This common garden plant summons wasps as bodyguards
Summary
Hosts Regina Barber and Hannah Chin, joined by Sasha Pfeiffer, discuss nature’s adaptations in this science roundup. They explore how bean plants summon wasps to fight caterpillars, how intermittent rewards accelerate learning in mice, and whether mosquitoes can learn to associate DEET with food. Despite lab findings suggesting mosquitoes might overcome DEET’s repellent effect, experts confirm it remains effective in the wild.
Topics discussed
Intro, sponsors, and episode overview on adaptation
Bean plants call wasps to fight caterpillars
Big rewards speed up learning in mice
Mosquitoes can learn to associate DEET with food
Outro, NPR app promo, and closing credits
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