For many people, bubonic plague is an illness that seems squarely situated in medieval times. But each year, a handful of human cases pop up in the western United States. Plague can be treated successfully with modern medicine. But why does it still exist, and how should we think about it both locally and globally? Plague researcher Viveka Vadyvaloo joins Host Flora Lichtman to talk all things spread and containment.Guest: Dr. Viveka Vadyvaloo is a plague researcher and director of the Allen School for Global Health at Washington State University.Transcripts for each episode are available within 1-3 days at sciencefriday.com. Subscribe to this podcast. Plus, to stay updated on all things science, sign up for Science Friday's newsletters.

Today we’re spotlighting an underappreciated group of marine creatures: sea slugs. Don’t let their humble name fool you. They come in vivid neon colors, with patterns that rival the most beautiful butterflies and feather-like external gills and tentacles.There are an estimated 10,000 species of sea slugs and they are incredibly diverse. Some are smaller than a quarter. And one species can weigh more than a terrier, up to 30 pounds. Not to mention their contributions to brain research—understanding their neural networks was the basis for a Nobel Prize in 2000. Marine biologist Patrick Krug joins Host Ira Flatow to dive into the slimy science of sea slugs. Guest: Dr. Patrick Krug is a sea slug researcher and professor of biological sciences at Cal State LA.Transcripts for each episode are available within 1-3 days at sciencefriday.com. Subscribe to this podcast. Plus, to stay updated on all things science, sign up for Science Friday's newsletters.

There’s an enormous buildout of data centers underway across the country to fuel the AI boom. Hundreds of billions of dollars have already been spent on data centers, with talk of spending trillions more. And these data centers use a lot of power: According to the Times Picuayune, Meta’s new data center under construction in Louisiana will require nearly three times the power that New Orleans uses in a year. Residents across the country have taken note, and rising utility rates have become an issue in some recent elections.Casey Crownhart, senior climate reporter at MIT Technology Review, has been studying the costs and impacts of the data center boom. She joins Host Ira Flatow for an update on the latest.Guest: Casey Crownhart is a senior climate reporter at MIT Technology Review, based in New York, NY.Transcripts for each episode are available within 1-3 days at sciencefriday.com. Subscribe to this podcast. Plus, to stay updated on all things science, sign up for Science Friday's newsletters.

You might think about bats as flitting around in the dark and hunting insects, but some species feed on fruits or flowers—and play an important role as pollinators. One place that role is crucial is in the relationship between bats and agave plants. Bat conservationist Kristen Lear joins Host Ira Flatow to describe efforts to restore agaves in the Southwest and Mexico, which has consequences for bats, for the ecosystems around the agave, and for your liquor cabinet, since agave is the source of drinks like tequila and mezcal.Plus, journalist Dan Fagin joins Ira to discuss his recent New York Times article on a new technology that is letting researchers follow individual monarch butterflies over the course of a thousand-mile migration. Guests:Dr. Kristen Lear is director of the Agave Restoration Initiative at Bat Conservation International, based in Austin, Texas.Dan Fagin is a science journalist and the director of the Science, Health & Environmental Reporting Program at New York University.Transcripts for each episode are available within 1-3 days at sciencefriday.com. Subscribe to this podcast. Plus, to stay updated on all things science, sign up for Science Friday's newsletters.

The spotted owl has been a conservation flashpoint for more than 30 years. While habitat loss has been their historic foe, their most recent threat comes from within the owl family tree: the barred owl. Barred owls have expanded into the Pacific Northwest and are now outcompeting spotted owls for food and habitat. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has put forth a strategy that some experts say is the only way to save the spotted owl, and it could involve killing hundreds of thousands of barred owls.Ecologist and spotted owl expert Rocky Gutierrez joins Host Flora Lichtman to break down the plan, and explain how we got to this point.Guest: Dr. R.J. “Rocky” Gutierrez is an owl ecologist and professor emeritus at the University of Minnesota. He’s now based in Humboldt County, California.Transcripts for each episode are available within 1-3 days at sciencefriday.com. Subscribe to this podcast. Plus, to stay updated on all things science, sign up for Science Friday's newsletters.

