Riddle us this: Which animal is pink, curved beaked and a master of the physics required to create water tornadoes? If you guessed flamingos, you're right. New research out this month in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences shows that across a range of harsh environments, flamingos have become masters — of physics, fluid dynamics and so much more — all in pursuit of their filter-fed prey. Short Wave host Regina G. Barber sits down with biomechanics researcher Victor Ortega Jiménez to hear all of the incredibly involved lengths these birds go through to get their prey.
Want to hear about more physics or animal discoveries? Email us at shortwave@nprg.org to tell us what areas of science you'd be interested in.
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NPR's Book of the Day - With new novel, Ocean Vuong says he wants to reframe America as a place of salvage
Ocean Vuong's debut novel On Earth We're Briefly Gorgeous placed him in an elite club of American writers. He teaches at NYU and is the recipient of a MacArthur Fellowship, among many other honors. But before all this, the author was raised by working-class Vietnamese immigrant parents in Hartford, Connecticut. Vuong's new novel The Emperor of Gladness takes place in a similar environment and centers on an unlikely friendship between a 19 year-old college dropout named Hai and an 82-year-old with dementia named Grazina. In today's episode, Vuong joins NPR's Ari Shapiro for a conversation about reframing our view of the United States and the American dream, describing ugly things in a beautiful way, and Vuong's experience working in close quarters at a fast food restaurant.
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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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The Indicator from Planet Money - Target, Klarna and Sesame Street’s new addy
Can you tell me how to get... how to get to Indicators of the Week? This week's econ roundup looks at Target's sagging sales, Klarna's pay-later problem, and Sesame Street's new streaming address.
Related:
When do boycotts work? (Apple / Spotify)
Buy now, pay dearly?
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Fact-checking by Sierra Juarez. Music by Drop Electric. Find us: TikTok, Instagram, Facebook, Newsletter.
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Related:
When do boycotts work? (Apple / Spotify)
Buy now, pay dearly?
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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What Next | Daily News and Analysis - TBD | Inside OpenAI’s Empire
OpenAI started as a non-profit dedicated to building safe A.I. Now, they’re obsessed with building artificial general intelligence by any means necessary - even if they don’t quite know what that is.
Guest: Karen Hao, reporter and author of “Empire of AI: Dreams and Nightmares in Sam Altman's OpenAI”
Want more What Next TBD? Subscribe to Slate Plus to access ad-free listening to the whole What Next family and all your favorite Slate podcasts. Subscribe today on Apple Podcasts by clicking “Try Free” at the top of our show page. Sign up now at slate.com/whatnextplus to get access wherever you listen.
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What Could Go Right? - The Progress Report: Crime Plummets in 2025!
On this week's Progress Report, Zachary and Emma serve up a fresh batch of good news you probably missed: U.S. crime rates are dropping to record lows, a bold new law is aimed at taking down revenge porn and AI deepfakes in just 48 hours, and Guinea-Bissau is throwing its very first art biennale, despite having almost no galleries or art schools.
What Could Go Right? is produced by The Progress Network and The Podglomerate.
For transcripts, to join the newsletter, and for more information, visit: theprogressnetwork.org
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Engines of Our Ingenuity - The Engines of Our Ingenuity 1377: Ben Franklin and Music
Episode: 1377 Benjamin Franklin writes about music and electricity. Today, Ben Franklin talks about music.
The Stack Overflow Podcast - Can a dev environment spark joy? The Android team thinks so.
Get the whole rundown of what’s new in this version of Android Developer’s Studio.
Google I/O just happened, and the Android team announced a bunch of things.
Connect with Matthew on LinkedIn.
Congrats to Populist badge winner chudo xl for their answer to Android app stuck at "Launching on Devices" or 'device 'DEVICEID' not found' error.
It Could Happen Here - Executive Disorder: White House Weekly #17
The gang gives a rundown on antinatalist terrorism, deportations to South Sudan, a potential DHS reality TV show, and Biden's pro-state cancer. Plus, updates on Palestine, the FBI, tariffs, and immigration.
Sources:
https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/69775896/dvd-v-us-department-of-homeland-security/
https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.mad.282404/gov.uscourts.mad.282404.111.0.pdf
https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.mad.282404/gov.uscourts.mad.282404.111.0.pdf
https://www.refworld.org/policy/countrypos/unhcr/2024/en/147589
https://www.hrw.org/news/2025/04/09/south-sudan-incendiary-bombs-kill-burn-civilians
https://www.npr.org/2025/05/19/nx-s1-5403712/supreme-court-tps-venezuelans
https://bsky.app/profile/joshuajfriedman.comhttps://bsky.app/profile/qjurecic.bsky.social/post/3lppd7wq7jc2h
https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2025-05-18/suicide-bomber-targeted-fertility-clinic
https://www.nbcnews.com/tech/internet/reddit-bans-anti-natalists-palm-springs-explosion-rcna207677
https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/suspected-serial-killers-execution-trump-rcna207171
https://www.cnn.com/2025/05/21/middleeast/diplomats-israeli-fire-west-bank-intl
https://www.patreon.com/posts/129696965?pr=true
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array(3) { [0]=> string(184) "https://www.omnycontent.com/d/clips/e73c998e-6e60-432f-8610-ae210140c5b1/78d30acb-8463-4c40-a5ae-ae2d0145c9ff/cf5d19e7-3f20-4161-ac94-b2e4014e32bd/image.jpg?t=1747858646&size=Large" [1]=> string(10) "image/jpeg" [2]=> int(0) }The World in Brief from The Economist - Trump blocks Harvard from enrolling foreign students; gets budget win, and more
The Trump administration blocked Harvard University from enrolling foreign students, revoking a certification that allows the school to host non-Americans on certain visas.
Global News Podcast - The Trump administration stops Harvard from enrolling foreign students
The Trump administration bans Harvard from enrolling foreign students. Also: Israel blames critics of its war on Gaza for the murder of two US embassy staff, and why the Netherlands accuses Belgium of stealing wind.