Welcome to a “Science:  NPR” update from Hawaii Science Digest.

Views expressed in this science and technology news summary are those of the reporters and correspondents.

Content provided by National Public Radio.

Accessed on 27 March 2019, 0715 UTC.

Source:  https://www.npr.org/sections/science/

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RESEARCH NEWS

Duke Whistleblower Gets More Than $33 Million In Research Fraud Settlement

March 25, 2019 • Duke University is paying the U.S. government $112.5 million to settle accusations that it submitted bogus data to win federal research grants.

Alexander Gerst/ESA/Getty Images

REVIEW

BOOK REVIEWS

New Climate Books Stress We Are Already Far Down The Road To A Different Earth

March 25, 2019 • David Wallace-Wells’ The Uninhabitable Earth and Nathaniel Rich’s Losing Earth offer valuable perspectives on climate change — if we’re committed to being adult enough to face the future.

Fabrice Coffrini/AFP/Getty Images

RESEARCH NEWS

Need A Can’t-Miss Wheel Of Cheese? Try Playing It Some Hip-Hop

March 24, 2019 • Researchers exposed cheese to different genres of music for 24 hours a day over six months to find out that hip-hop might create the tastiest cheese.

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Christina Chung for NPR

ENVIRONMENT

What Makes People Heed A Weather Warning — Or Not?

March 22, 2019 • One social scientist says it’s how people interpret these warnings that matters and that “we need to get out there and do a better job of understanding their perspective.”

Hanna Barczyk for NPR

HIDDEN BRAIN

Trying To Do Good

March 21, 2019 • We know our actions affect those around us. But how do we know whether our impact is positive? This week on Hidden Brain, what it means to do good in the world.

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Mint Images/Getty Images

SHOTS – HEALTH NEWS

Human Genomics Research Has A Diversity Problem

March 21, 2019 • Studies on the genetics of human diseases have focused largely on people of European descent. Researchers say this lack of diversity is bad science and exacerbates health inequities.

Salwan Georges/Washington Post/Getty Images

SHOTS – HEALTH NEWS

Fentanyl-Linked Deaths: The U.S. Opioid Epidemic’s Third Wave Begins

WBUR

March 21, 2019 • Overdose deaths involving fentanyl are rising — up 113 percent on average each year from 2013 to 2016. Dealers are adding cheap fentanyl to the illicit drug supply, and some users get it accidentally.

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intraprese/Getty Images

SHOTS – HEALTH NEWS

Statisticians’ Call To Arms: Reject Significance And Embrace Uncertainty!

March 20, 2019 • Scientists and statisticians are putting forth a bold idea: ban the very concept of “statistical significance.” A bit more humility would be in order to account for the ambiguity in the world.

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Deckle Edge

REVIEW

BOOK REVIEWS

In ‘Horizon,’ Considering All That Is Connected

March 20, 2019 • Barry Lopez’s new book is a biography and a portrait of some of the world’s most delicate places, but at heart it’s a contemplation of the belief that the way forward is compassionately, and together.

U.S. Mathematician Becomes First Woman To Win Abel Prize, ‘Math’s Nobel’

March 19, 2019 • “I find that I am bored with anything I understand,” Karen Uhlenbeck once said. That sentiment is part of why she won what many call the Nobel of mathematics Tuesday.

Jackie Hai/KJZZ

SHOTS – HEALTH NEWS

Aspiring Doctors Seek Advanced Training In Addiction Medicine

KJZZ

March 19, 2019 • Once a tiny specialty that drew mostly psychiatrists, addiction medicine is expanding its accredited training to include residents from specialties like family medicine who see it as a calling.

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AFP/Getty Images

SHOTS – HEALTH NEWS

Sex, Empathy, Jealousy: How Emotions And Behavior Of Other Primates Mirror Our Own

FRESH AIR

March 19, 2019 • Primatologist Frans de Waal believes that the way humans experience emotion is not unique: “That’s a spectrum of behavior that we have, and the same thing is true for many other species.”

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Eli Burakian/Dartmouth College

ARTS & LIFE

Marcelo Gleiser Wins Templeton Prize For Quest To Confront ‘Mystery Of Who We Are’

March 19, 2019 • The prestigious award comes with nearly $1.5 million in winnings. The physicist, who teaches at Dartmouth and has written for NPR, says he’s driven by the “many questions we still have no clue about.”

Caltech/MIT/LIGO Lab

Massive U.S. Machines That Hunt For Ripples In Space-Time Just Got An Upgrade

March 19, 2019 • The twin sites in the Laser Interferometer Gravitational-Wave Observatory are about to go back online. New hardware should make them able to sense more colliding black holes and other cosmic events.

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Photo illustration by Meredith Rizzo/NPR

SHOTS – HEALTH NEWS

Misophonia: When Life’s Noises Drive You Mad

March 18, 2019 • Some people experience intense rage or fear when they hear the sound of people chewing, spitting, or throat-clearing. Turns out they may have a rare condition known as misophonia.

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Ethan Miller/Getty Images

EDUCATION

Cannabis 101 At The University Of Connecticut

CONNECTICUT PUBLIC RADIO

March 16, 2019 • With expanding markets for hemp and marijuana, some students believe that taking the class could help their careers. “I’m definitely interested in the plant and where it can go,” Madison Blake said.

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Vincenzo Amato/TEDxSyd

TED RADIO HOUR

Eddie Woo: How Can Math Help Us Understand The Complexity Of The Universe?

March 15, 2019 • The world is full of recurring patterns based on math. Math teacher Eddie Woo explains why human beings are naturally drawn to patterns and how we can use math to engage with our complex world.

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James Duncan Davidson/TED

TED RADIO HOUR

Adam Spencer: Why Are Monster Prime Numbers Important?

March 15, 2019 • Adam Spencer is fascinated by prime numbers. These seemingly simple numbers can be found in monster sizes—the latest being almost 25 million digits long.

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