Medical drama The Pitt is winning Golden Globes… and health care workers’ hearts. Medical experts say the show, which chronicles a fictional Pittsburgh hospital emergency department, is perhaps the most medically accurate show that’s ever been created. But what about The Pitt makes it so accurate… and does the second season hold up as well as the first? Stanford Global Health Media Fellow (and fourth-year medical school student) Michal Ruprecht joins Short Wave to discuss.
Have a question about YOUR favorite show and whether science supports it? Email us at shortwave@npr.org.
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This episode was produced by Hannah Chinn. It was edited by Rebecca Ramirez. Tyler Jones checked the facts. The audio engineer was Maggie Luthar.
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NPR's Book of the Day - ‘Firestorm’ tells journalistic – and personal – story of the LA wildfires
Jacob Soboroff was one of the reporters on the front lines of last year’s devastating wildfires in Los Angeles. For him, the story was also deeply personal: He grew up in the Palisades, one of several neighborhoods engulfed by the flames. In his new book Firestorm: The Great Los Angeles Fires and America’s New Age of Disaster, Soboroff provides a firsthand account of the Palisades and Eaton fires – and tries to understand what went wrong. In today’s episode, Soboroff speaks with Here & Now’s Peter O’Dowd about witnessing the destruction of his childhood neighborhood and the political aftermath of the fires.
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The Indicator from Planet Money - Are U.S. defense contractors lavishing their investors too much?
In early January, President Donald Trump signed an executive order threatening bans on defense contractors paying dividends or buying their stock back.
Today on the show, we learn about the Trump Administration’s frustrations with the weapons supply chain, find out what a defense industry investor makes of the move, and ask whether this reflects the state tightening its grip on the industry that arms the U.S. military.
Related episodes:
Are we overpaying for military equipment?
Can Just-In-Time handle a new era of war?
How to transform a war economy for peacetime
For sponsor-free episodes of The Indicator from Planet Money, subscribe to Planet Money+ via Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org. Fact-checking by Sierra Juarez. Music by Drop Electric. Find us: TikTok, Instagram, Facebook, Newsletter.
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Today on the show, we learn about the Trump Administration’s frustrations with the weapons supply chain, find out what a defense industry investor makes of the move, and ask whether this reflects the state tightening its grip on the industry that arms the U.S. military.
Related episodes:
Are we overpaying for military equipment?
Can Just-In-Time handle a new era of war?
How to transform a war economy for peacetime
For sponsor-free episodes of The Indicator from Planet Money, subscribe to Planet Money+ via Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org. Fact-checking by Sierra Juarez. Music by Drop Electric. Find us: TikTok, Instagram, Facebook, Newsletter.
Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices
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Consider This from NPR - Trump is rewriting the rules of the economy…is it ‘crony capitalism’?
President Trump has spent his first year back in office blurring the lines between business and government.
The administration has bought shares in private companies like Intel, NVIDIA, and others involved in mining and energy. President Trump has also publicly pressured CEOs, and forced the restructuring of social media giants like TikTok.
NPR financial correspondent Maria Aspan says that’s generating a lot of questions, and worries, about the future of the U.S. economy.
For sponsor-free episodes of Consider This, sign up for Consider This+ via Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org. Email us at considerthis@npr.org.
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State of the World from NPR - The unfinished story of Ruth Ellis, the last woman executed in Britain
In 1955, Ruth Ellis was hanged for killing her abusive partner, a scandal that gripped the nation. But the murder investigation was flawed and incomplete, and eventually, Ellis’ case was a catalyst for abolishing Britain’s death penalty. 70 years later, her family is seeking a posthumous pardon.
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Up First from NPR - Troops Stand By For Minnesota, Greenland NATO Tensions, Gaza Peace Board
Minnesota braces for a possible escalation as federal troops stand by amid protests against immigration enforcement and renewed threats to invoke the Insurrection Act.
Tensions rise with European allies as the White House pressures Denmark and other NATO countries over Greenland, prompting warnings of damage to transatlantic relations.
And world leaders are being asked to buy into a new U.S.-led “Board of Peace” for Gaza and other conflicts, with billion-dollar commitments and President Trump at the helm.
