Science

Coastal communities are racing to restore marshes, like these in San Francisco Bay, to provide a barrier against storm surges and rising seas.

Got Mud? For Coastal Cities, Humble Dirt Has Become A Hot Commodity

8:00am May 01, 2021

by Lauren Sommer

Coastal communities will need massive amounts of mud and dirt to protect their shorelines from rising seas. One federal agency has it, but most is disposed of instead of reused.

New Tiny Computers Could Have A Huge Impact

4:38pm April 30, 2021

by Geoff Brumfiel

It seems like computers are getting smaller all the time. Now some companies are betting big on new ones that run at the atomic level — tiny machines that could have a huge impact.

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Tia Tate is a computational biologist currently working in a postdoctoral position at a federal agency in North Carolina.

Science

Why Having Diverse Government Scientists Is Key To Dealing With Climate Change

4:38pm April 30, 2021

by Rebecca Hersher

Climate and health policies rely on scientific expertise. But the federal science workforce has been shaped by decades of political interference, underfunding and race and gender bias.

An image taken by NASA's Aqua satellite as it passes over Indonesia, captures evidence of an internal wave in the same general area where the KRI Nanggala submarine disappeared earlier this month.

What Is An 'Internal Wave'? It Might Explain The Loss Of An Indonesian Submarine

3:43pm April 30, 2021

by Scott Neuman

No cause has been established for the sinking earlier this month of the KRI Nanggala with 53 people aboard, but officials have suggested that it may have been due to an undersea wave.

Science
Arts

'Fresh Air' Remembers Apollo 11 Astronaut Michael Collins

1:43pm April 30, 2021

by Terry Gross

Collins, who died April 27, orbited in Apollo 11 while Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin made their historic moon walk. Speaking to Fresh Air in 1988, he described his solo orbit as "completely serene."

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Fragile X syndrome involves changes in the X chromosome, as pictured in the four columns of chromosomes starting on the left. The fifth column, on the far right, shows two normal X chromosomes.

An Alzheimer's Drug May Boost Cognition In People With Fragile X Syndrome

8:44am April 30, 2021

by Jon Hamilton

An experimental medicine seems to ease symptoms of Fragile X syndrome, a genetic disorder that is the most common inherited cause of intellectual disabilities and autism.

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Carolyn Freiwald speaks at TEDxUniversityofMississippi 2020. Photo courtesy of TED.

Science

Carolyn Freiwald: What Can Our Teeth Tell Us About Where We Come From?

8:19am April 30, 2021

Much of our ancestral histories can be found in our bones. Archaeologist Carolyn Friewald traces the story of human migration through the hidden clues in our bones and our teeth.

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Sonia Altizer: What Can We Learn From The Migration Of Monarch Butterflies?

8:19am April 30, 2021

Monarch butterflies fly the longest two-way migration of any insect species. Ecologist Sonia Altizer shares how these intrepid butterflies make the journey — and how it's being threatened.

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Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, joined by Sens. Ed Markey (left) and Martin Heinrich, discusses legislation Wednesday to reimpose regulations to reduce methane pollution from oil and gas wells.

Senate Votes To Restore Regulations On Climate-Warming Methane Emissions

6:42pm April 28, 2021

by Jeff Brady

The Trump administration rolled back the regulations last year, a move that was so controversial even some oil companies opposed it. Methane is an even more potent greenhouse gas than carbon dioxide.

The newly sequenced Canada lynx genome has already offered hints of how the North American wildcat might adapt — or not — to climate change, researchers say.

25 Down And 71,632 To Go: Scientists Seek Genomes Of All Critters With A Backbone

4:46pm April 28, 2021

by Nell Greenfieldboyce

Biologists say newly efficient and accurate gene sequencing techniques have allowed them to fairly quickly detail full genomes and find overlooked genes in a broad range of 25 important species.

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