Science Friday

A photograph of a Brandt's bat face with a comic-style speech bubble reading, "Come learn my secrets."

🦇 Some animals, including the Brandt’s bat, seem to defy the rules of aging. Understanding how they do it could help us live longer, healthier lives: buff.ly/oiQsFRf

Can A Microbe Conservation Movement Take Off? Microbes make up about 99% of all species, but they’re not part of any global conservation plans. One group is trying to change that.

A team of researchers from across the globe is making the case for conservation... of some of tiniest and least-liked species on the planet. 🦠

Listen to the full podcast episode to learn more. ⬇️

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If you have to have one, Ebersole says, consider that African greys can live for 80 years and are as smart as a 5-year-old child. She recommends adopting a bird in need of a home.

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During her reporting, Ebersole found that stronger enforcement, more forensics, and more resources to carry out investigations can help.

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Birds illegally sourced from the wild are shipped to the Middle East or Asia. "The poachers are just trying to make a living. It's really not the poachers who are the problem. It's the people who are buying them and shipping them illegally," Ebersole says.

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African greys that are bred in captivity and legally traded are outfitted with leg bands. "If birds don't have those bands, they may be illegal," Ebersole says. The United States banned wild bird imports a long time ago.

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"Many of the TikTok stars have millions of fans. And that attention has fueled an interest in more people having them as pets. And because of that interest, people who tend to exploit systems—legal or illegal—are trafficking them." —Rene Ebersole

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Talkative African grey parrots are charismatic internet stars. @wire-wildlife.bsky.social journalist Rene Ebersole investigated the global scramble to source and sell the birds, which is threatening their survival.

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The SciFri Book Club January/February and March/April reads: "The Kissing Bug" by Daisy Herndández and "Life On A Little-Known Planet" by Elizabeth Kolbert

✨ Announcing the first two SciFri Book Club reads of 2026 ✨

Learn more and join the discussion: buff.ly/iGsXVnI

Join us at the Greene Space to meet SciFri Host IRA FLATOW and Physicist Dr. Sean M. Carroll! Hosted by WNYC and Science Friday.

Join SciFri and @wnyc.org this Friday, Dec. 5 at 6:00 p.m. for an evening of physics, philosophy, and fun with podcast host @heyira.bsky.social and award-winning physicist and author @seanmcarroll.bsky.social. Use code “WNYC” for 50% off tickets here: buff.ly/ouCkqOi

How To Tap Into The Hidden Histories Of Rocks Geologist Anjana Khatwa explains how embracing wonder and awe adds to our scientific understanding of the rocks that form our planet.

To this earth scientist, rocks are “storykeepers of time.” And to best explore our world’s origin, she believes in blending the science—and spirituality—of rocks.

"If you want to understand your disease in a metaphorical way, if you want to think of it as an enemy, think of it as an enemy. If that’s harmful to you, if you feel as if that’s going to hurt you, don’t do it. There’s no one way of thinking about cancer." —Dr. Siddhartha Mukherjee

Science writer and oncologist Siddhartha Mukherjee discusses what we get wrong about cancer, and why he leans into nuance as an author: buff.ly/92LxRAd

Subscribe to Science Friday's Week in Science newsletter to join 20,000 curious minds exploring the world of science every week!

🤔 What do you get when you subscribe to our weekly newsletter? The most essential science news headlines, plus a spoonful of the awe-inspiring: buff.ly/DkmfNKd

"We should accept aging as a process in life...I think understanding why we age and how we age gives us better tools for how to live. If we know the things that cause aging that would help with that process." —Venki Ramakrishnan

In "Why We Die," chemist Venki Ramakrishnan takes readers on a riveting journey to the frontiers of biology—and asks whether we must be mortal: buff.ly/qvGgX9p

‘A Multi-Headed Beast’: Telling The Story Of Cancer Science writer and oncologist Siddhartha Mukherjee discusses what we get wrong about cancer, and why he leans into nuance as an author.

