Lawmakers have yet to reach a deal to avert U.S. default, which could come as soon as next month. In Ohio, Republican lawmakers are attempting to amend the state's constitution to waylay reproductive rights activists' push to safeguard access to abortion. And, in Can't Let It Go, news of a dog who is very old.

This episode: White House correspondent Tamara Keith, political correspondent Kelsey Snell, senior political editor and correspondent Domenico Montanaro, and Ohio Statehouse News Bureau Karen Kasler.

The podcast is produced by Elena Moore and Casey Morell. Our editor is Eric McDaniel. Our executive producer is Muthoni Muturi.

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There's a lot for scientists to learn about the origins of humans' musical abilities. In the last few years, though, they've discovered homo sapiens have some company in our ability to make musical rhythm. That's why today, producer Berly McCoy brings the story of singing lemurs. She explains how their harmonies could help answer questions about the beginnings of humans' musical abilities, and what all of this has to do with Queen.

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Social Security provides retirement money to U.S. workers who have paid into the system via taxes. The program could be forced to cut payments within the next decade if Congress doesn't act to shore up its funding.

One bipartisan plan, still in its early days, comes from Sen. Bill Cassidy, a Louisiana Republican, and Sen. Angus King, a Maine independent who caucuses with Democrats: an independent endowment seeded by a $1.5 trillion investment from the federal government.

This episode: White House correspondent Tamara Keith, political correspondent Susan Davis, and senior political editor and correspondent Domenico Montanaro.

The podcast is produced by Elena Moore and Casey Morell. Our editor is Eric McDaniel. Our executive producer is Muthoni Muturi.

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This episode includes discussion of sexual violence.

Jurors found former President Donald Trump liable for battery and defamation in the civil lawsuit brought by writer E. Jean Carroll, who says Trump raped her in a Manhattan department store.

While the jurors did not find that Trump raped Carroll, they agreed that he "sexually abused" her and that he defamed her when he denied her story.

Carroll was awarded $5 million in total damages for both claims.

And New York Republican Rep. George Santos, infamous for lies about his background, has pleaded not guilty to more than a dozen federal charges.

This episode: White House correspondent Tamara Keith, reporter Andrea Bernstein, national political correspondent Mara Liasson, and national justice correspondent Carrie Johnson.

The podcast is produced by Elena Moore and Casey Morell. Our editor is Eric McDaniel. Our executive producer is Muthoni Muturi.

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This week, the American Psychological Association issued its first-of-kind guidelines for parents to increase protection for children online. It comes at a time of rising rates of depression and anxiety among teens.

This episode, NPR science correspondent Michaeleen Doucleff looks into the data on how that seismic change has shifted the mental health of teenagers. In her reporting, she found that the seismic shift of smartphones and social media has re-defined how teens socialize, communicate and even sleep.

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Congress has long directed the government to spend more money than it collects in taxes. That means the government has to borrow money to meets its obligations, which it does by selling Treasury securities.

Treasury securities are a promise from the government that you if give it money now, it will pay you back with interest later. They have long been considered among the safest investments in the world.

But now, the U.S. is flirting with not paying its bills by refusing to increase the amount of money that the government is legally allowed to borrow — its "debt ceiling."

We explain the basics of how the system works and what the consequences might be if the ceiling is not raised and the government runs out of money.

Previously on the podcast: Much Ado About Debt, Jan. 18

This episode: White House correspondent Tamara Keith and political correspondent Kelsey Snell.

The podcast is produced by Elena Moore and Casey Morell. Our editor is Eric McDaniel. Our executive producer is Muthoni Muturi.

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As a major pandemic-related immigration policy is scheduled to end, the Biden administration is warning the tens of thousands of migrants hoping to cross into the U.S. via its southern border that they should instead apply for asylum using the government's app or through a processing center in their home countries.

This episode: White House correspondent Tamara Keith, White House correspondent Franco Ordoñez, and national political correspondent Mara Liasson.

The podcast is produced by Elena Moore and Casey Morell. Our editor is Eric McDaniel. Our executive producer is Muthoni Muturi.

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Today on the show, we meet a prosthetic designer and a neuroscientist fascinated with understanding how the brain and body might adapt to something we haven't had before — a third thumb. Dani Clode and Tamar Makin spoke to Short Wave in Washington D.C., at the 2023 annual meeting for the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS).

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A jury in Washington, D.C., has convicted former Proud Boys chairman Enrique Tarrio and three others of seditious conspiracy, handing the Justice Department a key victory in its Jan. 6 probe.

And as the country continues to add jobs and boost wages, why do Americans think the country is in a recession?

This episode: White House correspondent Asma Khalid, national political correspondent Mara Liasson, national justice correspondent Carrie Johnson, and chief economics correspondent Scott Horsley.

The podcast is produced by Elena Moore and Casey Morell. Our editor is Eric McDaniel. Our executive producer is Muthoni Muturi.

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Another week comes by, and luckily so does our roundup of science news. This time, we've got some questions about better understanding our health: Why do some people get motion sickness from virtual reality (VR) content? Do we really need to walk 10,000 steps a day? And is there real science behind ice baths?

This week, Sacha Pfeiffer, legendary reporter and occasional host of NPR's All Things Considered, who joins our hosts Emily Kwong and Regina G. Barber to demystify and (in some cases) debunk the science of this week's health headlines.

We love hearing what you're reading and what science catches your eye! Reach the show by emailing [email protected].

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