Baby Talk

We tend to see depression as an illness to eliminate, evidence that something has gone wrong in the brain. But what if low mood serves a purpose? Psychologist Jonathan Rottenberg examines the evolutionary roots of depression and reflects on his own painful experience with suicida ...  Show more

Disgust is a strong emotion, one designed by evolution to protect us from danger and diseases. But disgust also spills into other areas of our lives, influencing our morals, our intuitions about right and wrong, even our politics. We talk with psychologist David Pizarro about how ...  Show more

In which we metaphorically enter the UCLA Language Acquisistion Lab's recording castle, guided by linguistics researcher Dr. Megha Sundara. NPR science correspondent Sydney Lupkin temporarily takes over the host chair to talk to Sundara about all things baby babble. Along the way ...  Show more

Why are babies small and grownups big? Why are babies so helpless, instead of little versions of adults? Do babies know they're babies? How do babies grow? How do babies learn to talk?

Kids have been sending us lots of questions about babies! This week we're learning m ...

The language of babies may be mysterious, but the customs of parenthood are universal. Granted, the open crotch pants of babies in China save on diaper changes, but all parents run the gauntlet of feedings, sleepless nights and the task of coming up with creative inducements t ...

L'homme qui parlait à l'oreille des bébés animaux. Ou plutôt de leurs parents. Car c'est en associant des enregistrements de cris de détresse, ou d'autres sons émis par des petits, à la réaction d'animaux adultes, que le bioacousticien Nicolas Mathevon et son équipe sont parvenus ...  Show more