Short Wave — Podcast Ad Analysis
30 episodes analyzed
1 min ads · 9% of episode is ads
3.0 ads/episode
Top sponsors: Promotional ad for NPR's Consider This podcast, Sponsor read, Planet Money podcast promo, Mid-roll ad (E-Trade), Promo for This American Life podcast
New discoveries, everyday mysteries, and the science behind the headlines — in just under 15 minutes. It's science for everyone, using a lot of creativity and a little humor. Join hosts Emily Kwong and Regina Barber for science on a different wavelength.If you're hooked, try Short Wave Plus. Your subscription supports the show and unlocks a sponsor-free feed. Learn more at plus.npr.org/shortwave
PodSkip has analyzed 30 episodes of Short Wave, averaging 3.0 ads per episode (9% of runtime).
Did Trump's foreign aid cuts fuel the Ebola outbreak?
Jun 24, 2026
The Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo is growing – and is likely larger than official numbers show. The deadly disease spreads through bodily fluids, on average killing half the…
7 ads · 3 min · 0% ads
What can a tornado teach us about kindness?
Jun 23, 2026
One evening in May of 2011, tornado sirens went off in a small Missouri city called Joplin. Thousands of homes were destroyed in the tornado, about a third of the town’s 50,000 residents were…
5 ads · 1 min · 0% ads
Inside the mysterious minds of horses
Jun 22, 2026
Janet Jones has been fascinated by horses since childhood. She’s now a horse trainer and a neuroscientist, which allows her to explore the minds of the animals to which she’s devoted her life. She…
7 ads · 5 min · 0% ads
Why scientists launched two little robots to the moon
Jun 19, 2026
Two tiny transforming robots landed on the moon! These baseball-sized bots accompanied Japan's first successful lunar lander. They rolled out of SLIM as balls and transformed into a rover. The bots…
9 ads · 4 min · 0% ads
Is sewage the future of green aviation?
Jun 17, 2026
The war in Iran has disrupted the global fuel supply. That has sent airline prices soaring and cancelled scores of flights. This got Short Wave host Emily Kwong wondering: Could another fuel source…
7 ads · 3 min · 0% ads
Could air pollution make your memory worse?
Jun 16, 2026
Summer is here, your windows are open and the smell of…car exhaust and the latest wildfire are wafting in. This air pollution is harmful to almost every organ, including the brain. Today on Short…
3 ads · 1 min · 0% ads
Inside the lab taste-testing the world's chocolate
Jun 15, 2026
Could standardizing chocolate help small-scale farmers? Chocolate scientist Julien Simonis thinks it could help persuade consumers to pay for higher quality chocolate, in turn helping out these…
3 ads · 1 min · 0% ads
Why your sunscreen is finally getting a major upgrade
Jun 12, 2026
Until this week, the United States hadn’t approved a new sunscreen ingredient in over 20 years. That changed Tuesday, when the FDA approved a new chemical for U.S. sunscreens. It’s called…
7 ads · 3 min · 0% ads
How a single flu shot could protect you for decades
Jun 10, 2026
Every year, tens of millions of people in the U.S. get the flu vaccine. That’s because the virus changes year-to-year and protection only lasts around six months. Adolfo Garcia-Sastre wants to change…
5 ads · 3 min · 0% ads
Your DNA is changing all the time. Here’s why
Jun 09, 2026
We tend to think of the DNA strands that contain our genetic code as consistent, stable units. But in reality, the cells that make up our bodies are constantly replicating and changing. Even as you…
Inner monologues are still a mystery
Jun 08, 2026
Emily Kwong is pretty sure she lacks an inner monologue, while the inner monologue of producer Rachel Carlson won’t stop chatting. But how well can a person know their inner self? And what does…
Prepare to be baffled by what we don't know about eels
Jun 05, 2026
More than a century ago, all that people knew about European eels was that they lived in the rivers and streams for decades — until they swam out to the ocean and never returned. Eventually, tiny…
3 ads · 1 min · 0% ads
This common garden plant summons wasps as bodyguards
Jun 03, 2026
In our latest science news roundup: how nature adapts, for better or worse. When faced with pests, plants may not be able to run away – but that doesn’t mean they’re defenseless. Some have thorns or…
2 ads · 1 min · 0% ads
Why are scientists planting tiny forests in big cities?
