Science Friday, as heard on NPR, is a weekly discussion of the latest news in science, technology, health, and the environment hosted by Ira Flatow. Ira interviews scientists, authors, and policymakers, and listeners can call in and ask questions as well. Hear it each week on NPR stations nationwide -- or online here!
Updated: 1 hour 47 min ago
August 22, 2008 - 4:05pm
We look at how Hollywood became a driving force in the invention of new technologies — from Technicolor to the rise of digital special effects — and how new ideas and technologies, such as the Internet, are still shaping the movie industry today.
August 22, 2008 - 4:05pm
We bring you a roundup of research being presented at this week's American Chemical Society meeting in Philadelphia.
August 22, 2008 - 4:05pm
New research published this week in the journal Science looks at "automatic mental associations" and finds that they can be good predictors of which way an undecided voter will sway.
August 22, 2008 - 4:05pm
Is persuasion an art or a science? We talk to Robert Cialdini, a social psychologist, who thinks a little psychology can improve your shot at getting what you want.
August 22, 2008 - 4:05pm
Developers have created flexible sheets of 'nanoantennas' that could aid in getting energy from solar energy or from other heat sources. The sheets could harvest up to 80 percent of the infrared light that falls upon them and the researchers say the material could cost just pennies a yard.
August 15, 2008 - 4:09pm
Researchers report they've created an artificial material that bends some wavelengths of light differently. If they're able to expand the work to a wider range of wavelengths, the material could provide an unprecedented level of control over the way light moves, perhaps even making a "cloak of invisibility" possible.
August 15, 2008 - 4:09pm
Scientists studying many different parts of the planet's ecosystems are warning that Earth may be on the verge of a sixth major mass extinction event.
August 15, 2008 - 4:09pm
New research indicates chili pepper plants may have developed their signature heat as a way to fight off fungal infections caused by insects.
August 15, 2008 - 4:09pm
Biofuel advocate David Blume talks about common misconceptions about the use of ethanol for fuel, and about his vision for decentralized, community supported ethanol production in the United States.
August 15, 2008 - 4:09pm
As part of our ongoing series on alternative energy sources, we'll take a look at methods to harvest energy from the heat beneath the surface of the Earth.
August 15, 2008 - 4:09pm
Using a technique known as self assembly, researchers have found a way to create high-quality repeating patterns with features just ten nanometers across.
August 8, 2008 - 4:02pm
Tom Vanderbilt, author of Traffic, talks about the psychology of driving and the engineering of roadways. He explains some contradictory traffic truths: why roundabouts are safer than intersections and how slower can actually be faster.
August 8, 2008 - 4:02pm
Actress and mathematician Danica McKellar is on a mission to get middle-school girls to stop hating math. In her new book, Kiss My Math, — a follow-up to Math Doesn't Suck — McKellar breaks math into easy-to-digest concepts so girls can "show pre-algebra who's boss."
August 8, 2008 - 4:02pm
Cyclist Floyd Landis was stripped of his 2006 Tour de France title after he tested positive for synthetic testosterone. Donald Berry, a statistician at the University of Texas, doesn't buy it. Berry explains how drug testing could be more scientific.
August 8, 2008 - 4:02pm
Researchers say that if the conditions had been slightly different for our solar system, planets could have careened into the sun or been expelled into deep space. Also: A volunteer astronomer spots a strange gaseous object some are calling a "cosmic ghost."
August 8, 2008 - 4:01pm
NASA's Phoenix Mars Lander has detected a salt found on Earth on the surface of Mars. The salt, called perchlorate, is used in fireworks and rocket fuel. The news follows the recent confirmation of the presence of water on the Red Planet.
August 1, 2008 - 5:16pm
Scientists at Caltech have created a tiny, lens-free microscope that they say could be built for just $10. Changhuei Yang, one of the microscope's inventors, explains the device and some of its potential uses.
August 1, 2008 - 5:16pm
The summer Olympics begin on Aug. 8 — will Beijing's air be in shape for the games? The polluted city has taken drastic action to try to reduce smog during the events, shuttering some factories and adopting measures to limit the number of cars on the road.
August 1, 2008 - 5:16pm
Could popping a pill turn you into a long-distance runner? Researchers report that they have identified two signaling pathways that are turned on in response to exercise — and that artificially turning those pathways on in mice produced rodents with much greater endurance.
August 1, 2008 - 5:16pm
A study reveals that domestic fatalities caused by combining prescription medication with alcohol and/or street drugs increased by 3,196 percent between 1983 to 2004. David Phillips, one of the researchers, explains the findings, published in the Archives of Internal Medicine.
