Opinion : NPR

Jonathan Croft/Ikon Images/Getty Images

Personality Can Change Over A Lifetime, And Usually For The Better

June 30, 2016 • Psychologists have been arguing for decades over whether personality traits are real or a myth. More recent research shows that traits are real, a scientist says, and have a big effect on behavior.

Courtesy Marcelo Gleiser

Knowledge, The Endless Pursuit

June 29, 2016 • Imagine how sad it would be if we one day arrived at the end of knowledge — no new questions to explore, no boundaries to expand, no great discoveries ahead, says astrophysicist Marcelo Gleiser.

Thank You, Pat Summitt: From One Tennessee Girl To Another

Tennessee Head Coach Pat Summitt of Tennessee celebrates with her son Tyler after the Lady Volunteers defeated Georgia in the championship game of the NCAA Women's Final Four in 1996. Matthew Stockman/Getty Images hide caption

toggle caption

Matthew Stockman/Getty Images

Sports

Thank You, Pat Summitt: From One Tennessee Girl To Another

June 28, 2016 • I didn't realize that women didn't get the same recognition as men, and that they had to work twice as hard. I didn't realize this because Pat never made us believe it was or should be any different.

As NPR Goes Digital, Photos Become Essential To Storytelling

Zabihullah Tamanna (left) and David Gilkey in Afghanistan on June 2. Monika Evstatieva/NPR hide caption

toggle caption

Monika Evstatieva/NPR

NPR Public Editor

As NPR Goes Digital, Photos Become Essential To Storytelling

June 28, 2016 • NPR lost two colleagues — including a renowned photojournalist — in Afghanistan this month, prompting some listeners to ask: Why does a radio network need photos?

Has Physics Gotten Something Really Important Really Wrong?

Dean Mouhtaropoulos/Getty Images

13.7: Cosmos And Culture

Has Physics Gotten Something Really Important Really Wrong?

June 28, 2016 • It's possible that string theory or the multiverse may find strong links with data, but a recent book provides a view of what a truly different philosophical approach would look like, says Adam Frank.

Here's a contest you can vote in — for best illusion of the year. This screenshot shows the illusion that won the contest in 2010. YouTube hide caption

toggle caption

YouTube

13.7: Cosmos And Culture

Vote For The Best Illusions Of The Year

June 27, 2016 • Most of us can't vote for the Oscars and couldn't vote in Britain's EU referendum. But many of us love perceptual illusions, so here's a contest you can vote in, says Tania Lombrozo.

To Help A Criminal Go Straight, Help Him Change How He Thinks

Lorenzo Gritti for NPR

Shots - Health News

To Help A Criminal Go Straight, Help Him Change How He Thinks

June 26, 2016 • More than half of prisoners released from prison are rearrested within a year. Cognitive therapy can help prisoners change the thinking that gets them in trouble, like "I'll never back down."

What Of London's 'Beautiful Idiots And Brilliant Lunatics,' Post-'Brexit'?

A juggler performs during an audition for a busking spot in the North Hall at Covent Garden Market. Dan Kitwood/Getty Images hide caption

toggle caption

Dan Kitwood/Getty Images

Simon Says

What Of London's 'Beautiful Idiots And Brilliant Lunatics,' Post-'Brexit'?

June 25, 2016 • Many people know London as a true city of the world, says NPR's Scott Simon. But he wonders what the U.K.'s recent vote to leave the European Union may mean for that reputation.

What Of London's 'Beautiful Idiots And Brilliant Lunatics,' Post-'Brexit'?

Listen · 2:33 2:33

Download
Embed <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/483432802/483499861" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
Transcript

Personality Tests Are Popular, But Do They Capture The Real You?

Jeannie Phan for NPR

Shots - Health News

Personality Tests Are Popular, But Do They Capture The Real You?

June 25, 2016 • It can be a lot of fun taking those back-of-the-magazine personality tests. But tests may be less fun when they are used by employers to make big decisions on hiring and job performance.

Up The Amazon Without A Paddle — Or Passport, Or Visa, Or Girlfriend

A small boat navigates through the narrows of the Amazon River delta near Belem, Brazil. Wolfgang Kaehler/LightRocket via Getty Images hide caption

toggle caption

Wolfgang Kaehler/LightRocket via Getty Images

World

Up The Amazon Without A Paddle — Or Passport, Or Visa, Or Girlfriend

June 25, 2016 • We recently asked our audience to share their travel nightmares. NPR's Peter Breslow tells his own harrowing story — as a New Jersey boy who had everything go wrong on his South American expedition.

Up The Amazon Without A Paddle — Or Passport, Or Visa, Or Girlfriend

Listen · 5:56 5:56

Download
Embed <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/483133107/483499891" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
Transcript

As A Major Zoo Closes, 10 Reasons To Rethink The Concept

In this Dec. 22, 2014, file photo, Sandra the orangutan sits in her enclosure at Buenos Aires Zoo in Argentina. Natacha Pisarenko/AP hide caption

toggle caption

Natacha Pisarenko/AP

Fresh Air

June 22, 2016 • Mat Johnson grew up poor, but managed to land in the middle class as an adult. Still, he says, opportunities for advancement are few and far between, and it's all too easy to slide back economically.

What It's Like To Be A Part Of The 'Vanishing Middle Class'

Listen · 7:20 7:20

Download
Embed <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/482135775/483112318" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
Transcript

Alfred Pasieka/Getty Images

Fresh Air

June 21, 2016 • Author Sarah Hepola had to rethink her sex life after she quit drinking when she was 35. "Nothing frightened me as much as sex without alcohol," she says.

Sobering Up, And Facing The Reality Of Sex Without 'Liquid Courage'

Listen · 7:17 7:17

Download
Embed <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/482932574/482956451" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
Transcript

Thursday June 30, 2016

Wednesday June 29, 2016

Tuesday June 28, 2016

Monday June 27, 2016

Sunday June 26, 2016

Saturday June 25, 2016

What Of London's 'Beautiful Idiots And Brilliant Lunatics,' Post-'Brexit'?

Up The Amazon Without A Paddle — Or Passport, Or Visa, Or Girlfriend

Friday June 24, 2016

Wednesday June 22, 2016

Fresh Air

What It's Like To Be A Part Of The 'Vanishing Middle Class'

Tuesday June 21, 2016

Fresh Air

Sobering Up, And Facing The Reality Of Sex Without 'Liquid Courage'