Short Wave Folgen

For blind and low vision adults, the ability to read braille can be life-changing. Braille literacy is directly linked to higher rates of academic success and better employment outcomes for them. But there's a problem. The U.S. is facing a national shortage of qualified braille teachers and there's a lack of scientific research around braille overall. An interdisciplinary team led by linguist Robert Englebretson wants to change that.Read some of the team's work here:- Englebretson R, Holbrook MC, Fischer-Baum S. A position paper on researching braille in the cognitive sciences: decentering the sighted norm. Applied Psycholinguistics. 2023.- Englebretson, R., Holbrook, M.C., Treiman, R. et al. The primacy of morphology in English braille spelling: an analysis of bridging contractions. Morphology. 2024.Interested in hearing more linguistics stories? Email us at shortwave@npr.org. Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Some weapons used by the United States military are so powerful, they can pose a threat to the people who fire them — even in training. When weapons are fired, an invisible blast wave travels through the brains of anyone nearby. Exposure to lots of these blasts over time — even low level ones — has been shown to cause brain health problems for service members. If you liked this episode, consider checking out some more episodes on the brain, including its waste system, face blindness and the neuroscience of loneliness. Questions or ideas you want us to consider for a future episode? Email us at shortwave@npr.org. We'd love to hear from you!Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Over the next week, forecasts project extreme heat across much of the South, Midwest and parts of the West. So, this episode, health correspondent Pien Huang helps us take heat training cues from Olympians, many of whom spent weeks preparing for a sweltering Paris Olympics, by training in the heat to get their bodies used to hot, humid weather. But heat training is not just for competitive athletes. It's recommended for people in the military and those who work outdoors in hot weather — and it could even be useful for generally healthy members of the public. Plus, we get into some important caveats about who is best positioned to heat train — and why doing so doesn't minimize the problems of a warming climate.Check out more of Pien's reporting on heat training.And, if you liked this episode, consider checking out our episodes on the dew point, the power of sweat and coping with extreme heat.Questions or ideas you want us to consider for a future episode? Email us at shortwave@npr.org. We'd love to hear from you!Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy