Murdoch University on The Conversation

We don’t know if Lyme disease bacteria exists in Australia but we know people are getting sick. from www.shutterstock.com.au

December 2, 2016

Inquiry into Lyme-like illness calls for more research and better treatment

Charlotte Oskam, Murdoch University; Peter Irwin, Murdoch University, and Una Ryan, Murdoch University

In Australia, only three infectious diseases are known to be transmitted from ticks to humans: Queensland tick typhus; Flinders Island Spotted Fever; and Q fever.

Many people detained on Nauru and Manus Island have suffered excruciating despair and hopelessness. AAP/Mick Tsikas

December 1, 2016

Hope, certainty and trust: issues abound in US refugee resettlement deal

Mary Anne Kenny, Murdoch University and Nicholas Procter, University of South Australia

There must be genuine efforts to ensure transition from uncertainty to permanent status for refugees currently detained offshore as soon as possible.

Ship strikes can be deadly, as shown by this blue whale off the US northwest. Craig Hayslip/Oregon State Univ./Flickr/Wikimedia Commons

November 30, 2016

As Australian shipping grows, how can we avoid collisions with marine animals?

David Peel, CSIRO and Joshua Smith, Murdoch University

Ships in Australian waters are getting bigger and more numerous all the time. We need a plan to help them avoid crashing into whales and other large sea creatures.

Recent improvements in medical management of HIV infection are not well understood in the legal sector. www.shutterstock.com

November 7, 2016

Australian law needs a refresher on the science of HIV transmission

Mark Boyd, University of Adelaide; Andrew Grulich, UNSW Sydney; David Cooper, UNSW Sydney; David Nolan, Murdoch University; Levinia Crooks, La Trobe University; Michelle Giles, Monash University; Sharon Lewin, The Peter Doherty Institute for Infection and Immunity, and Trent Yarwood, The University of Queensland

HIV diagnosis is devastating for patients and their families. But the infection is no longer a death sentence, and should not be prosecuted as such say experts.

QUT student Calum Thwaites arrives at the Federal Court in Brisbane. AAP/Dan Peled

November 6, 2016

QUT discrimination case exposes Human Rights Commission failings

Joshua Forrester, Murdoch University; Augusto Zimmermann, Murdoch University, and Lorraine Finlay, Murdoch University

The QUT students case was a litmus case for 18C- and it highlighted its serious flaws.

Seagrass meadows are often overlooked by the public but vital to the ocean ecosystem. Ben Jones

October 10, 2016

Seagrass is a marine powerhouse, so why isn’t it on the world’s conservation agenda?

Richard K.F. Unsworth, Swansea University; Jessie Jarvis, University of North Carolina Wilmington; Len McKenzie, James Cook University, and Mike van Keulen, Murdoch University

Seagrass is more than just a bit of sea greenery.

There is little regulation about how private schools spend public funding. from www.shutterstock.com

October 3, 2016

Yes, some Australian private schools are overfunded – here’s why

Laura Perry, Murdoch University and Emma Rowe, Deakin University

Australia’s school funding model provides high levels of public funding to private schools, while also allowing them to charge fees.

Health Insurers should be offering insurance that covers primary care, Paolucci argues. www.shutterstock.com

September 28, 2016

Business Briefing: treat the cause not the symptoms of problems with private health insurance

Jenni Henderson, The Conversation

Business Briefing: treat the cause not the symptoms of problems with private health insurance The Conversation10.5 MB (download)

If customers are questioning the value of private health insurance its because of the way the system is distorted by government incentives.

The Australian Tax Office has found that nearly 14% of Australian farmland is held by foreign investors. AAP Image/Dan Peled

September 21, 2016

FactCheck: Is 30% of Northern Territory farmland and 22% of Tasmanian farmland foreign-owned?

Erin Smith, University of the Sunshine Coast and Bill Pritchard, University of Sydney

Katter’s Australian Party federal MP Bob Katter said 30% of the Northern Territory’s farmland and 22% of Tasmania’s farmland is foreign-owned. Is that true?

Reports often conceal the inflated capital funding that schools receive for things like play areas, swimming pools and gymnasiums. from www.shutterstock.com

September 14, 2016

Yes, education funding has increased – but not everyone benefits

Emma Rowe, Deakin University and Laura Perry, Murdoch University

The claim that school spending has increased is misleading and simplistic.

Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull says China has more freedom to invest in Australia than almost any other country. Wang Zhao/EPA/AAP

September 8, 2016

Viewpoints: do foreigners have more freedom to invest in Australia than in almost any other country?

