Short Wave

How Replaceable Are You?

In the 1970’s TV show called Six Million Dollar Man, a test pilot is in a horrible accident. The show’s famous line goes, “We can rebuild him. We have the technology.” Now, in the 2025 book, Replaceable You [https://www.maryroach.net/replaceable.html], science writer Mary Roach explores how people have collectively lived up to the task of rebuilding human bodies when they fail, as well as all the ways we may not quite be there yet. In this episode Regina G. Barber [https://www.npr.org/people/1082526815/regina-g-barber] and Mary Roach [https://www.maryroach.net/maryroach-bio.html] discuss three chapters of the book, get into everything from iron lungs to private parts and try to answer the question, “How replaceable are you?” Interested in more science behind the human body? Check out our episodes on synthetic cells [https://www.npr.org/2025/10/13/nx-s1-5527869/life-synthetic-cells-engineering-alive] and the first pig kidney transplant [https://www.npr.org/2024/12/20/1220579294/pig-kidney-transplant-genetics]. Email us your question at shortwave@npr.org [shortwave@npr.org]. Listen to every episode of Short Wave sponsor-free and support our work at NPR by signing up for Short Wave+ at plus.npr.org/shortwave [http://plus.npr.org/shortwave]. Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices [https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices] NPR Privacy Policy [https://www.npr.org/about-npr/179878450/privacy-policy]

The Closest Thing To A Cure For Allergies

More than 100 million people in the U.S. have some allergy each year. That’s about every 1 in 3 adults. For many, the fix is a bandaid: over-the-counter allergy medications. But there’s another treatment that works to lessen these reactions rather than just manage people’s symptoms, allergy shots. The treatment has been around for over a century and is still popular today. Patients have to take the shots for a few years, and it’s the closest thing science has to a cure. Host Regina G. Barber [https://www.npr.org/people/1082526815/regina-g-barber] speaks with Dr. Gina Dapul-Hidalgo  [https://www.dapulallergy.com/about-5]about how this immunotherapy works and how certain guidelines to keep your child from developing common food allergies have changed. Interested in more science behind allergies? Check out our other episodes: * Having a food allergy? And how your broken skin barrier might be the cause [https://www.npr.org/2025/09/23/nx-s1-5542216/food-allergy-broken-skin-barrier-eczema] * Spring Allergies and what to do about them [https://www.npr.org/2025/04/15/1266983622/spring-seasonal-allergies-climate-rhinitis] Have another topic on human biology or consumer health you want us to investigate? Email us your question at shortwave@npr.org [shortwave@npr.org]. Listen to every episode of Short Wave sponsor-free and support our work at NPR by signing up for Short Wave+ at plus.npr.org/shortwave [http://plus.npr.org/shortwave]. Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices [https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices] NPR Privacy Policy [https://www.npr.org/about-npr/179878450/privacy-policy]

Controversy In Yellowstone

Thirty years ago, park rangers reintroduced grey wolves into Yellowstone National Park. They wanted to restore the ecosystem and get the elk population, which had decimated the plant community, in check. And it worked – or so the popular narrative suggests. But is it really so simple? Today on the show, we explore how the Yellowstone ecosystem has changed since wolves returned and whether those changes can really be pinned solely on wolves. Plus, how the narrative of the Yellowstone wolf legacy could affect wolf reintroduction elsewhere. (encore) Curious about other science controversies? Email us at shortwave@npr.org [shortwave@npr.org]. Listen to every episode of Short Wave sponsor-free and support our work at NPR by signing up for Short Wave+ at plus.npr.org/shortwave [http://plus.npr.org/shortwave]. Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices [https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices] NPR Privacy Policy [https://www.npr.org/about-npr/179878450/privacy-policy]

Americans Are Not Going To The Dentist Enough

An estimated 5-10% of the U.S. population experiences a disorder with their TMJ, the joint that connects their jaw to their skull. The good news? Relief is possible. The secret? Go see your dentist. Today on the show, Emily talks with Justin Richer [https://www.riversideoralsurgery.com/meet-us/meet-dr-richer/], an oral surgeon, about the diagnosis and treatment of TMJ disorders. Got a question about your teeth or dentistry? Email us at shortwave@npr.org [shortwave@npr.org]. Listen to every episode of Short Wave sponsor-free and support our work at NPR by signing up for Short Wave+ at plus.npr.org/shortwave [http://plus.npr.org/shortwave]. Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices [https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices] NPR Privacy Policy [https://www.npr.org/about-npr/179878450/privacy-policy]

What Are AI Data Centers Doing To Your Electric Bill?

Electricity bills are on track to rise an average of 8 percent nationwide by 2030 according to a June analysis from Carnegie Mellon University and North Carolina State University. The culprits? Data centers and cryptocurrency mining. Bills could rise as much as 25 percent in places like Virginia. Science writer Dan Charles [https://site.danielcharles.us/] explains why electric utilities are adding the cost of data center buildings to their customers’ bills while the data companies pay nothing upfront.  Read the full June analysis here. [https://energy.cmu.edu/_files/documents/electricity-grid-impacts-of-rising-demand-from-data-centers-and-cryptocurrency-mining-operations.pdf] To listen to more on the environmental impact of data centers, check out our two-part reported series: - Why the true water footprint of AI is so elusive [https://www.npr.org/2025/05/07/1249592906/energy-water-ai-climate-tech] - How tech companies could shrink AI's climate footprint [https://www.npr.org/2025/05/07/1249592906/energy-water-ai-climate-tech] Interested in how technology affects everyday life? Email us your question at shortwave@npr.org [shortwave@npr.org]. Listen to every episode of Short Wave sponsor-free and support our work at NPR by signing up for Short Wave+ at plus.npr.org/shortwave [http://plus.npr.org/shortwave]. Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices [https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices] NPR Privacy Policy [https://www.npr.org/about-npr/179878450/privacy-policy]