Head Impacts Hinder Learning

August 16, 2012
Anyone who went to a large state university with a famous football team knows that there were often special courses given to the players. Many non-playing students tried to get into these classes, since they were rumored to be easier.... continued

Want to Reduce Crime? Plant Trees!

August 16, 2012
After the recent Colorado massacre, we ALL want to reduce violence, but we're divided about how to do it. Sociologists think that "greening" vacant lots may be associated with reductions in certain gun crimes (and it's certainly easier than trying... continued

Where Superstitions Come From

August 15, 2012
Most superstitions--like not letting a black cat cross your path--don't make sense, so why do so many of us repeat the same rituals over and over? It may have to do with evolution. The rituals that we do to bring... continued

What Tree Rings Reveal

August 15, 2012
Tree rings can tell you a lot: The Japanese have discovered that, in the late eighth century, the earth was hit by a mysterious blast of cosmic rays (NOTE: Subscribers can still listen to this show). They discovered this by looking at cedar... continued

UN Calls US Ethanol Evil Corn

August 15, 2012
Evil Corn? They don't put it that way, but they HAVE called for an immediate suspension of government-mandated US ethanol production, saying that this is creating a worldwide food shortage. Corn (the main ingredient in ethanol) is not only a... continued

Psychological Results of Recession

August 14, 2012
The US and Europe aren’t the only ones having a recession--Iceland is too. How does your behavior change when you discover that your money is no longer real? (NOTE: Subscribers can still listen to this show). The nation's economy was... continued

Are TSA X-rays Dangerous?

August 14, 2012
When it comes to the scan and the pat down, you should know that there are 244 full-body "backscatter" X-ray scanners in use at 36 airports in the United States. Other airports use millimeter wave scanners, which do not use... continued

Strange Formation on the Sun

August 14, 2012
A mysterious dark band has appeared on the surface of the sun that is almost 500 miles long and is getting bigger every day. Astrophysicists think it's a cluster of dense cold gas. The formation may look dark because it's... continued

You May Have a Magnet in Your Head

August 13, 2012
Do you always know what direction you're going in? Some people have implants (NOTE: Subscribers can still listen to this show), but YOU may have a magnet in your head. These have been found in the noses of rainbow trout... continued

Many Countries Think Drugs Should be Legal

August 13, 2012
A recent international conference on drugs focused, for the first time in forty years, on the ways that the financial health, political stability, and national security of virtually every country in the Americas has been undermined by the drug trade.... continued