NPR News
These brain implants speak your mind — even when you don't want to
Brain-implanted devices that allow paralyzed people to speak can also decode words they imagine, but don't intend to share.
(Image credit: Jim Gensheimer)
NPR NewsNPR NewsTrump's return to 'law and order' highlights a sore spot for Democrats: crime policy
Democrats have struggled to counter GOP efforts to frame itself as the party of "law and order." Some see it as a problem of messaging, while others think past and current policies may be to blame.
(Image credit: Andrew Harnik)
NPR NewsNerd! How the word popularized by Dr. Seuss went from geeky insult to mainstream
Nerd has been part of our lexicon for three-quarters of a century, its geeky meaning embodied by some of the most recognizable characters in film and TV, but its origin story is a bit murky.
(Image credit: Monty Brinton)
NPR NewsVoting officials are leaving their jobs at the highest rate in decades
Some 2 in 5 of all the local officials who administered the 2020 election left their jobs before the 2024 cycle, new research has found.
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NPR NewsIsraeli military will call up 50,000 reservists as it plans new phase of war in Gaza
An Israeli official said that the military will be operating in parts of Gaza City where the Israeli military has not yet operated and where Hamas is still active.
(Image credit: Ariel Schalit)
NPR NewsCobalt-free batteries reign in Chinese EVs. Why not the US?
There’s been an era-defining race underway between two types of batteries used in electric vehicles: lithium batteries that use cobalt, and ones that use iron phosphate. Cobalt, a metal with a checkered human rights record, has been in the lead. Until recently.
Henry Sanderson’s book on the elements that build electric vehicles is Volt Rush: The Winners and Losers in the Race to Go Green.
Related episodes:
The race to produce lithium
How batteries are already changing the grid
How batteries are riding the free market rodeo in Texas
How EV batteries tore apart Michigan (Update)
Batteries are catching fire at sea
For sponsor-free episodes of The Indicator from Planet Money, subscribe to Planet Money+ via Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org.
Fact-checking by Sierra Juarez. Music by Drop Electric. Find us: TikTok, Instagram, Facebook, Newsletter.
NPR NewsWhat is the legacy of Yellowstone wolves 30 years after their reintroduction?
Thirty years ago, park rangers reintroduced grey wolves into Yellowstone National Park. They wanted to restore the ecosystem and get the elk population, which had decimated the plant community, in check. And it worked – or so the popular narrative suggests. But is it really so simple? Today on the show, we explore how the Yellowstone ecosystem has changed since wolves returned and whether those changes can really be pinned solely on wolves. Plus, how the narrative of the Yellowstone wolf legacy could affect wolf reintroduction elsewhere.
Curious about other science controversies? Email us at shortwave@npr.org.
Listen to every episode of Short Wave sponsor-free and support our work at NPR by signing up for Short Wave+ at plus.npr.org/shortwave.
(Image credit: mtnmichelle)
NPR NewsWalmart recalls frozen shrimp over potential radioactive contamination
The risk from the recalled shrimp is "quite low," said Donald Schaffner, a food safety expert at Rutgers University. Cesium-137 is a byproduct of nuclear reactions.
(Image credit: Charles Krupa)
NPR NewsA growing number of 20-somethings are getting what's known as 'baby Botox'
A growing number of 20-somethings are trying to stop wrinkles from forming on their face with a preventative treatment known as "baby Botox," which freezes facial muscles to limit movement.
NPR NewsToo much to pack, not enough hugs: A Kenyan man's last 48 hours in America
Samuel Kangethe has lived in the U.S. for nearly two decades, but an unresolved immigration case has made him deportable. He's decided to return to Kenya, leaving his wifeand three children behind.
(Image credit: Sergio Martínez-Beltrán)
NPR NewsPresident Trump’s Talks with the Leaders of Russia and Ukraine
President Trump, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and seven European leaders met at the White House to talk about ending the war between Russia and Ukraine. The meeting followed a summit between Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin in Alaska last week. We dive into the proposals to end the war and how each side might react to them. We hear from NPR’s correspondent in Moscow and Ukraine’s former foreign minister.
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NPR NewsIn France, debate heats up over air conditioning
The politics of air conditioning in France, as the country basks in yet another heatwave.
NPR NewsHome Depot keeps quiet on immigration raids outside its doors
The home-improvement chain is now one of the companiesmost caught up in Trump's immigration crackdown.The retailer's history with day laborers is long. So far, it's choosing to keep its distance.
(Image credit: Patrick T. Fallon)
NPR NewsHurricane Erin update: Forecast sees huge storm moving closer to U.S.
Forecasts nudge Erin's likely path to the west, increasing the risks at U.S. beaches. Experts say the storm's massive size, rather than its windspeeds, is what makes it a threat.
(Image credit: NOAA)
NPR NewsAir Canada says flights will resume Tuesday night after flight attendants strike ends
Air Canada said it will gradually restart operations after reaching a deal with the flight attendants' union to end a strike that disrupted the travel plans of hundreds of thousands of travelers.
