Aug 28

Is Trump abandoning endangered species?

In July the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service announced changes to how key parts of the Endangered Species Act (ESA) will be implemented, including a new definition of what it means to “harm” an endangered species. To discuss the history of the ESA, the impact its made on at-risk wi ... Show More

19m 24s

Aug 26

Could damaged sperm be causing miscarriages?

Miscarriage is often treated as a problem rooted in the pregnant partner, but emerging research suggests sperm may play a bigger role than many people realize. Science journalist Sarah Elizabeth Richards joins Science Quickly to discuss how growing evidence links sperm DNA damage ... Show More

12m 22s

Aug 24

What happens when Arctic ice melts and forests lose protection?

In this episode of Science Quickly, we examine a proposal to roll back protections for millions of acres of U.S. roadless forests, explore how climate change is opening a new Arctic shipping route and discuss new research suggesting that extreme weather can shape how Americans vi ... Show More

11m 56s

Oct 2024

Spooky Lakes and the Science of Haunted Hydrology

Artist and author Geo Rutherford created Spooky Lake Month to highlight the strange and eerie waters of the world. She first fell in love with the Great Lakes during graduate school in Milwaukee. Rutherford was an early educational video creator, but it was a video about spooky l ... Show More

13m 47s

Oct 2025

Haunted Hydrology (SPOOKY LAKES) with Geo Rutherford

<p>Mudbank bones. River wrecks. Salty seas. Pink ponds. Poison dust devils. Steamy streams.. It’s Haunted Hydrology with your favorite Spooky Lakes ambassador, the artist and author Geo Rutherford who is widely known as Geodesaurus. Geo covers the dark history of The Great Lakes, ... Show More

1h 13m

Oct 2024

Exploring the Science of Spookiness at the Recreational Fear Lab

Why do so many of us love a good scare? Whether it’s horror movies, haunted houses or creepy podcasts, there’s something thrilling about feeling spooked—especially around Halloween. In this episode, host Rachel Feltman dives into our fascination with fear and morbid curiosity wit ... Show More

17m 32s

Nov 2024

Spooky Science

It’s our Halloween special from a rain-soaked Jodrell Bank in Cheshire. We find out what you can see in a dark, dark Halloween night sky with space-watcher and Professor of astrophysics Tim O’Brien. Also this week, we meet some blood-sucking leeches, the horrors of pumpkin waste ... Show More

28m 11s

Sep 2021

Spooky Rivers, Eyes Wide Shut, Pet Crocodiles

Producer Jess Boddy joins Rachel for a listener voicemail Q&A episode! The weirdest things we learned this week range from a killer creek to naked mole rat facts at breakfast. The Weirdest Thing I Learned This Week is a podcast by Popular Science. Share your weirdest facts and st ... Show More

37m 37s

Aug 2025

The Deep Sea’s Mysterious Oxygen Source

Trillions of potato-sized rocks scattered across the deep ocean floor are rich in metals such as cobalt and copper—making them a target for mining companies eager to fuel the clean-energy transition. But recent research suggests these rocks may also be supporting marine life in w ... Show More

18m 3s

Nov 2023

Scary science

In the week where many celebrated Halloween we are wondering about that tingle down your spine, the dryness in your mouth, the racing pulse - might it actually be good for you? We also look into a special frequency of sound, just below our human hearing range, that might cause ra ... Show More

50m 16s

Spooky Lakes and the Science of Haunted ...