Last week, scientists announced the discovery of Kepler-186f, a planet 492 light years away in the Cygnus constellation. Kepler-186f is special because it marks the first planet almost exactly the same…
Too often in Australia we hear tragic stories of another young life cut short in a car accident and yet any attempts to dramatically reduce the death toll are not working. Young male drivers are our hardest…
In this episode of TCTV, water sanitation and hygiene engineer Dani Barrington explains the importance of toilets and community-led approaches to sanitation for one-third of the world’s population who…
In a move certain to raise the ire of users of Microsoft’s Windows operating system the software giant has announced that next month it will cease support for Windows 8.1. But that operating system is…
If you’re willing to rise early tomorrow morning then there’s the chance to see a meteor shower, known as the Lyrids, which may been responsible for a bright light seen recently over Russia. A dashcam…
Just one generation ago Australian schoolkids were taught that Aboriginal people couldn’t count beyond five, wandered the desert scavenging for food, had no civilisation, couldn’t navigate and peacefully…
All around the world many parents are preparing for Easter – possibly thinking of how Easter eggs will be hidden, how they will explain their delivery and perhaps bracing themselves for some challenging…
Telling science stories often involves explaining complex interactions between a cast of molecular “actors”, on a set smaller than the wavelength of light, so scientists are increasingly using animation…
The ongoing search for missing flight MH370 has shown how finding objects such as debris on the ocean is difficult, but finding them underwater in the deep ocean is much more challenging. As of Tuesday…
The ongoing search for missing flight MH370 has shown how finding objects such as debris on the ocean is difficult, but finding them underwater in the deep ocean is much more challenging. As of Tuesday…
AUSTRALIA 2025: How will science address the challenges of the future? In collaboration with Australia’s chief scientist Ian Chubb, we’re asking how each science discipline will contribute to Australia…
We still have so much to learn about Aboriginal history and culture.
We still have so much to learn about Aboriginal history and culture.
Shutterstock/John Austin
Just one generation ago Australian schoolkids were taught that Aboriginal people couldn’t count beyond five, wandered the desert scavenging for food, had no civilisation, couldn’t navigate and peacefully…
The explosive eruption of Sarychev Volcano, on Russia’s Kuril Islands, northeast of Japan, seen from the International Space Station.
The explosive eruption of Sarychev Volcano, on Russia’s Kuril Islands, northeast of Japan, seen from the International Space Station.
Flickr/NASA Goddard
You can learn a lot about volcanoes by studying explosions. The more we can learn about their explosive behaviour, the more chance we have of saving lives when they suddenly erupt. There are many volcanoes…
Look into the future … what do you see for CSIRO, should its funding be reduced?
Look into the future … what do you see for CSIRO, should its funding be reduced?
griraffes/Flickr
The Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO), Australia’s national science agency, is said to be preparing for cuts of up to 20% of government funding – that’s around A$150…
Frustrated by battery drain? A new superfast charger is still a couple of years off … but it’ll be more environmentally friendly than the toxic batteries we use today.
Frustrated by battery drain? A new superfast charger is still a couple of years off … but it’ll be more environmentally friendly than the toxic batteries we use today.
rpavich/Flickr
If you’re one of the thousands of smartphone users experiencing battery drain, you’d have been pleased to read that Tel Aviv-based start-up StoreDot recently unveiled a prototype charger that fully charges…
The European Court of Justice has given data retention the thumbs down … but it’s still on the table Down Under.
The European Court of Justice has given data retention the thumbs down … but it’s still on the table Down Under.
B Rosen/Flickr
There has been plenty of technology-related legal activity in the European Union this month. Last week the Court of Justice of the EU (CJEU) ruled that data retention regulations, as they currently stand…
Does Heartbleed expose flaws in the way some security-critical software is developed?
Does Heartbleed expose flaws in the way some security-critical software is developed?
Flickr/Kaleenxian
The Heartbleed bug that’s potentially exposed the personal and financial data of millions of people stored online has also exposed a hole in the way some security software is developed and used. The bug…
Male orb-web spiders are dwarfed by their female counterparts, but they can maximise success if they don’t mate indiscriminately.
Male orb-web spiders are dwarfed by their female counterparts, but they can maximise success if they don’t mate indiscriminately.
Brian Gratwicke/Flickr
Males will mate with anything. Well, that is the general view, one that exists because of a simple biological underpinning: females are reproductively limited by costly gestation, while males are only…
By Will J Grant, Australian National University and Luke Menzies, Australian National University
No matter how strong the scientific argument and consensus among scientists there will always be people who reject the evidence. It happens on so many scientific topics, from climate change and vaccination…
According to a US court, ‘free speech’ means internet search engines can choose what they allow to show up and filter out.
According to a US court, ‘free speech’ means internet search engines can choose what they allow to show up and filter out.
Brian J. Matis/Flickr
By Suzannah Wood, Queensland University of Technology and Nicolas Suzor, Queensland University of Technology
China’s biggest search engine has a constitutional right to filter its search results, a US court found last month. But that’s just the start of the story. Eight New York-based pro-democracy activists…
Black or red (or zero), the odds stay the same regardless of previous spins.
Black or red (or zero), the odds stay the same regardless of previous spins.
Mark Seton/Flickr (cropped)
Imagine yourself, a picture of sartorial elegance and sipping champagne from a crystal flute, in Le Grande Casino at Monte Carlo. It is a Monday night – in fact, the date is August 18, 1913 – and you are…
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