Short Wave Folgen

When the U.S. government and state of Florida unveiled a new plan to save the Everglades in 2000, the sprawling blueprint to restore the wetlands became the largest hydrological restoration effort in the nation's history. Two decades later, only one project is complete, the effort is $15 billion over budget and the Everglades is still dying. The new podcast Bright Lit Place from WLRN and NPR heads into the swamp to meet its first inhabitants, the scientists who study it and the warring sides struggling to find a way out of the muck. Today, we hear an excerpt as environment reporter Jenny Staletovich tags along with wetlands ecologist Evelyn Gaiser to the remotest part of the swamp.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

At the Ol Pejeta Conservancy, a wildlife preserve in central Kenya, lions and cheetahs mingle with zebras and elephants across many miles of savannah – grasslands with "whistling thorn" acacia trees dotting the landscape here and there. Twenty years ago, the savanna was littered with them. Then came invasive big-headed ants that killed native ants — and left the acacia trees vulnerable. Over time, elephants have knocked down many of the trees. That has altered the landscape — and the diets of other animals in the local food web.Curious about other science news? Email us at shortwave@npr.org.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Scientists know that Black people are at a greater risk for health problems like heart disease, diabetes and Alzheimer's disease than white people. A growing body of research shows that racism–in health systems and the effects of experiencing racial discrimination–contributes to these long-standing health disparities for Black communities. Now, some researchers are asking whether part of the explanation involves how racism changes the brain. Today on the show, science correspondent Jon Hamilton speaks with Nate Harnett, an assistant professor of psychiatry at Harvard Medical School, and Negar Fani, a clinical neuroscientist at Emory University about how experiencing racism may change the brain. Listen to Short Wave on Spotify, Apple Podcasts and Google Podcasts. Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy