Short Wave Folgen

Sleep. It's an essential biological function that has long intrigued scientists. Researchers have studied everything from mice to fruit flies in the lab to get a better understanding of what happens when animals sleep — and why so many do it. This week, scientists finally added one piece to the elusive sleep puzzle: How wild chinstrap penguins sleep amid their noisy colony. Turns out, they do it over 10,000 times in seconds-long bursts throughout the day — totaling 11 hours when all is said and done.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

In which we meet the pioneers of one of the most exciting — and controversial — fields of biomedical research: in vitro gametogenesis, or IVG. The goal of IVG is to make unlimited supplies of what Hayashi calls "artificial" eggs and sperm from any cell in the human body. That could let anyone — older, infertile, single, gay, trans — have their own genetically related babies. As such, the field opens up a slew of ethical concerns. But that isn't stopping researchers from pressing forward. So, this episode NPR science correspondent Rob Stein gives us a glimpse into the global race to create the first artificial human embryos to see how the competition is unfolding. Want to hear more cutting-edge technology? Email the show at shortwave@npr.org.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

As kids, some of us dream of multiple careers: being an astronaut AND the next president. Or digging up dinosaurs AND selling out concert stadiums. As we get older, there's pressure to pick one path. But what if we didn't have to? After all, John Urschel didn't. He's a mathematician and professor at MIT. But before that, he played football for the Baltimore Ravens. Today on the show, Monday night football! Host Regina G. Barber talks to Urschel about linear algebra and following his dream of becoming a mathematician while living the dream as a NFL player.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy