In Animal Kingdom, Voting Of A Different Sort Reigns
As part of NPR's coverage of this year's presidential election, All Things Considered asked three science reporters to weigh in on the race. The result is a three-part series on the science of...
View ArticleStorm's Uncertain Track Defies Weather Rules
It's still unclear whether Sandy will be a devastating storm or just a bad one.It is clear, however, that Sandy will be remembered as the storm that broke all the rules and baffled the nation's top...
View ArticleHigh-Def Storm Models Yielded Accurate Predictions
Better satellites, smarter computer models and faster computers helped government forecasters correctly predict the devastation from Hurricane Sandy, scientists say.It's unlikely the forecast would...
View ArticleNorfolk, Va., Puts Flooding Survival Plan To The Test
Superstorm Sandy got officials in New York and New Jersey talking about how to prevent flooding in a time of global warming and sea level rise.But the place on the East Coast that's most vulnerable to...
View ArticleProtection From The Sea Is Possible, But Expensive
While New York City and other places along the Northeast coast are still recovering from Superstorm Sandy, they're also looking ahead to how they can prevent flooding in the future, when sea level rise...
View ArticleThe Beatles' Surprising Contribution To Brain Science
The same brain system that controls our muscles also helps us remember music, scientists say.When we listen to a new musical phrase, it is the brain's motor system — not areas involved in hearing —...
View ArticleMatching DNA With Medical Records To Crack Disease And Aging
A massive research project in California is beginning to show how genes, health habits and the environment can interact to cause diseases. And it's all possible because 100,000 people agreed to...
View ArticleExperts Argue Against Proposed Ban On Vaccine Preservative
An old complaint about the safety of childhood vaccines is finding new life at the United Nations.The U.N. Environment Program is considering a ban on thimerosal, a vaccine preservative that is widely...
View ArticleKiller's DNA Won't Explain His Crime
Connecticut's chief medical examiner, Wayne Carver, has raised the possibility of requesting genetic tests on Adam Lanza, the man responsible for the shootings at Sandy Hook Elementary School.Carver...
View ArticleDespite Uneven Results, Alzheimer's Research Suggests A Path For Treatment
It's been a mixed year for Alzheimer's research. Some promising drugs failed to stop or even slow the disease. But researchers also found reasons to think that treatments can work if they just start...
View ArticleA Busy And Head-Scratching 2012 Hurricane Season
Superstorm Sandy is what most people will remember from the 2012 Atlantic hurricane season. But Sandy was just one of 10 hurricanes this year — a hurricane season that was both busy and strange.Late...
View ArticleAlzheimer's Drug Dials Back Deafness In Mice
If you've spent years CRANKING YOUR MUSIC UP TO 11, this item's for you.A drug developed for Alzheimer's disease can partially reverse hearing loss caused by exposure to extremely loud sounds, an...
View ArticleMental Health Gun Laws Unlikely To Reduce Shootings
States aren't likely to prevent many shootings by requiring mental health professionals to report potentially violent patients, psychiatrists and psychologists say.The approach is part of a gun control...
View ArticleShortage Of Brain Tissue Sets Autism Research Back
Research on autism is being hobbled by a shortage of brain tissue.The brain tissue comes from people with autism who have died, and it has allowed researchers to make key discoveries about how the...
View ArticleFolic Acid For Pregnant Mothers Cuts Kids' Autism Risk
A common vitamin supplement appears to dramatically reduce a woman's risk of having a child with autism.A study of more than 85,000 women in Norway found that those who started taking folic acid before...
View ArticleHow Did Our Brains Evolve To Equate Food With Love?
If food is love, Americans must love their kids a lot. About one-third of children and adolescents in the U.S. are overweight or obese.And our emotional response to food may be one of the reasons so...
View ArticleHear That? In A Din Of Voices, Our Brains Can Tune To One
Scientists are beginning to understand how people tune in to a single voice in a crowded, noisy room.This ability, known as the "cocktail party effect," appears to rely on areas of the brain that have...
View ArticleAlzheimer's 'Epidemic' Now A Deadlier Threat To Elderly
Alzheimer's disease doesn't just steal memories. It takes lives.The disease is now the sixth leading cause of death in the U.S., and figures released Tuesday by the Alzheimer's Association show that...
View ArticleHow An Unlikely Drug Helps Some Children Consumed By Fear
As far back as he can remember, George McCann lived in fear. When he was asleep he would have horrific nightmares filled with violent images. When he was awake, he often felt threatened by people,...
View ArticleMaybe Isolation, Not Loneliness, Shortens Life
Loneliness hurts, but social isolation can kill you. That's the conclusion of a study of more than 6,500 people in the U.K.The study, by a team at University College London, comes after decades of...
View Article