Jun 02, 2026
Healthy forests help combat climate change, provide humans with drinking water and even improve mental and physical health. But it’s hard to imagine an entire forest in the middle of a big city…
3 ads · 1 min · 0% ads
Why you can't stop scrolling: the science of 'dark flow'
Jun 01, 2026
You pick up your phone to do one quick task, and suddenly 20 minutes have flown by without you even noticing. How do apps do that to you? Science journalist Michaeleen Doucleff felt like her phone…
3 ads · 1 min · 0% ads
This distant planet has wild weather and gemstone clouds
May 29, 2026
For many astronomers and astrophysicists there are two distinct, important periods: before the James Webb Space Telescope – and after. It has powered many scientific discoveries since it came online…
1 ads · 0 min · 0% ads
Should we reengineer the world's deadliest animal?
May 27, 2026
The most ferocious predator for us humans is actually quite small: the mosquito. They are hungry for blood, spreading diseases like malaria, yellow fever and dengue – and picking up new ones all the…
1 ads · 0 min · 0% ads
Is it getting windier?
May 26, 2026
Is it getting windier? Long-time listener Barry Zalph thinks it is, at least in Louisville. And he’s not the only one. Redditors and local reporters have noticed a recent uptick in the region’s…
1 ads · 0 min · 0% ads
The magic — and science — of synchronous fireflies
May 25, 2026
Every year for two weeks between mid-May and mid-June, Congaree National Park in South Carolina is home to a fairy-tale-like display of flashing lights. These rhythmic performances happen all because…
1 ads · 0 min · 0% ads
The supertree shielding coastlines and storing carbon
May 22, 2026
Coastal fishing communities around the world are struggling with declining fish stocks. That’s because of climate change, environmental degradation and overfishing. But one tree – the humble mangrove…
1 ads · 0 min · 0% ads
Why renaming this common hormonal disorder is a huge deal
May 20, 2026
You probably know someone who has a condition that, until last week, was known as PCOS, or polycystic ovary syndrome. It affects one in eight reproductive-aged women. But despite it being such a…
3 ads · 1 min · 0% ads
A solution for California's water woes
May 19, 2026
For years, farmers in California have been pumping huge amounts of water from their wells to irrigate their crops. The state’s Central Valley is the nation’s single biggest source for many different…
3 ads · 1 min · 0% ads
What's up with your nightmares?
May 18, 2026
Dreams of flying? Nightmares of teeth falling out? Falling off a cliff? As a sleep scientist at the University of Montreal, Michelle Carr has pretty much heard it all. In Michelle’s new…
1 ads · 0 min · 0% ads
A chemical found in fish could help reinvent your sunscreen
May 15, 2026
It’s been over 25 years since the FDA approved a new ingredient for sunscreen in the United States. But a molecule called gadusol found in fish and coral reefs is a promising candidate. It absorbs…
1 ads · 0 min · 0% ads
Should you be fibermaxxing? Here's what the science says
May 13, 2026
The average person eats 10-15 grams of fiber per day, according to the USDA. The problem? That’s WAY under the recommended daily amount. Fiber – a type of carb that our bodies are unable to digest –…
1 ads · 0 min · 0% ads
Why Swedish scientists gave salmon cocaine
May 12, 2026
A recent study caught our eye: salmon on cocaine. Or really, researchers giving salmon cocaine…for science. See, scientists know human drugs pollute aquatic environments – past studies have shown…
1 ads · 0 min · 0% ads
Without this pill, lots of people would be dead
May 11, 2026
25 years ago, the FDA approved a pill that would change the way scientists treat cancer … for good. The pill was called Gleevec; it was designed specifically to treat CML, chronic myeloid leukemia…
1 ads · 0 min · 0% ads
Hantavirus: the risks, the science and what you need to know
May 08, 2026
On May 2, the World Health Organization got an alarming report: People aboard a ship in the Atlantic Ocean were falling ill. The culprit is now confirmed as hantavirus, a pathogen that some rodents…
1 ads · 0 min · 0% ads
How science is taking tripping mainstream
May 06, 2026
President Trump recently signed an order to speed up the evaluation of psychedelics to treat the brain. That’s coming after decades of strict prohibition on psychedelic drug use dating back to…
1 ads · 0 min · 0% ads
This medical condition stumped doctors for years
May 05, 2026
One morning, Kyla Madonna Kenney woke up and her world was turned upside down: The room was spinning, she had a splitting migraine and one side of her body was shaking. Her tremors and migraine…
1 ads · 0 min · 0% ads