The body of evidence on the unhealthy effects of traffic pollution is now longer than a stretch limo. Our recent Queensland study found pregnant women exposed to greater levels of traffic pollution had…
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Australia has many world class universities but some are failing their students by not providing the on-campus, life changing experiences available elsewhere. Many students live a protected life at home…
Let’s be clear: the world’s animal resources are rapidly declining. Globally, more than 5,000 wildlife species are threatened with extinction. Some 25% are mammals, and 11% birds. Of the reptile, amphibian…
Let me begin by asking a question. Why is it when we think of Indigenous footballers we do so in a way that sets them apart? To put it simply, why do many of us think that there is an inherent genetic…
We are entering an era of massive population transfer - a rural exodus of unprecedented proportions. In Asia and Africa farmers and peasants are being lured to mega-cities. This brings myriad benefits…
Being overweight in childhood, adolescence or during adulthood has traditionally been thought to increase the long-term risk of diabetes, hypertension, cardiovascular events and some cancers as well as…
The Henry Review released in May last year provided the Commonwealth and state governments with a wealth of good ideas for reform, yet so far the political processes have failed to deliver reforms. Why…
As our physical understanding of climate change has become more and more robust, public debate has become progressively more disconnected from the scientific literature. It’s unsurprising, then, that Hans…
Unless you’ve been chained to a fax machine for the past seven years, you’ll have noticed that Facebook is immensely popular. Users numbered 641 million by February of this year. Making and maintaining…
Last night on the popular interactive current affairs program, Q&A, Kevin Rudd admitted that he isn’t perfect. Rudd told viewers and studio audience members that he was “wrong” to shelve the Emissions…
Australians expect paper-based elections to provide privacy, integrity and transparency. Why should we abandon these principles just because the election uses a magical device called a computer? The iVote…
News of a new bus route will most likely be greeted with indifferent silence, but lobbying for a new train line can keep thousands of potential commuters busy for years on end. It seems that everyone loves…
New laws in Victoria have introduced fines for childcare providers who send children to “time out” or a “naughty step”. So was the super nanny wrong? Is the “naughty corner” really that bad for a child’s…
Foundation Essay – Universities are still often known as ivory towers, other-worldly spaces of solitude where privileged elites known as academics seek refuge from the harsh realities of the world. Although…
On March 20, the day after NATO and US air and naval forces began the implementation of a no-fly zone over Libya authorized by UN Security Council Resolution 1973, Admiral Mike Mullen, Chairman of the…
In 1973, the American Broadcasting Company (ABC) first aired The Six Million Dollar Man, a made-for-television movie in which Steve Austin, an astronaut test-piloting a prototype aeroplane, experienced…
This year 17,000 Australians will be diagnosed with bowel cancer and every week 80 people will die from this disease. Meanwhile Australia’s National Bowel Cancer Screening Program (NBCSP) has run out of…
Before the Fukushima reactor was swamped by a tsunami, there had been a wave of enthusiasm for nuclear power. The problems in Japan have probably ended the risk of Australia going down the nuclear path…
Do-it-yourself bloggers, video diarists (vloggers), artists with their pixel-palettes of innumerable hues, sounds and images – the explosion of online content creation is one of the contemporary wonders…
If we talk of ‘two cultures’ today, it’s not the divide between arts and sciences that we should have in mind. The crucial issue is the gulf between commerce and higher education - especially between business…
If you’re the sort of person who relies on the internet every day, you’ll maybe have twitched slightly on hearing rumours that the world is running out of internet addresses. Is this true? Well, yes and…
The intense public interest in protective headgear following recent cases of high-profile AFL players sustaining concussion and other head or face injuries, is understandable. Unfortunately we have limited…
GREENHOUSE 2011 - People’s belief or scepticism when it comes to climate change may not be as important as we think. What matters is how we behave. A lot of fuss has been made about whether people believe…
My family has just come home from a barbeque, the second we’ve attended this weekend. That’s been quite a common occurrence for us in the last couple of months. Our house in Fairfield, a residential suburb…
There are two main fears about the possible implications for Australia in China’s latest five-year economic plan, but in reality, we have little to worry about. In fact, Australia has much to gain from…