Menu Close

Science + Tech – Research and News

Displaying 151 - 175 of 394 articles

Ronan the sea lion was able to keep a musical beat, even when hearing a song for the first time. American Psychological Association

Dancing seal is first non-human mammal to keep a beat

US scientists have trained a seal to bob its head in time to music, in a study that the researchers say presents the first ever evidence that non-human mammals can keep a beat. It was previously thought…
The editorial board of the Journal of Library Administration is the latest group of journal editors to quit over open access issues. http://www.tandfonline.com/toc/wjla20/current

Journal editorial board quits over open access principle

The entire editorial board of a US academic journal has resigned in protest over restrictions that would require scholars to wait up to 18 months before making their published research more widely available…
It’s now safe to drop the ‘like’ from Higgs-like particle. http://www.flickr.com/photos/lightmash

Definitely, maybe: evidence grows for positive ID of Higgs boson

Physicists say they are now almost certain that the curious “Higgs-like particle” revealed last year at CERN is a Higgs boson. Data presented this week at the Rencontres de Moriond meeting in Italy – billed…
Nobel Laureate and ANU astronomer Brian Schmidt will teach one of ANU’s first open online courses. AAP/Alan Porritt

ANU joins MOOCs rush with edX partnership

ANU has become the first Australian member of Massive Open Online Course provider edX, with ANU professor and Nobel Laureate Brian Schmidt to teach one of ANU’s first online courses. edX is owned jointly…
Scientists need a material that behaves like moon soil to conduct experiments that may one day lead to lunar mining. http://www.flickr.com/photos/almekinders

Moon mining a step closer with new lunar soil simulant

Australian researchers have developed a substance that looks and behaves like soil from the moon’s surface and can be mixed with polymers to create ‘lunar concrete’, a finding that may help advance plans…
Mathematics enrolments are falling but demand for trained mathematicians is on the rise. http://www.flickr.com/photos/edbrambley

Q+A: Top maths adviser sounds alarm on mathematician shortage

Demand for trained mathematicians is growing but enrolment is maths courses is in steep decline. Failing to tackle the problem puts the country at risk of producing the scientists and engineers needed…
A bright flash over Russia’s Chelyabinsk region may have been a meteor. YouTube screenshot

Meteorite soars over Russia

A fireball has flown over Russia, delivering a sonic boom with enough force to shatter windows, amateur footage shows. The astronomical event comes just one day before a large asteroid is expected to pass…
Experts say early childhood experiences with maths are critical for uptake at later stages. Judy Baxter

Study finds more girls opting out of maths and science

Girls are losing ground in mathematics and science education in NSW, with the number of female students studying no maths for their HSC more than doubling in ten years, according to a new report from the…
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un would find it hard to give up the nuclear program, even if he wanted to, experts said. EPA/KCNA

North Korea nuclear test: the experts respond

North Korea is suspected of conducting their biggest nuclear weapon test yet, after a 4.9 magnitude seismic reading was recorded in an area that is not prone to earthquakes. The North Korean regime is…
In one of her last acts as Secretary of State Hillary Clinton threw her support behind a project that makes US text books available free to Arabic-speaking students. EPA/MICHAEL REYNOLDS

US backs push for open access text books in Arabic

The United States has backed a project that aims to translate American textbooks into Arabic and make them available without copyrights restrictions to educators and students in the Middle East. The Open…
Google has won a High Court case in which the ACCC alleged it engaged in misleading and deceptive conduct. AAP/John G. Mabanglo

Google triumph over ACCC seen as a loss for consumers

Google has triumphed in a High Court case with the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission, in what experts say is a setback for the competition regulator and a loss for consumers. The ACCC had…
Prime Minister Julia Gillard leaves a media conference with Nicola Roxon (left) and Senator Chris Evans in Canberra, Saturday, Feb. 2, 2013 Ms Roxon and Senator Evans have resigned their portfolios. AAP Image/Alan Porritt

Universities welcome Bowen to higher education role

Two senior ministers in the Gillard government resigned today, prompting an unexpected cabinet reshuffle just eight months out from the general election. Nicola Roxon resigned her role as Attorney-General…
Researchers hope DNA vaccines may one day be used to fight dengue fever, HIV and malaria. Sanofi Pasteur, http://www.flickr.com/photos/sanofi-pasteur

New painless patch may make DNA vaccines feasible

Researchers have created a pain-free DNA vaccine skin patch that tests on monkeys show is over 100 times more effective than a normal needle at kicking off the first step in getting a DNA vaccine to work…
Australian astronomer Professor Ken Freeman has won a major American astronomy prize. AAP

ANU professor awarded top American astronomy prize

Australian astronomer Professor Ken Freeman has been awarded the American Astronomical Society’s top prize. The prestigious Henry Norris Russell Lectureship was awarded to Professor Freeman for his work…
Student debt levels are at a record high, a Grattan Institute report has found. AAP Image/Paul Miller

Architect of student loan system unconcerned by record debt levels

The architect of Australia’s student loan system has poured cold water on a report highlighting record levels of student debt, saying he would not be surprised if a fifth of all student debt was never…
Armstrong described himself as a bully but said he did not force team mates to dope. AAP/Oprah.com

Lance Armstrong says he last doped in 2005

Seven-time Tour de France winner Lance Armstrong today admitted to US talk show host Oprah Winfrey that he used the performance-enhancing drug EPO, testosterone and blood transfusions during his career…
Black holes have been growing faster than previously thought, the new research found. Gabriel Perez Diaz

Scientists pinpoint missing mid-sized black holes

Australian researchers have redefined the relationship between galaxies and their black holes, showing that a widely-accepted method for calculating the mass of smaller black holes was wrong. The breakthrough…
The effect of solar forcing on climate change is ‘extremely small’, an IPCC scientist said today. https://theconversation.edu.au/theres-always-the-sun-solar-forcing-and-climate-change-1878

Solar forcing effect on climate change ‘extremely small’: IPCC scientist

Changes in solar radiation, known as solar forcing, have had only a very small effect on climate change, a member of the UN’s top panel of climate scientists said today. The comment, made by a member of…
The dingo appeared around the same time as new tool technology and Indian visitors, the researchers suggested. http://www.flickr.com/photos/ogwen

Study links ancient Indian visitors to Australia’s first dingoes

A new study of DNA has found that Indian people may have come to Australia around 4000 years ago, an event possibly linked to the first appearance of the dingo. Australia was first populated around 40,000…
Bushfires and smoke surround the Siding Spring Observatory in Warrumbungle National Park near Coonabarabran. AAP Image/NSW RFS

Homes burned but telescopes OK: bushfire at major observatory

Australia’s biggest astronomical observatory was burned in a bushfire near Coonabarabran in Western NSW overnight, threatening over $100 million worth of research infrastructure and the largest optical…
Verifying student identity, including during online tests, has always been a major stumbling block for Massive Open Online Courses. University of Maryland http://www.flickr.com/photos/umdnews

Online course host Coursera to ID students using typing style

Online course host Coursera will verify the identities of participating students using web cams and technology that can fingerprint an individual’s unique typing style under a pilot project announced this…
Prune fingers help us handle slippery objects more efficiently, suggesting that evolution, not osmosis, causes hands to wrinkle when wet. http://www.flickr.com/photos/nhanusek

How finger wrinkles help us handle slippery stuff

Wrinkly fingers help improve handling of slippery objects in wet conditions, a new study has found, suggesting that evolution may be behind the prune finger phenomenon. The study, conducted by scientists…