Rae Ellen Bichell
Rae Ellen Bichell is a reporter for NPR's Science Desk. She first came to NPR in 2013 as a Kroc fellow and has since reported Web and radio stories on biomedical research, global health, and basic science. She won a 2016 Michael E. DeBakey Journalism Award from the Foundation for Biomedical Research. After graduating from Yale University, she spent two years in Helsinki, Finland, as a freelance reporter and Fulbright grantee.
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The ancient disease is still around — and killed a couple in Mongolia just this month. Here's a look at the history — and persistence — of the plague.
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How do we accurately forecast the amount of water that will be available any given year? It's not easy. But some Colorado scientists think they're onto a possible solution — inspired by Pokemon.
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Tendons quietly do their jobs for decades, connecting muscle to bone. Then suddenly — it's done. Here's what happens when a biceps tendon calls it quits.
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The biological effects of lifelong exposure to racism or other sorts of discrimination can be complicated, scientists say, but likely tap into the same mechanisms as other types of chronic stress.
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NASA plans to send people to the Red Planet in the 2030s. In the meantime, a remote location in southern Utah serves as a non-NASA training ground for the Mars-minded.
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The hairless, ground-dwelling, cold-blooded rodents have proven capable of surviving total oxygen deprivation. Their odd biology allows them to run on an alternative fuel.
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They're the Godzillas of the virus world, pushing the limit of what is considered alive. Researchers are trying to figure out where they came from. (And no, they aren't known to make people sick.)
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Researchers following a group of New Zealanders over the course of 40 years found an association between childhood lead exposure and declines in intelligence and socioeconomic status later in life.
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They don't have wings, but bacteria sure can fly. Researchers at MIT say that tiny bubbles trapped by raindrops play a part in launching bacteria on long-distance flights.
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Scientists say they've found the remains of tube- and string-like organisms in Canadian rocks that are at least 3.7 billion years old. But findings like these are always controversial.