A team of scientists is trying to jumpstart a global conservation movement, on par with efforts to save the rainforests or protect the oceans. But it might be even more ambitious because the target of their quest is invisible, everywhere, and mostly something we try to hand-sanitize away: microbes.So how do you conserve something that is everywhere and in everything? And why do microbes need protecting to begin with? Host Flora Lichtman digs into it with microbial ecologist Jack Gilbert, who is leading this charge. They chat about the thinking behind microbe conservation plans, and why some scientists are hesitant to jump onboard.Guest: Dr. Jack Gilbert is a microbial ecologist at the Scripps Institution of Oceanography and co-chair of the International Union for Conservation of Nature’s Species Survival Commission’s Microbial Conservation Specialist Group. Transcripts for each episode are available within 1-3 days at sciencefriday.com. Subscribe to this podcast. Plus, to stay updated on all things science, sign up for Science Friday's newsletters.

When we try to commune with nature, many of us turn toward the living: a walk in the woods among swaying trees, chirping birds, blooming flowers.But earth scientist Anjana Khatwa says not to overlook the inanimate—don’t sleep on rocks. She joins Host Flora Lichtman to talk about her love for rocks beyond the scientific and her new book, The Whispers of Rock.Read an excerpt from The Whispers of Rock: The Stories That Stone Tells about Our World and Our Lives.Guest: Dr. Anjana Khatwa is a geologist and author of The Whispers of Rock: The Stories That Stone Tells about Our World and Our Lives.Transcripts for each episode are available within 1-3 days at sciencefriday.com. Subscribe to this podcast. Plus, to stay updated on all things science, sign up for Science Friday's newsletters.

Each year, the Ig Nobel Prizes recognize scientific research that first makes you laugh, then makes you think. For instance, researchers who investigated the pizza preferences of lizards on the island of Togo. Or a man who kept track of his fingernail growth for 35 years.As is Thanksgiving tradition, we’re sharing highlights from this year’s Ig Nobels on Science Friday. Annals of Improbable Research editor Marc Abrahams acts as master of ceremonies for the 35th First Annual Ig Nobel Prizes, which include 10 awards, several 24-second scientific lectures, and a mini-opera about indigestion.Guest: Marc Abrahams is the editor and co-founder of Annals of Improbable Research and the founder and master of ceremonies for the Ig Nobel Prize Ceremony in Cambridge, Massachusetts.Transcripts for each episode are available within 1-3 days at sciencefriday.com. Subscribe to this podcast. Plus, to stay updated on all things science, sign up for Science Friday's newsletters.

A good workout can make you feel triumphant. And even if that isn’t your relationship with exercise, you’ve probably heard that working out can lift your mood, fight depression, and make you more resilient when life knocks back. But why exactly does exercise improve mental health? Is it all about those endorphins? Does the type or duration of a workout matter if you’re looking for a mental wellness boost?To help answer those questions and more, Host Flora Lichtman talks with Eduardo Esteban Bustamante and Jack Raglin, who both study the relationship between physical activity and mental health.Guests: Dr. Eduardo Esteban Bustamante studies the link between physical activity and mental health in kids as the director of the Healthy Kids Lab at the University of Illinois, Chicago.Dr. Jack Raglin studies exercise and sports science as a professor of kinesiology at Indiana University.Transcripts for each episode are available within 1-3 days at sciencefriday.com. Subscribe to this podcast. Plus, to stay updated on all things science, sign up for Science Friday's newsletters.

It’s a wonderful time of the year: squash, pumpkin, and gourd season. But how do those giant, award-winning pumpkins grow so big? And what’s the difference between a gourd and a squash? In a conversation from 2023, Ira talks with Dr. Chris Hernandez, director of the University of New Hampshire’s squash, pumpkin, and melon breeding program to explore all things winter squash and answer listener questions.Guests: Dr. Chris Hernandez is an assistant professor of Plant Breeding at the University of New Hampshire in Durham, New Hampshire.Dan Souza is co-Editor of Cook’s Science: How to Unlock Flavor in 50 of our Favorite Ingredients (Cook’s Illustrated, 2016). He’s based in Boston, Massachusetts.Transcript is available at sciencefriday.com. Subscribe to this podcast. Plus, to stay updated on all things science, sign up for Science Friday's newsletters.