Short Wave

It's been twenty years since the U.S. launched a war in Iraq — a conflict justified by faulty intelligence. More than 4000 Americans died along with tens of thousands of Iraqis. The war undermined Americans' trust in government and further highlighted the inability of the U.S. government to export democracy by way of regime change.

This episode: White House correspondent Asma Khalid, national political correspondent Mara Liasson, and international correspondent Deb Amos.

The podcast is produced by Elena Moore and Casey Morell. It is edited by Eric McDaniel. Our executive producer is Muthoni Muturi. Research and fact-checking by Devin Speak.

Unlock access to this and other bonus content by supporting The NPR Politics Podcast+. Sign up via Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org.

Giveaway: npr.org/politicsplusgiveaway

Connect:
Email the show at [email protected]
Join the NPR Politics Podcast Facebook Group.
Subscribe to the NPR Politics Newsletter.

Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices

NPR Privacy Policy

Planetary scientists announced some big news this week about our next-door neighbor, Venus. For the first time, they had found direct evidence that Venus has active, ongoing volcanic activity.

"It's a big deal," says Dr. Martha Gilmore, a planetary geologist at Wesleyan University. "It's a big deal in that there are no other planets, actually, where we've seen active volcanism." (Moons don't count - sorry Io!)

What makes that fact so striking is how inhospitable a place Venus is now – crushing pressure, a toxic atmosphere and a surface temperature around 850 degrees Fahrenheit. So, what happened? How did Earth and its closest sibling diverge so sharply?

On today's episode, Martha talks with scientist in residence Regina G. Barber about what studying Venus can tell us about the past and the future of our own planet.

See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences.

NPR Privacy Policy

Our friends at NPR's TED Radio Hour podcast have been pondering some BIG things — specifically, the connection between our physical, mental, and spiritual health. In this special excerpt, what if you could control a device, not with your hand, but with your mind? Host Manoush Zomorodi talks to physician and entrepreneur Tom Oxley about the implantable brain-computer interface that can change the way we think.

Keep an eye on NPR's TED Radio Hour podcast feed the next few weeks, as they unveil the series.

See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences.

NPR Privacy Policy

A bill ending Iraq war authorizations has cleared a procedural hurdle in the Senate and is expected to be taken up by the chamber for a final vote next week, coinciding with the 20th anniversary of the U.S. invasion of Iraq. Federal judges are all bound by an ethics code — so why aren't Supreme Court justices?

This episode: White House correspondent Tamara Keith, political correspondent Susan Davis, senior political editor and correspondent Ron Elving, legal affairs correspondent Nina Totenberg, and national justice correspondent Carrie Johnson.

The podcast is produced by Elena Moore and Casey Morell. It is edited by Eric McDaniel. Our executive producer is Muthoni Muturi. Research and fact-checking by Devin Speak.

Unlock access to this and other bonus content by supporting The NPR Politics Podcast+. Sign up via Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org.

Giveaway: npr.org/politicsplusgiveaway

Connect:
Email the show at [email protected]
Join the NPR Politics Podcast Facebook Group.
Subscribe to the NPR Politics Newsletter.

Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices

NPR Privacy Policy

For the past few winters, researchers have been intentionally flying into snowstorms. And high in those icy clouds, the team collected all the information they could to understand—how exactly do winter storms work?

With more accurate data could come more accurate predictions about whether a storm would cause treacherous conditions that shut down schools, close roads and cancel flights. NPR science correspondent Nell Greenfieldboyce recently took to the skies for one of these flights and shares her reporting with us today.

Read more of Nell's reporting on this NASA effort: https://n.pr/3lk9utH

Want to hear about other storm chasing happening in the name of science? Email us at [email protected].

See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences.

NPR Privacy Policy

Was the FDA wrong to approve a drug that's used in nearly all medication abortions in the U.S. — and should the drug, mifepristone, be taken off the market? Those questions were argued in court Wednesday, in a case heard by federal Judge Matthew Kacsmaryk, a Trump appointee, in Amarillo, Texas.

This episode: White House correspondent Tamara Keith, national correspondent Sarah McCammon, and political correspondent Susan Davis.

