“Our lack of ability to position our argument in the public means science has not influenced public debate as it should.” So said Australian National University’s Vice-Chancellor Professor Ian Young at…
You may be home late if the entire universe is your test tube.
morgantj
THE STATE OF SCIENCE: How does science work? And how can we experiment on things that don’t fit in a lab? Dr Will Howard examines the many faces of the scientific method.
As adults, our understanding…
ASKAP sun up antennas
Swinburne Astronomy Productions/CSIRO
Newly-minted Nobel Laureate Professor Brian Schmidt reflects on the state of Australian science. The feted astronomer is optimistic about the future and the contribution science can make to improving lives…
Peter C. Doherty picks up his Nobel Prize for Medicine in 1996.
AFP
By the time someone gets to the stage of being considered seriously for a Nobel Prize in the sciences, it’s likely they will be very well known in their own research field; their particular discovery…
Shutting down research during National Science Week is a little jarring.
same indifference/Flickr
You really have to wonder what kind of message the New South Wales Government is trying to send about its attitude to science.
Was the announcement of funding cuts to research during Science Week just…
Spoilt for choice: neither Tony Abbott nor Julia Gillard are inspiring climate leaders.
AAP
Both Julia Gillard and Tony Abbott have staked their political futures on their climate policies. So perhaps they should also be asking what the hallmarks are of a climate leader?
The German political…
Australians want to learn more about science - it's more interesting than sport.
travelskerricks/Flickr
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…
Polar bears are at the centre of a scientific fracas in the US.
AAP
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…
Our weather systems are changing as the world warms.
Satoru Kikuchi/flickr
Speaking on the ABC, Professor Hans Joachim Schellnhuber, chief climate science advisor of the German Government, made a point even the least-informed should be able to understand.
“Our body temperature…
The BBC is finally at one with science on climate change.
BBC One Wales
On Wednesday the BBC Trust released their report “Review of impartiality and accuracy of the BBC’s coverage of science”. The report has resulted in the BBC deciding to reflect scientific consensus about…
Demanding climate data won't provide a new window into global warming.
nasa hq photo/flickr
When it comes to obtaining research data, Canadian academic Steve Easterbrook said it best:
“Any fool knows you don’t get data from a scientist by using FOI requests, you do it by stroking their ego a…
How we frame the climate change debate is important.
Modified image: HamishM/muffet/flickr
Mike Hulme of the University of East Anglia, the institution at the centre of “Climategate” and the focus of a recent data Freedom of Information request, responds to Clearing up the Climate Debate.
There…
Chubb: "You've got to be prepared to take the rough with the smooth."
AAP/Alan Porritt
Welcome to In Conversation, our series of discussions between leading academics and major public figures in Australian life.
In this, the second instalment, Rod Lamberts, deputy director of the Australian…
Christopher Monckton deliberately misleads the public on climate change.
AAP
CLEARING UP THE CLIMATE DEBATE: Associate Professor John Abraham puts Christopher Monckton’s climate claims to the test.
This summer, the people of Australia will yet again be treated to a circus tour…
When the rich are scared to talk, something's clearly going wrong.
Paul Miller/AAP
Iconic Aussie entrepreneur Dick Smith is feeling intimidated. Not by growing population pressures, nor by climate change or carbon prices, but by the bullies at News Limited.
In a recent interview, Smith…
Are carbon campaigns failing miserably on strategy?
jondoig/Flickr
By Will J Grant, Australian National University and Rod Lamberts, Australian National University
Braying climate naysayers are annoying; but so are all those well-intentioned carbon tax advocates who fail to address the core problems and make the same mistakes time and time again.
If we’re going…
Be honest: when's the last time you googled "science"?
teotwawki/Flickr
By Rod Lamberts, Australian National University and Will J Grant, Australian National University
Ask us what we mean by “science” and you’ll find us a little circumspect. In fact, we think the word “science” is close to useless.
This might seem odd, given we work at the Australian National Centre…
Anyone expecting undying gratitude from scientists should think again.
MacGeekGrl/Flickr
The post-budget political rhetoric to me reinforces the underlying, ongoing, disdain that this, and indeed many previous, governments have for science-related matters in Australia.
Minister Carr is reported…
Could artists and scientists be enjoying a more fruitful union?
Ben Stansall/AFP
When art and science come together, the relationship tends to be uneven, and too often art becomes the unintended junior partner.
As researchers working at the interface between art and science, we have…
Scientists need to do a better job of communicating with non-scientists.
Brewbooks/Flickr
Do scientists have a language problem? Do policy makers have hearing issues?
It would certainly seem so. Of late there have been frequent lamentations about scientists' failure to make their case to the…
Getting the results science needs might mean no more Dr Nice Guy
Ion Chibzii/Wikimedia Commons
By Rod Lamberts, Australian National University and Will J Grant, Australian National University
War has been declared, and those who recognise the fundamental role science plays in everyday life need to decide where they stand.
Building on the budgetary and rhetorical slights of recent months, rumours…
By Rod Lamberts, Australian National University and Will J Grant, Australian National University
Science has long had an uncomfortable relationship with Australian politicians. Indeed, throughout the decade of the Howard government, Australia’s scientists, researchers and higher education folks became…
Why is science so hard to communicate?
Andrew Huff/Flickr
Foundation Essay — Getting certain points across can be difficult. And yet democracies don’t function properly in the absence of broad, public discussion based on well-sourced information.
Especially…
