Cinema did not emerge from a eureka moment, but rather through the incremental innovations of pioneers such as the Lumière brothers, Étienne-Jules Marey and Thomas Edison. So it is unsurprising that filmmakers…
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Science + Tech – Articles, Analysis, Comment
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It is the received wisdom that nuclear weapons and nuclear power are inseparable. Consequently, any country that builds a civilian nuclear power station is able to build an atomic bomb within a couple…
You can cram a lot of knowledge into 12 months. Since this time last year we’ve learnt that bees, like people, have a “too-hard basket”; how dinosaur necks got so long; that, in theory, it’s possible to…
Breaking up is hard to do, especially with social media. But thousands of people are doing just that, and with the new year and its inevitable resolutions just around the corner, it might be a good time…
How many of your cherished memories, and even important work documents, only exist online? Taken together, photo and video sharing sites, blogging and microblogging sites, as well as social media, have…
Schizophrenia, depression, bipolar disorder and autism have all had recent attention for being “genetically caused”. In scientific research being genetically caused usually corresponds to having a high…
Although simple to make, the triangle hides many, many surprising patterns.
The digital age has presented many and diverse challenges for copyright law. The rapid uptake of digital, networked technologies led to widespread online distribution of content, as well as the emergence…
The warmth on your face, the scenic view outside – such delights are delivered to you by countless photons from the sun. But believe it or not, these photons move in much the same way as an inebriated…
On March 12 2014, the way Australian organisations will have to handle online privacy is going to change significantly. We investigated whether these organisations are ready and found in most cases, they’re…
It’s been a crazy year for decision making. Not only did we have an election, we now have the threat of a double dissolution if the Federal Senate keeps knocking back bills from the House of Representatives…
Speech is the one of the most important forms of communication between humans. The internet has opened doors for us to communicate with people across the globe – but the technology often leads to misunderstanding…
Your team is decimated. You’re surrounded by zombies. And they’re closing in. Normally, you lean forward, turn off your console, step away and play again once you’ve had the opportunity to regroup. But…
Russia’s Vostok station in Antarctica must be one of the scariest places on Earth. Temperatures regularly drop below -80C, and there is no way in or out for nine months of the year. The inhabitants become…
The cryptocurrency Bitcoin has been in the news lately with a sudden surge in value followed by a spectacular crash – not to mention the unfortunate tale of US$4 million in Bitcoin on a hard drive that…
If you live in the southern hemisphere, you now can safely view the aftermath of a nuclear explosion from the comfort of your own backyard. Just last week a new “star”, Nova Centauri 2013, was discovered…
Most of us have never heard of Ctenophores, or comb jellies, but this is about to change. In a publication out today in Science, a team of researchers in the computational genomics unit at the National…
The publishing giant Elsevier owns much of the world’s academic knowledge, in the form of article copyright. In the past few weeks it has stepped up enforcement of its property rights, issuing “take-down…
Australians are busy at work. We report very high levels of intensive working compared to other industrialised countries. And while it’s difficult to fully disconnect from work as we head home for the…
An independent review of an Australian federal government science communication initiative – made public in November – found that educational and information materials lacked balance and fairness, and…
How long has Earth’s atmosphere included oxygen? A recent paper suggests low levels of oxygen appeared in the atmosphere approximately 2.95 billion years ago. That’s about 550 million years earlier than…
Christmas is fast approaching, and this year is set to be the biggest ever for online shopping. Hundreds of millions of dollars will be spent by Australians alone. And every year, the flurry of online…
With each passing year, technology percolates further into academic life. The year 2013 might look, in hindsight, like the year academic social media use went mainstream. Numbers of tweets and Facebook…
Although I’m a futurist, I have absolutely no idea what information and communications technology will look like in 50 years time. I do know that some of it will be familiar because once we find a usable…
On the weekend, a tank of radioactive material leaked from the closed Ranger uranium mine in the Northern Territory. While this has prompted concerns about the health of the surrounding Kakadu National…