Established in 1850, the University of Sydney was Australia’s first tertiary education institution. It is committed to maximising the potential of its students, teachers and researchers for the benefit of Australia and the wider world.
In questioning the fundamental nature of the universe, cosmology regularly grabs the public’s attention. But in an era in which we are observing deeper and more widely than ever before, our knowledge of…
For a policy the tobacco industry claims “won’t work” or that there “is no evidence” to support its implementation, plain packaging has elicited a deafening chorus of conflicting arguments as to why it…
Labor’s post-WorkChoices industrial relations regime has come under renewed scrutiny in the past week, following Fair Work Australia’s recognition that community sector workers were being underpaid due…
Under this proposal, anyone who wanted to buy a tobacco product would need to have a licence. This wouldn’t happen overnight – we would need to identify a starting point to the scheme, which might be five…
“To speak Chinese is not to know China,” our man in Beijing announced this week. “Many examples can be found of people who speak Mandarin to a high level but who do not understand how China works. They…
A new way for academics to survive the “publish or perish” imperative has emerged. The imperative itself is not new: commentators in the 1950s were already lamenting the growing pressure for academics…
Julia Gillard’s time as Prime Minister has been dogged by much personal scrutiny – of her dress, her partner, her hair and her speech. Julia’s ability as a negotiator is well known in the halls of power…
In a ceremony at London’s Frontline Club on Tuesday, May 10, before an array of television crews from around the world, WikiLeaks co-founder Julian Assange received the Sydney Peace Foundation’s gold medal…
The most serious environmental problems facing our planet require cooperative solutions. Ensuring the sustainability of the Murray-Darling river system requires the cooperation of several states. Preserving…
Having a “broken” or a “heavy” heart is a description often used by people who are feeling down or depressed. It turns out they’re not that far off the mark. People with depression are three to four times…
This might surprise you, but there may be literally thousands, or even tens of thousands, of devices and components surrounding you right now that work because of our understanding of quantum physics…
Osama bin Laden is dead - assassinated a fortnight ago by bullets sprayed from the guns of special armed forces of the United States. During the wild celebrations that followed, the word “assassination…
“When people get sick or injured or want advice about their health, they want to see a doctor,” Dr Andrew Pesce, AMA President. The statement by Dr Pesce implies that citizens know what they want and will…
When looking at the budget it’s useful to remember, in the cold light of day, that politics, at its most fundamental level, is about relationships of power. It is about conflict, both overt and covert…
Apart from the reassuring signals to financial markets about the deficit reduction, the longer term significance of this year’s budget is about restructuring the relationship between welfare and work…
We were chilled by the prospect of a radical weight-loss austerity budget, but it did not occur in health. While liposuction was applied to several programs – hearing services and general practice-based…
Federal Budget night has become widely held as the most crucial event in Australia’s political calendar. After all, any statement of how more than $300 billion is going to be raised and a similar amount…
Sydney in February displayed in full technicolor what is one of the big stories in Ireland - the latest phase of our history of being an emigrant race. As we walked around the city, stopped for coffee…
It’s well known that humans are living longer than ever before, thanks partially to developments such as sanitation and modern medicine. But will it ever be possible for humans to live forever? The late…
Junk food is one of the mainstays of food advertising to children, who form the key market for junk food advertisers. Some of the more concerning marketing tactics are the ones that play on children’s…