Jeffrey Wilson, Murdoch University and Gennadi Kazakevitch, Monash University

Evidence suggests our foreign investment policy has changed over time, but to what end?

Australia has one of the highest rates of pet ownership in the world and increasingly, we’re monitoring our pets’ behaviour. Shutterstock

September 4, 2016

Careful surveillance and pet wearables: at home with animals

Larissa Hjorth, RMIT University; Ingrid Richardson, Murdoch University, and William Balmford, RMIT University

Australians are keen pet owners and increasingly, we’re monitoring the behaviour of our domestic animals. Webcams, GPS tracking, dogs joining Skype calls … pets are becoming entangled with technology in myriad ways.

The HI-SEAS mission gives people a chance to practise on Earth what life would be like on Mars. A crew member here from the 2015 mission. Flickr/University of Hawaii/HI-SEAS

September 1, 2016

Human trials on Earth are the key to how we will survive on Mars

Graham Mann, Murdoch University

What’s the best way to find out how people will cope with the journey to Mars and life on another planet? Lock a test crew up for a year in a simulation right here on Earth.

Cory Bernardi is set to introduce a private member’s bill to reform Section 18C of the Racial Discrimination Act. AAP/Paul Miller

August 31, 2016

Section 18C is too broad and too vague, and should be repealed

Lorraine Finlay, Murdoch University; Augusto Zimmermann, Murdoch University, and Joshua Forrester, Murdoch University

The Constitution’s external affairs power does not support Section 18C. And the section also impermissibly infringes the implied freedom of political communication.

Faced with the moral conservatism of many Pentecostal-Charismatic congregations, LGBT Christians who stay may live closeted lives. Shutterstock

August 30, 2016

‘Welcoming, but not affirming’: being gay and Christian

Mark Jennings, Murdoch University

New research has found that LGBT Christians and pastors alike must grapple with difficult spiritual questions.

Australia already has many plants that can cope with harsh conditions. Shutterstock/Tero Hakala

August 19, 2016

To future-proof our crops from drought, look to the Australian deserts

Steve Wylie, Murdoch University

Australia’s deserts can be a harsh environment but plant life still survives there. So why not use them to develop the next generation of drought-resistant crops?

A screenshot from Counter Strike: Global Offensive. The Conversation

August 4, 2016

Games and gambling: Xenophon’s ill-judged counter strike

Larissa Hjorth, RMIT University; Ingrid Richardson, Murdoch University, and William Balmford, RMIT University

Nick Xenophon wants to crack down on first-person shooter games, which he claims are a form of gambling. But his stance oversimplifies the way these games are played.

There’s little justification for a blanket ban; all Russian Olympic athletes did not collectively commit a wrong. EPA/YURI KOCHETKOV

August 1, 2016

Russian doping scandal: should other countries pull out of the Olympics?

Anne Schwenkenbecher, Murdoch University

The IOC will allow Russian athletes to compete in Rio 2016 if they’ve been cleared by their respective international sporting federation of doping. Should other countries pull out of the games?

Pauline Hanson’s One Nation Party is seen as the favourite to secure the final WA Senate position. AAP/Lukas Coch

July 13, 2016

Have Western Australians elected an ineligible One Nation Senate candidate?

Lorraine Finlay, Murdoch University

One Nation candidate Rod Culleton could win Western Australia’s final Senate position, but Section 44 of the Constitution suggests he is ineligible to take his seat.

Three more years for Malcolm Turnbull and the Coalition. AAP/David Moir

July 10, 2016

Election 2016: what will a re-elected Coalition government mean for key policy areas?

Jeff Borland, The University of Melbourne; Ben Spies-Butcher, Macquarie University; Deborah Ralston, Monash University; Diana Perche, Macquarie University; Emmaline Bexley, The University of Melbourne; Glenn C Savage, The University of Melbourne; Helen Dickinson, The University of Melbourne; Jago Dodson, RMIT University; Jim Gillespie, University of Sydney; Joanna Mendelssohn, UNSW Sydney; John Wanna, Australian National University; Mary Anne Kenny, Murdoch University; Merlin Crossley, UNSW Sydney; Nicole Gurran, University of Sydney; Robyn Eckersley, The University of Melbourne; Susan Irvine, Queensland University of Technology, and Thas Ampalavanapillai Nirmalathas, The University of Melbourne

What’s in store for key policy areas, from health to education to infrastructure to asylum seekers, under a returned Coalition government?

Murdoch University

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