This week marked the first anniversary of the 15-M movement, a precursor of Occupy movements worldwide.
15-M again mobilised its supporters for a 4-day long program of street protests culminating in a…
Radio National’s Background Briefing this Sunday is about the struggle of residents of a western suburb in Adelaide who are trying to stop a McDonalds restaurant being built within 200 metres of a primary…
Late tomorrow evening (AEST), all going well, a Falcon 9 rocket will lift-off from Cape Canaveral, Florida. A few days after launch the craft will rendezvous in low-Earth orbit with the International Space…
The trial of former Bosnian Serb Army (VRS) Colonel General, Ratko Mladić commenced in the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY) this past Wednesday.
Mladić’s arrest at his…
Anti-cholesterol drug Lipitor® (atorvastatin) has been estimated to generate Pfizer revenues of more than $130bn worldwide. Australian taxpayers' share of this is about $7bn, through subsidies from the…
Each year the budget is like an annual health check on a patient with many complexities. In a black coat, not a white one, the august Treasurer reports the nation’s temperature, provides much-needed tonics…
A small but vocal group is calling on parents to withdraw their children from the National Assessment Program: Literacy and Numeracy (NAPLAN) tests.
But if this call is successful and enough children…
We feel we have to set the record straight after some of our (Bradshaw’s) comments were taken grossly out of context, or not considered at all (Ritchie’s). A bubbling kerfuffle in the media over the last…
Recent media and expert commentary has called for more research into brain injuries sustained by footballers. The focus has been on the need for a long-term study of the effects of concussion and chronic…
In the last few years, several laboratory studies have shown that, to some extent, we can tell whether someone is gay or straight, just by glimpsing their face.
When asked to categorise male and female…
It’s been known for some time that antiretroviral medicines could have a role in preventing HIV as well as treating it. Now, the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved the use of an antiretroviral…
The ACTU released the report Lives on hold: unlocking the potential of Australia’s workforce summing up the findings of its six month inquiry into insecure employment chaired by Brian Howe at its Congress…
The worldwide online activist group Avaaz, which claims over 14 million members and operations in 193 countries, has this week launched an Australian campaign against Lachlan Murdoch.
The group has written…
The Conversation is an independent source of analysis, commentary and news from the university and research sector viewed by 350,000 readers each month. Our team of professional editors work with more than 2,600 academic authors from 180 institutions.
Serious, interconnected risks are closing in on the globalised community, from climate change to anarchy. Are we heeding the warnings?
AAP/EPA/Daniel Deme
In that world of peripheral vision, essential for business, social and political leaders, it is surprising that the World Economic Forum’s report, Global Risks 2012 has not received greater publicity or…
Infants too young to receive the whooping cough vaccine are at greatest risk.
flickr/rifqy
Recent news reports say the free whooping cough vaccine for parents to protect newborns will be discontinued because it is not effective. Parents who’ve been told this is an important step to protect their…
Sydney protesters rally for marriage equality (March 2012).
A group of 150 doctors, called Doctors for the Family, have made a submission to the Senate inquiry into gay marriage which argues that children of same-sex parents suffer poorer health and well-being…
Is aversion and/or attraction to red a biological or cultural construct?
Yogurinha Borova
Colour is an extraordinary motivator. We sensibly caution against waving a red rag to a bull to avoid provocation – worthy but curious advice, since bulls cannot distinguish red from other colours.
We…
Vitamin C is so often suggested as a treatment for the common cold that it’s almost considered common sense. This well-known vitamin is primarily found in fruits and vegetables, with small quantities in…
Learning an Asian language will change how you think about the world.
no_typographic_man
AUSTRALIA IN THE ASIAN CENTURY – A series examining Australia’s role in the rapidly transforming Asian region. Delivered in partnership with the Australian government.
Today, Dr Yuko Kinoshita looks at…
Society as we know it may depend on lies more than we realise.
ireland :)
Recent research in residential aged care by Anthony Tuckett from the University of Queensland has illustrated that, in some instances, lying is not only necessary, it’s actually virtuous. It is a complex…
World Health Organisation data suggests less than 10% of the world's transplantation need is currently met.
AAP
Facebook has introduced a new tool allowing users in Australia to display their organ donation status to their friends, following the introduction of the initiative in the United States and the United…
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