(Image credit: Sammy Kogan)
NPR NewsSpain battles record wildfires even as the end of a heat wave brings lower temperatures
The fires have ravaged small, sparsely populated towns in the country's northwest, forcing locals in many cases to act as firefighters. About 2,382 square miles have burned across Spain and Portugal.
(Image credit: Pablo Garcia)
NPR NewsPutin and Zelenskyy could meet. And, Trump wants to stop voting by mail
Trump says there are plans underway for Putin and Zelenskyy to meet to discuss an end to the war between Russia and Ukraine. And, Trump wants to stop states from voting by mail.
(Image credit: Alex Wong)
NPR NewsHere, together: Images of community from NPR station photographers
NPR marks World Photography Day with images of everyday moments of gathering from communities across the U.S. taken by photographers from the network's member stations.
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NPR NewsResearch suggests doctors might quickly become dependent on AI
A study in Poland found that doctors appeared less likely to detect abnormalities during colonoscopies on their own after they'd grown used to help from an AI tool.
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NPR NewsBusinesses face 'chaos' as EPA aims to repeal its authority over climate pollution
A lot of companies want the EPA in charge of setting national climate regulations because it helps shield them from lawsuits and creates a predictable environment in which to make investments.
(Image credit: Brandon Bell)
NPR NewsGun violence hits Black communities hardest. Trump is rolling back prevention efforts
The suffering of America's gun violence crisis is concentrated in Black neighborhoods damaged by decades of disinvestment and racial discrimination. Trump is unravelling efforts to solve the problem.
(Image credit: Kevin Magee)
NPR NewsToxicity is a good defense, until it isn't
Imagine, you’re a toxic toad hanging around South America. No other animals are gonna mess with you, right? After all, you’re ~toxic~! So if anyone tries to eat you, they’ll be exposed to something called a cardiotonic steroid — and may die of a heart attack. Well, unfortunately, for you, some animals have developed adaptations to these toxic steroids. Evolutionary biologist Shabnam Mohammadi has spent her career studying how these adaptations work — and says even humans have used these toxins to their advantage since ancient Egypt. So today on Short Wave, we get a little… toxic (cue Brittney Spears). Host Regina G. Barber talks to Shabnam about how some predators can get away with eating toxic prey.
Curious about biology? Email us at shortwave@npr.org.
Listen to every episode of Short Wave sponsor-free and support our work at NPR by signing up for Short Wave+ at plus.npr.org/shortwave.
(Image credit: Click48)
NPR NewsD.C.'s crime numbers are all the buzz. But how do we interpret them accurately?
A range of crime data has been going around to make the argument that Washington, D.C., is — or isn't — safe. We talk to crime experts to make sense of it all.
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NPR NewsA musical about bigotry arrives at a Kennedy Center transformed by Trump
Parade, the Tony award-winning musical about the 1915 lynching of a Jewish man, begins its run in Washington, D.C. amid an antisemitic backlash against the show's subject.
(Image credit: Joan Marcus)
NPR NewsAn AI divide is growing in schools. This camp wants to level the playing field
For years, research has shown a digital divide when it comes to schools teaching about new technologies. Educators worry that this could leave some students behind in an AI-powered economy.
NPR NewsHow algorithms are changing the way we speak
Social media has birthed an entire lexicon replicated by millions online — even if these words don’t actually mean skibidi. On today’s show, we talk to author Adam Aleksic about how TikTok and Instagram's engagement metrics, and viral memes, are rewiring our brains and transforming language at warp speed.
Adam Aleksic’s book is Algospeak: How Social Media is Transforming the Future of Language
Related episodes: What we’re reading on the beach this summer
For sponsor-free episodes of The Indicator from Planet Money, subscribe to Planet Money+ via Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org.
Fact-checking by Sierra Juarez. Music by Drop Electric. Find us: TikTok, Instagram, Facebook, Newsletter.
(Image credit: Olivier Morin)
NPR NewsA record number of aid workers were killed in global hotspots in 2024, the U.N. says
The Aid Worker Security Database, which has compiled reports since 1997, said the number of killings rose from 293 in 2023 to 383 in 2024, including over 180 in Gaza.
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NPR NewsTrump wants to stop states from voting by mail and using voting machines
But legal experts say he lacks the constitutional authority to do so.
(Image credit: Mark Makela)
NPR NewsGrassroots motorsport pulls big tractors and bigger crowds
Generations of spectators and competitors take over a small hamlet in Western N.Y. each summer to participate in a motorsport with roots in farming: the tractor pull.
(Image credit: Zach Jaworski for NPR)
NPR NewsA Devastating Drought in Iran
A long lasting drought and severe heat this summer, compounded with government mismanagement of the country’s dams have led to an impending water crisis in Iran. Officials are warning that Iran’s ten million residents might run out of water in a matter of weeks. We hear how this has happened and what it means for Iranians.
(Image credit: Fatemeh Bahrami)
