images Of Earth From Space

2:24pm February 07, 2015

by Joe Palca

In 1998, Al Gore proposed using a satellite and the Internet to let us all see the awe-inspiring view of Earth that wows space travelers. That satellite may finally launch later this year.

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Birders Predict Another Snowy Owl 'Irruption'

11:46am February 07, 2015

In 2014, ornithologists documented record numbers of snowy owls wintering unusually far south. NPR's Scott Simon speaks with Talkin' Birds host Ray Brown about this year's numbers.

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Can you find Australia and Canada? The cartogram scales each country's geographic area by its population. (Click through to see a high-resolution map.)

India Grows, Canada Disappears: Mapping Countries By Population

12:55pm February 06, 2015

by Michaeleen Doucleff

A cartogram posted on Reddit shows what the world looks like if you scale countries by their population. Watch out China! India is catching up with you.

SkyTruth followed the ship Shin Jyi Chyuu 33 during one week last month. Planes are connected to a satellite network just like ships, but the information is only collected if the airline pays for it.

Listeners To NPR: Why Don't We Track Planes Like We Do Ships?

11:25am February 06, 2015

by Selena Simmons-Duffin

Geoff Brumfiel, the physics guy on our science desk, helps us land on the right answer.

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