In one of the largest human genetic studies ever undertaken, scientists have identified the major common genetic variants that contribute to the cause of the devastating neurological disease, multiple…
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The hacking of BlackBerry’s official blog by the mysterious collective TeaMp0isoN raises serious questions. This black-hat hacking group, founded in 2009, has so far claimed responsibility for more than…
In the past week, many media outlets have reported the discovery of an antimatter “belt” circling the earth. A range of potential uses for this belt have already been floated – perhaps the most exciting…
Late last year, the media reported the surprising results of an ANU poll. Apparently Australians are “more interested in science than sport”! But the really interesting news was a small clarification in…
Most people believe normal, healthy sleep should be long and uninterrupted from start to finish. Well, guess what? They’re wrong. This erroneous public perception of sleep was apparent in survey studies…
Three days of rioting across London since Saturday have once again raised the question of “why?”. Do riots “just happen” or is there a science, an underlying formula, that can be employed to predict and…
As you’ll know by now, hacktivist group Anonymous has vandalised the home page of the Syrian Ministry of Defense, posting a message which started: “To the Syrian people: the world stands with you against…
If you’re in a room with 20 random blokes, it’s likely six or seven of them are worried about and unsatisfied with their ability to control their ejaculation during partnered sex. In other words, these…
Las Vegas has a long association with people on the fringe of society but even Hunter S. Thompson’s characters Raoul Duke and his drug-soaked Samoan lawyer would have found visitors to the DefCon hacker…
Participation in Australian society involves providing information about yourself to both public and private sector organisations. Such information may be sensitive, which raises important questions: Can…
Over the last couple of decades, the pharmaceutical industry has come under attack for its perceived shortcomings amid claims that it’s greedy, profiteering nature has caused significant harm. However…
As the world grapples with the competing imperatives of the tragic fallout from the Fukushima meltdown, and the urgent need to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, some are turning to new forms of nuclear…
Just how big are the stars? Earth feels quite big, what with it taking an entire day to fly between Sydney and London, and clearly the sun and moon are quite large in the sky. But with virtually everything…
Project: To develop better batteries for renewable energy Cost: Around $1.2 million per year (for a team of eight people across several disciplines) Timeframe: First generation technology within three…
It’s official: we have entered a brave new world. On Tuesday (US time), IT Security company McAfee announced the discovery of the most extensive hack-attacks ever seen, which the company referred to as…
As of today, we have a cataclysmic new explanation for one of solar system astronomy’s most long-standing questions: why do the near- and far-sides of the Moon look so different? This new theory, published…
Antibiotics cure many diseases, but also lead to resistant bacteria. The rise of computers, far from inaugurating the paperless office, increased office paper use. The unintended consequences of our actions…
The mobile patent wars, it seems, have reached Australian shores. On Monday, representatives of Apple and Samsung were in the Australian Federal Court, fighting it out over Samsung’s Galaxy Tab tablet…
Something does not add up. About two weeks ago, a scientist working for the US Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, Enforcement and Regulation (BOEMRE), Dr Charles Monnett, was placed on administrative leave…
Download the full interview with Dr Chamitoff as a podcast by clicking here. For the latest in our In Conversation series, Malcolm Walter, Professor of Astrobiology at the University of New South Wales…
What is pure mathematics? What do pure mathematicians do? Why is pure mathematics important? These are questions I’m often confronted with when people discover I do pure mathematics. I always manage to…
The phrase “The Cathedral and the Bazaar” was coined by American computer programmer Eric S. Raymond to distinguish two different approaches to the development of software. The Bazaar was likened to the…
Federal Defence Minister Stephen Smith has announced an inquiry into the reliability of Australia’s six Collins Class submarines. He also called for US assistance in building new submarines to replace…
There are three tensions in the field of academic publishing (1) who pays to publish research? (2) who decides what gets published? and (3) who takes any profits? In the traditional model, based on publishing…
Australia’s economic future lies underneath our feet. The island continent is blessed with a variety of natural resources but none as plentiful or important as iron ore. Iron is a common element in soils…