Former NASA astronaut Jim McDivitt, who led Gemini and Apollo missions, dies at 93
McDivitt commanded two early Gemini and Apollo missions in the 1960s that played a key role in preparing for the moon landing in 1969.
Science
Why did he suspect a COVID surge was coming? He followed the digital breadcrumbs
A theory about online candle reviews and COVID cases was put under the microscope, and has taken on new relevance amid concern at the lack of official data heading into another winter.
A black hole is releasing some strange burps, baffling scientists
Astronomers were stunned to find that the black hole was emitting energy, two years after it pulled apart a star that had come too close.
Recent whale strandings highlight the mystery that still baffles marine scientists
A recent stranding on remote New Zealand islands left nearly 500 pilot whales dead. Scientists still don't know for sure why the events, also known as beachings, occur, but they have some ideas.
It's Short Wave's third birthday, so All Things Considered hosts test their knowledge
In honor of Short Wave's third birthday, hosts Aaron Scott and Emily Kwong quiz All Things Considered hosts about some of the many nuggets of information the science podcast has shared with listeners.
Brain cells in a lab dish learn to play Pong — and offer a window onto intelligence
A dish of brain cells learned to play the 1970s video game Pong. The research could help computers become more intelligent
Animal populations shrunk an average of 69% over the last half-century, a report says
A new report from the World Wildlife Fund and the Zoological Society of London analyzed years of data on wildlife populations across the world and found a downward trend in the Earth's biodiversity.
German students break the world record for fastest accelerating electric car — again
The electric racing car, built by 20 University of Stuttgart students known as the GreenTeam, can go from 0 to about 62 miles per hour in just 1.461 seconds.
Colonoscopies save lives. Doctors push back against European study that casts doubt
Colon cancer specialists worry that results of a study published this week in the New England Journal of Medicine could be misconstrued, and keep patients from getting lifesaving cancer screening.
A dish full of brain cells has learned to play the computer game Pong
Human brain cells in a dish have learned to play Pong, a simple video game created in the 1970s. This novel achievement is part of a larger effort to understand how brain cells learn.