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Elizabeth Kolbert says the "taxicab yellow" Panamanian golden frog was nearly wiped out by a fungal disease. It's just one of the species affected by what scientists call the Sixth Extinction.

In The World's 'Sixth Extinction,' Are Humans The Asteroid?

Scientists think an asteroid killed the dinosaurs. In today's extinction, humans are the culprit.

A new study shows that the income gap between young adults who go to college and those who don't only continues to grow.

Going To College May Cost You, But So Will Skipping It

The gap in earnings between young people who have a college degree and those who don't has continued to widen over the past several decades. And while total student loan debt in the U.S. continues to rise, millennials say a college degree is still worth it.

Elementary school students in North Carolina stand outside their school in November, during an event organized by teachers to protest changes in public education.

Pay Cuts, End Of Tenure Put North Carolina Teachers On Edge

No state has seen as steep a drop in teacher salaries over the past few years. Legislators also halted a salary bump for teachers with master's degrees and cut a cap on class size. "Teachers are really questioning why they want to teach," says the head of a state advocacy group.

Economist Says Best Climate Fix A Tough Sell, But Worth It

Yale's William Nordhaus has been running the numbers on Earth's climate troubles. He says charging a fair price for any dumping of carbon dioxide into the air is a cost-effective solution. But at least half the planet must cooperate, his math suggests, or it will be all pain, no gain.

Most of us have never been submerged under more than a few feet underwater. But just a few meters down, the water compresses the tissues of your body so that you become more dense. At that point, "You're more likely to sink than float," says Dr. Kevin Fong.

Practicing 'Extreme Medicine,' From Deep Sea To Outer Space

In his new book, Dr. Kevin Fong explores how humans survive extremes of heat, cold, outer space and deep sea. "We're still exploring the human body and what medicine can do in the same way that the great explorers of the 20th century and every age before them explored the world," he says.

The Worst Songs Of All Time?

Carrie Brownstein returns to chat about relentless earworms, annoying novelty songs and other songs our hosts think of as quite possibly the worst of all time.

Sounds Intriguing: The World's Most Interesting Noises

As an acoustic engineer, Trevor Cox has spent most of his career getting rid of bizarre, unwanted sounds. But in The Sound Book, Cox turns up the volume on those sonic oddities. The book explores weird echoes and unexpected noises from around the globe — including "whisper galleries" and a chirping pyramid.

'Dancing Fish,' 'Ammonites' And A Literary Life Well-Lived

For 44 years, British author Penelope Lively has been publishing children's books, short stories and novels. Her latest book, Dancing Fish and Ammonites, is subtitled "A Memoir," but critic Ellah Allfrey says it is "more a collection of thoughts, a scattering of advice and a reading list to treasure."

Brian McGough and Kayla Williams met in Iraq in 2003.

For Military Couples, It's A Long Recovery 'When We Get Home'

Kayla Williams and Brian McGough met in Iraq in 2003. Williams' new memoir, Plenty of Time When We Get Home, describes their homecoming after McGough suffered physical and cognitive injuries in an IED explosion.

With Fearlessness And A 'Code Name,' Iraqi Helped Navy SEALs

Interpreter "Johnny Walker" accompanied the U.S. military on countless missions in his war-torn home country of Iraq. His memoir, Code Name: Johnny Walker, details his experiences with the SEALs and his family's long path to U.S. citizenship.

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