Want more analysis of the most important news of the day, plus a little fun? Subscribe to the Up First newsletter.
Tensions rise with European allies as the White House pressures Denmark and other NATO countries over Greenland, prompting warnings of damage to transatlantic relations.
And world leaders are being asked to buy into a new U.S.-led “Board of Peace” for Gaza and other conflicts, with billion-dollar commitments and President Trump at the helm.
Want more analysis of the most important news of the day, plus a little fun? Subscribe to the Up First newsletter.
Today’s episode of Up First was edited by Padma Rama, Ben Swasey, Gerry Holmes, Mohamad ElBardicy, HJ Mai.
It was produced by Ziad Buchh, Nia Dumas and Christopher Thomas.
We get engineering support from Simon-Laslo Janssen. And our technical director is Carleigh Strange.
(0:00) Introduction
(01:57) Troops Stand By For Minnesota
(05:47) Greenland NATO Tensions
(09:34) Gaza Peace Board
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NPR's Book of the Day - ‘This is Where the Serpent Lives’ is a sprawling debut novel set in modern Pakistan
Author Daniyal Mueenuddin has hit the ground running with his debut novel, This is Where the Serpent Lives. Set in modern Pakistan, the story spans generations and explores class, corruption, and crime — themes that Mueenuddin says he believes might resonate with American readers in particular. In today’s episode, Mueenuddin speaks with NPR’s Scott Simon about his novel-writing process for This is Where the Serpent Lives, and why he sprinkled subtle autobiographical details across its pages.
To listen to Book of the Day sponsor-free and support NPR's book coverage, sign up for Book of the Day+ at plus.npr.org/bookoftheday
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To listen to Book of the Day sponsor-free and support NPR's book coverage, sign up for Book of the Day+ at plus.npr.org/bookoftheday
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Short Wave - Come critter spotting with us on a cold winter’s night
In today's episode, host Emily Kwong leads us on a night hike in Patuxent River State Park in Maryland. Alongside a group of naturalists led by Serenella Linares, we'll meet a variety of species with unique survival quirks and wintertime adaptations. We'll search out lichen that change color under UV light and flip over a wet log to track a salamander keeping warm under wet leaves. Emily may even meet the bioluminescent mushrooms of her dreams. Plus, we talk about community events to get outside, such as the City Nature Challenge and Great American Campout.Do you have a question about changes in your local environment? Email a recording of your question to shortwave@npr.org — we may investigate it as part of an upcoming Nature Quest segment!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.
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Consider This from NPR - Beth Israel Congregation rebuilds after arson, saying “there’s healing that comes”
A week after an arson fire at Mississippi's oldest synagogue, Rachel Myers, a leader of the congregation's religious school, talks about how the congregation is doing and how it will rebuild. It’s not the first time the congregation has been attacked. In the late 1960s, the synagogue and the rabbi’s home were bombed by the Ku Klux Klan in retaliation for the congregation’s work on behalf of civil rights.
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Email us at considerthis@npr.org
This episode was produced by Avery Keatley and Henry Larson, with additional reporting from Shamira Muhammad of Mississippi Public Broadcasting. It was edited by Sarah Robbins. Our executive producer is Sami Yenigun.
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Up First from NPR - Defending the Disabled
L.A. County Public Defender Noah Cox noticed the disturbing trend. Many of his clients seemed to struggle answering even the most basic questions about the crimes they’d been charged with, questions like, “Where were you that day?” It seemed, Cox said, “like they were having troubles related to some sort of intellectual ability.” But when he dug into their records, Cox could see that while many had committed serious crimes, most had never been identified as disabled or offered resources to help with cognitive impairments. So Cox set about to change that. He helped create a new unit in the Los Angeles Public Defender’s Office dedicated to representing people with cognitive disorders.
Today on The Sunday Story a look at the possibilities and challenges of helping those with cognitive impairments stay out of prison and get the resources they need to live productive lives.
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Today on The Sunday Story a look at the possibilities and challenges of helping those with cognitive impairments stay out of prison and get the resources they need to live productive lives.
Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices
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