Can we grow veggies in space?
A Texas undergrad is investigating sustainable agriculture systems for growing vegetables on Mars - and grew test samples of English peas in simulated Martian soil, with fertilizer from maggots.
Science
NPR's Short Wave gives us the latest on black holes, sea turtles, and blood pressure
NPR's Ari Shapiro speaks with Regina Barber and Aaron Scott of Short Wave about a black hole nearly as old as the universe, how pollution plagues sea turtles, and a simple fix to cut blood pressure.
Only 51 of these U.S. whales remain. Little has been done to prevent their extinction
Rice's whales are one of the world's newly discovered whale species – and already one of the most endangered. Protections for the whales in the Gulf of Mexico are not coming fast.
Clouds made of sand make for a strange kind of rain on this hot planet
On Earth, clouds and rain are made of water. But the James Webb Space Telescope has found that on a planet called WASP-107b, the rain and clouds are made of sand.
With a boost from John Oliver, pūteketeke soars to first in New Zealand bird contest
The water bird was named a conservation organization's Bird of the Century after the Last Week Tonight host took out billboard ads across the globe and hyped the threatened species on his show.
Climate change, fossil fuels hurting people's health, says new global report
The latest Lancet Countdown, an annual analysis from the prestigious medical journal, underscores the vast and growing costs of fossil fuel burning on health.
How army ants' architecture demonstrates their collective intelligence
As army ants travel over uneven terrain, they link their bodies together to create bridges — a system that might give engineers insight into controlling robotic swarms.
Scientists are beginning to understand how long COVID symptoms affect the brain
Many symptoms of long COVID are related to the brain. Now scientists are beginning to understand why brain fog, fatigue, and pain can linger for years after a person was infected.
Remembering Dr. Roland Pattillo and his quest to honor the memory of Henrietta Lacks
For decades, Dr. Roland Pattillo pushed to get Henrietta Lacks' name in the public eye. Lacks was a Black cancer patient whose cells were harvested and used for medical research without her consent.
![Dr. Matthew Harris visits the primary health-care center where he worked in Brazil 20 years ago. The author of Decolonizing Healthcare Innovation: Low-Cost Solutions from Low-Income Countries says: "I really think that if people had been more receptive to learning from Brazil 20 years ago, we could have had an army of community health workers in [the U.K.] by now."](https://wfdd-live.s3.amazonaws.com/styles/card/s3/images/story/What-the-Global-South-could-teach-rich-countries-about-health-care-%E2%80%94-if-theyd-listen-1209468039-1699882767.jpg?h=3096ef12&itok=XOVnSGKg)
What the Global South could teach rich countries about health care — if they'd listen
In his book Decolonizing Healthcare Innovation, Dr. Matthew Harris argues wealthy countries ought to pay attention to innovative programs around the world instead of believing that "the West is best."