Science

Prison provides an opportunity for networking with more seasoned criminals.

When Crime Pays: Prison Can Teach Some To Be Better Criminals

11:26am February 12, 2013

by Shankar Vedantam

Research from an Ohio sociologist has found that inmates "earn" illegal money in greater amounts after they serve time. Prison may serve as a classroom where inexperienced delinquents learn from hardened criminals — and become more dangerous criminals themselves.

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Science

Tracking Privacy and Ownership In An Online World

1:03pm February 11, 2013

Your phone knows where you are. Social networks know who your friends are, and what you ate last night. How much of your personal data is really yours to control? Khaliah Barnes of the Electronic Privacy Information Center helps sort out the politics and policies of privacy.

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Turkey vulture droppings can strip paint, kill grass and sicken pets. The droppings also smell really bad.

Vultures Beware: Virginia Town Targets Flock Of Unwanted Visitors

7:34am February 11, 2013

by Liz Baker

In the town of Leesburg, Va., a flock of 200 turkey vultures takes over suburban backyards every few years. Despite their seeming abundance, the birds are protected by federal law, so the residents called in backup for some official vulture harassment.

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A child poses for a picture in front of an astronaut space suit at the Kennedy Space Center on the eve of the launch of Space Shuttle Endeavour July 14, 2009 in Cape Canaveral, Fla.

To Infinity And Beyond: Would-Be Astronauts Keep Faith In Uncertain Era

4:58pm February 10, 2013

by NPR Staff

As NASA moves away from manned missions, the private sector is taking on the task. Those hoping for a ride are as eager as ever, and space exploration hasn't lost a bit of its luster.

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The team found one penguin chick that didn't make it.

Penguin Poop Leads Ice Researchers To Unknown Colony

8:55pm February 08, 2013

by NPR Staff

A team of researchers from the British Antarctic Survey stumbled upon some interesting satellite images in 2009: a trail of penguin poop that showed signs of a huge colony of emperor penguins. A team of researchers finally made it out to visit the 9,000-strong colony last December, marking the first human contact the animals had experienced.

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Science of Slumber: How Sleep Affects Your Memory

3:55pm February 08, 2013

We spend a lot of time sleeping (roughly one-third of our lives, according to the National Institutes of Health). But how much downtime do our brains really need? Experts discuss the links between sleep, memory and cognition, and why our sleep patterns change as we age.

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Science

Researchers Point To The Demise of the Dinosaurs

1:35pm February 08, 2013

The idea that a comet or asteroid impact led to the downfall of the dinosaurs has been around for years. Now, Paul Renne and colleagues report in Science that they've narrowed down the timing of that collision. It's practically simultaneous with dinosaur extinction.

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Scientists have confirmed that the impact of a giant asteroid and the mass extinction of the dinosaurs happened at the same time.

Science

Fresh Clues In Dinosaur Whodunit Point To Asteroid

7:53pm February 07, 2013

by Adam Cole

What killed the dinosaurs? It's history's ultimate murder mystery, and for decades the prime suspect has been a giant asteroid. New data suggest that it struck right before the extinction. But scientists say it still may not tell the full story of what happened to the dinosaurs.

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Blocking Iran With A Global Game Of Nuclear 'Keep Away'

7:27pm February 07, 2013

by NPR Staff

Obtaining the materials to make weapons-grade uranium or separated plutonium is harder than making a nuclear weapon, experts say. That's why the U.S. is engaged in a global effort to try to keep the specialized products out of hands it deems dangerous, like Iran.

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A worker makes a cut in the side of a sandstone block at the Cleveland Quarries facility in Vermilion, Ohio, earlier this month. The legal limit on the amount of silica that workers can inhale was set decades ago.

Silica Rule Changes Delayed While Workers Face Health Risks

3:07pm February 07, 2013

by Nell Greenfieldboyce

Regulations to restrict the amount of silica dust that workers can inhale were set decades ago, and workplace safety experts say that limit needs to be cut in half. A proposal for new rules was sent to the White House Office of Management and Budget for a 90-day review, but almost two years later, it's still under review.

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