Government departments often commission research to help them understand and respond to policy issues. But they impose contract conditions that threaten to undermine the integrity of the work.
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Many who suffer from anxiety tend to blame themselves for their “tricky” brains. Compassion-focused exercises can soothe horrible bouts of anxiety, as they did for me on a recent trip home from Bali.
Australia was spared the ignominy of having the Great Barrier Reef listed as officially in danger. But comments from member countries of the World Heritage Committee show the world is still worried about it.
Almost 1.3 million Australian taxpayers use negative gearing. But the policy is inherently unfair.
Around the world, waterbugs are the most widely-used indicator of environmental health and pollution of rivers, lakes and wetlands.
Astronomers can tell a whole lot more about a star or a galaxy if they break up the visible light in a rainbow of colours.
There needs to be less Indonesian government involvement in the live cattle trade, as with other commodities like grains.
Nigel Milsom has won the 2015 Archibald Prize for his portrait of barrister Charles Waterstreet. It’s clear the regime of the Archibald Prize is quickly, and positively, shifting.
The Wynne Prize has been notoriously male-dominated. What does this year’s winning artwork by Natasha Bieniek tell us about the nature of this particular award and how we can improve it?
Stephen Parker and Michelle Grattan discuss the behaviour of politicians, the effect of the news cycle, the parliament having only three terms and Bronwyn Bishop’s taxpayer-funded helicopter flight.
Leaders need to show followers they’re with them, but that’s no guarantee they will get everyone’s support.
‘El Chapo’s’ jailbreak seemingly confirms American narratives that represent Mexico as a corrupt, sluggish and failing state. Overlooked is America’s own role in the rise of powerful drug cartels.
Tony Abbott strode down the parliamentary press gallery corridor towards the welcome bank of cameras. A Labor options paper on carbon pricing had appeared in tabloids, under derogatory headlines.
If Reclaim Australia were rallying Muslims, the liberal media would examine its religious inspirations. Yet the media treat its supporters as disgruntled individuals rather than Christian representatives.
Labor says it hasn’t yet decided what climate policy to take to the next election, although this week’s leak has bolstered the idea that it will involve carbon pricing – a subject with a long and vexed history for the party.
The government has issued a draft direction to the Clean Energy Finance Corporation to invest in “emerging” clean energy such as bioenergy. But what are the prospects for bioenergy?
The existence of a “Planet X” in the outer solar system was the subject of great speculation, and was finally settled with the discovery of Pluto in 1930.
Genocide has occurred throughout history, from the very beginnings of the social organisation of human communities until the present. But working out what do about it is no easy task.
There is a schism between the symbolic and substantive sustainability efforts of our Big Four banks.
The syphilis outbreak in Central Australia is not about child abuse. But it highlights the urgent need for investment in sexual health services for Aboriginal Australians living in remote areas.
From Twinkle Twinkle to Space Odyssey and beyond, humans have always turned to music to help deal with the profoundly confronting enormity of the cosmos. Is that a match made in the heavens?
Scientists seek out drugs to cure what ails us but we now know that some common medications affect our moral capacity. Since it’s happening already, the question is, should we be worried?
Data from all over the globe suggest that bees are in decline, and we may lose a lot more than honey if bees are unable to cope with the changing climate and increasing demand for agricultural land.
Should animals be treated like other forms of property such as land, machinery and “stocks”? What role do animals that are owned by humans play in the concept of global wealth?
The rise and fall of the essential elements for life could have influenced the way life evolved over many millions of years.