“If you want to think of it as an enemy, think of it as an enemy… If that’s going to hurt you, don’t do it.” A young oncologist’s journal became a Pulitzer-Prize-winning book. 15 years later, here’s how our understanding of cancer has evolved.

I love it when @scifri.bsky.social covers the Ig Nobels!

You got it!

Fingernails And Indigestion At The 2025 Ig Nobel Prizes The Ig Nobel Prizes celebrate unusual scientific research—this year including lizard pizza preferences and fingernail growth.

From lizards' pizza preferences to human fingernail growth: Here are highlights from this year’s Ig Nobels. 🏆

"Generally, animals that are larger tend to live longer. Bats are a clear exception. If you plot, for example, 200 different mammalian species on a graph-so longevity versus body mass-bats would be off the line." —Dr. Vera Gorbunova

🦇 If humans aged like the longest-lived bat species, we’d live for hundreds of years—and that bat is just one of many superagers in the animal kingdom: buff.ly/YlatJbX

How Alphafold Has Changed Biology Research, 5 Years On Google's tool for predicting how proteins “fold” turns 5 this year. How is it fitting into biological research—and where is it going?

The team behind Google’s tool for predicting how proteins “fold” won a 2024 Nobel Prize in chemistry. Here's the state of that tech and how it’s being used in health research today. ⬇️

Happy Science Friday! Here’s what we’re covering today on the show. Listen on your local public radio station, 2-4 p.m. ET. 🏆 🏋🏽🪴

Learn more here: buff.ly/uWWEb7I

Attention, Trivia Nerds! It’s A Food Science Fact Feast Flora and “Part-Time Genius” co-host Mangesh Hattikudur put one lucky listener to the test with food science trivia.

We'll be back with the answers on Monday, Dec. 1. Want to know them sooner—and hear two more questions? Listen to the full podcast here. ⬇️

Which American pharmacist developed a scale to measure the spiciness of chili peppers? A. Wilbur Scoville B. Norville Rogers C. John Pemberton D. Dr. Pepper

Which American pharmacist developed a scale to measure the spiciness of chili peppers?

A. Wilbur Scoville
B. Norville Rogers
C. John Pemberton
D. Dr. Pepper

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Pandas are unable to detect what basic taste? A. Sweet B. Sour C. Bitter D. Umami

Pandas are unable to detect what basic taste?

A. Sweet
B. Sour
C. Bitter
D. Umami

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Last week, Flora Lichtman and @parttimegenius.bsky.social co-host Mangesh Hattikudur quizzed one lucky listener with food science trivia. Put your Thanksgiving party to the test with two questions from the episode. 🐼 🌶️

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Why Is Working Out Good For Your Mental Health? A workout can be a mental health boost—or a psychological strain. Two exercise researchers discuss what physical activity does to your mind.

"A sedentary person might be 8 times as likely to have depression or anxiety versus somebody who’s in the highest quintile of activity." But not all exercise boosts mental health. Two researchers explain why.

Science Friday's Thanksgiving Science Collection. [Image of a Thanksgiving table with a plate full of turkey, green beans, mashed potatoes, and cranberry sauce at its center.]

🦃 🎈From turkey snoods to giant balloons, Thanksgiving is giving science. Explore our holiday-themed collection, stuffed with audience favorites: buff.ly/LmjsZ56

Join Us In NYC For "Big Mysteries" and meet SciFri Host Ira Flatow! [A headshot of Ira Flatow in a recording studio]

Come nerd out with SciFri's Ira Flatow and award-winning physicist Sean M. Carroll on Friday, Dec. 5 at WNYC's The Greene Space. Enjoy an open bar, incredible food, and big ideas to match. Buy your tickets here: buff.ly/GuOdK0S

Everything You Never Knew About Squash And Pumpkins It’s squash, pumpkin and gourd season. An expert answers listener questions about these colorful fall favorites.

🎧 Listen to the full episode to squash more myths about pumpkins and their seedy relatives.

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