logo
episode-header-image
Jul 2020
12m 11s

Why Do Flying Snakes Wiggle In The Air?

NPR
About this episode
Some snakes can fly, and we don't mean on a plane. Certain snakes that live in South and Southeast Asia can leap off branches, undulating through the air, onto another tree. But why do they wiggle? NPR science correspondent Nell Greenfieldboyce shares one researcher's quest to find out.

See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences.

NPR Privacy Policy
Up next
Yesterday
Predicting elections is getting harder. What did the midterms teach us?
Famously, polls got the 2016 election wrong. And they’d been off for multiple elections since. So, Monday night, political scientist Jack Rametta nervously refreshed his Senate forecasting model for the final time. Would it be right this time? Or would it yet again cast doubt on ... Show More
12m 43s
Nov 4
AI is changing mathematics -- but not how you think
Math has created some of humanity's oldest intellectual challenges. And AI is completely changing the game. This year AI solved one of math’s most difficult problems. Since then, OpenAI published hundreds of new math results. So is this the end for the people who’ve dedicated the ... Show More
13m 53s
Nov 3
OpenAI whistleblowers on the fight over AI safety | Machine Gods
Check out NPR’s newest podcast, Machine Gods. It’s the official podcast of the singularity, meaning — the hypothetical future when machines will outpace our own intelligence…and our control. Whether you think that future is coming or not, hosts Kevin Roose and Casey Newton are he ... Show More
32m 15s
Recommended Episodes
Jul 2024
How does a snake climb a tree?
Snakes are often seen as slithery, slimy and scary. But these intriguing non-legged creatures have made CrowdScience listener Okello from Uganda wonder how they move – more specifically, he wants to know how they climb trees so easily, and so fast. Presenter Caroline Steel meets ... Show More
27m 29s
Apr 2019
Why Don't Snakes Have Legs?
Some snakes still carry the genes necessary to grow legs -- so why don't they? Learn how snakes may have lost their legs, evolutionarily speaking, in this episode of BrainStuff. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.comSee omnystudio.com/listener fo ... Show More
4m 13s
May 2025
Why did snakes lose their legs?
Happy Snake Week! Every episode this week explores a different question about our slithery friends. Here’s a mind blower for you: did you know the ancestors of snakes used to have legs? Somewhere along the zigzag path of evolution, they traded in their lizardy legs for a more str ... Show More
4m 58s
May 2022
How Do Snakes Mate?
Snakes have several fascinating reproductive tricks up their sleeves (scales?). Learn about the wild world of dual penises, delayed fertilization, egg incubation, and mating balls in this episode of BrainStuff, based on this article: https://animals.howstuffworks.com/snakes/how-d ... Show More
6m 34s
Apr 2015
What's the largest snake that has ever existed?
<p>Everyone loves a giant snake tale, but what's really the largest serpent on the planet? Hunt for the answer across space and time in this episode of the Stuff to Blow Your Mind podcast.</p><p> </p> Learn more about your ad-choices at <a href="https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.c ... Show More
34m 2s
Apr 2025
Our Fear and Fascination around Snakes
When writer Stephen S. Hall was a child, he would capture snakes—much to his mother’s chagrin. Now the science journalist is returning to his early fascination In his latest book, Slither: How Nature’s Most Maligned Creatures Illuminate Our World. The book explores our long, comp ... Show More
16m 15s
Oct 2022
Snakes
Can you figure out who's lying about snakes?For more great Gen-Z podcasts, visit https://gzmshows.com, or follow us on Twitter and Facebook and Instagram.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info ... Show More
22m 29s
May 2022
Ep 97 Snake Venom: Collateral Damage
<p>How do you feel about snakes? Intrigued or terrified? In awe or creeped out? Of course, those aren’t the only options; the sight or thought of a snake can evoke many different emotions, but chances are indifference isn’t one of them. And is it any wonder? Some snakes can produ ... Show More
1h 30m