The podcast is produced by Elena Moore and Casey Morell. It is edited by Eric McDaniel. Our executive producer is Muthoni Muturi. Research and fact-checking by Devin Speak.

Unlock access to this and other bonus content by supporting The NPR Politics Podcast+. Sign up via Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org.

Giveaway: npr.org/politicsplusgiveaway

Connect:
Email the show at [email protected]
Join the NPR Politics Podcast Facebook Group.
Subscribe to the NPR Politics Newsletter.

Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices

NPR Privacy Policy

As a leading expert on paleogenomics, Beth Shapiro has been hearing the same question ever since she started working on ancient DNA: "The only question that we consistently were asked was, how close are we to bringing a mammoth back to life?"

In the second part of our conversation (listen to yesterday's episode), Beth tells Short Wave co-host Aaron Scott that actually cloning a mammoth is probably not going to happen.

"But there are technologies that will allow us to resurrect extinct traits, to move bits and pieces of genes that might be adapted to a large animal like an elephant living in the Arctic."

That is what companies like Colossal Biosciences and Revive and Restore are trying to do, with Beth's help. And she is leading the effort on another iconic extinct species, the dodo.

In today's episode, how Beth Shapiro's initial work mapping the dodo genome laid the groundwork to bring back a version of it from extinction, and how the knowledge scientists gain from de-extinction could help protect species under threat now.

To manage podcast ad preferences, review the links below:

See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences.

NPR Privacy Policy

The U.S. and the United Kingdom will provide nuclear-powered submarine technology to Australia as part of a defense deal between the two nations. And, a U.S. drone crashed near the Black Sea after an encounter with Russian jets.

This episode: White House correspondent Asma Khalid, White House correspondent Scott Detrow, and national security correspondent Greg Myre.

The podcast is produced by Elena Moore and Casey Morell. It is edited by Eric McDaniel. Our executive producer is Muthoni Muturi. Research and fact-checking by Devin Speak.

Unlock access to this and other bonus content by supporting The NPR Politics Podcast+. Sign up via Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org.

Giveaway: npr.org/politicsplusgiveaway

Connect:
Email the show at [email protected]
Join the NPR Politics Podcast Facebook Group.
Subscribe to the NPR Politics Newsletter.

Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices

NPR Privacy Policy

Research into very, very old DNA has made huge leaps forward over the last two decades. That has allowed scientists like Beth Shapiro to push the frontier further and further.

"For a long time, we thought, you know, maybe the limit is going to be around 100,000 years [old]. Or, maybe the limit is going to be around 300,000 years," says Shapiro, Professor of Ecology & Evolutionary Biology at UC Santa Cruz. "Well, now we've been working with a horse fossil in Alaska that's about 800,000 years old."

Beth's career has spanned the heyday of ancient DNA research, beginning in the late 1990s when rapid genetic sequencing technology was in its early days. She talked with Short Wave co-host Aaron Scott about the expanding range of scientific puzzles the young field is tackling — from new insights into our Neanderthal inheritance to deep questions about ecology and evolution.

See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences.

NPR Privacy Policy

Former President Donald Trump has been invited to testify before a New York City grand jury — a move that is widely understood to mean Trump could soon face criminal charges related to his financial dealings and the payment of hush money to Stephanie Clifford, the adult film star also known as Stormy Daniels. His former attorney Michael Cohen previously was convicted in connection with the payment in federal court, when prosecutors alleged the payments were made at Trump's direction.

This episode: White House correspondent Tamara Keith, reporter Ilya Marritz, and national political correspondent Mara Liasson.

The podcast is produced by Elena Moore and Casey Morell. It is edited by Eric McDaniel. Our executive producer is Muthoni Muturi. Research and fact-checking by Devin Speak.

Unlock access to this and other bonus content by supporting The NPR Politics Podcast+. Sign up via Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org.

Giveaway: npr.org/politicsplusgiveaway

Connect:
Email the show at [email protected]
Join the NPR Politics Podcast Facebook Group.
Subscribe to the NPR Politics Newsletter.

Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices

NPR Privacy Policy