This Month
This hidden natural disaster is costing trillions
A study has found the economic burden of invasive species is 1646 per cent higher than previously recorded, with an average cost of $US53 billion a year.
Unis rake in record foreign student revenues ahead of crackdown
New figures reveal record highs in both the number of overseas students enrolled in 2024, as well as the cash flowing to some universities from tuition fees.
May
Australia’s homegrown rocket needs more than money and family wealth
If we want more Australian-built rockets, space technology, and sovereign capability, we need more than funding rounds and family wealth.
April
Trump crackdown forces academics to cancel US trips
University researchers are rewriting their travel plans over arrests and rejections at the US border.
March
DNA for sale as gene testing firm 23andMe goes bankrupt
The company, which provides medical and ancestry-related analysis, filed for chapter 11 after it was unable to find a buyer to rescue it from insolvency.
Trump administration cuts grants to 7 unis, PM urged to step up
The Trump administration has cut funding to seven Australian universities sparking fears further interference may put $600 million in joint research at risk.
Unis can walk away from Trump’s demands on research: Varghese
Australia’s former chief diplomat says Donald Trump has the right to impose conditions on research funding, but equally universities must decide what is acceptable.
Trump ideological vetting of local uni research a ‘slippery slope’
Australian researchers fear funding will be cut if their projects don’t comply with the Trump agenda.
Universities accuse Trump administration of foreign influence
Australian researchers who receive US federal government funding have been asked to confirm they comply with the president’s anti-DEI, America-first agenda.
Trump regime demands universities declare China, transgender links
Researchers who collaborate with US agencies have been asked to declare any links to China, communism and whether they comply with Trump transgender orders.
We may finally know why women age better than men
The biological clock of the female brain ticks a little slower than that of men’s.
Emma Johnston takes the reins at Melbourne Uni in a time of crisis
Melbourne University just got its first female vice chancellor, Emma Johnston, and her road ahead will not be plain sailing.
February
Australia should punt on bold, unproven ideas: Shergold
The Australian Research Council chairman says this country needs to get behind young researchers whose work takes greater risks but offers larger rewards.
$50m donation aims to foil ‘sneak thief of sight’
The University of Sydney has received its second major donation in just two weeks – this time to change the trajectory of 80 million glaucoma sufferers.
This vice chancellor stood on his head for students, literally
New boss of Western Sydney University, George Williams, is using his legal mind, and the odd stunt, to advocate for the battered tertiary education sector.
January
Move fast on AI boom, new chief scientist tells Labor
Professor Tony Haymet says Australia is perfectly positioned to ride the artificial intelligence boom, pledging to carefully monitory all new sources of energy.
Corpse flower ‘Putricia’ begins long-awaited stinky bloom
The giant foul-smelling flower began unfurling at Sydney’s Royal Botanic Garden for the first time in 15 years on Thursday.
Cancer rates among the young are increasing. Is food to blame?
Early onset cancer cases have increased by a staggering 79 per cent in the last 30 years, alarming figures show.
December 2024
Chief scientist Cathy Foley despairs for an impatient society
The federal government’s top scientific adviser, whose term finishes at Christmas, says Australia needs to rethink its approach to research and innovation.
Google announces quantum computing breakthrough. Should we be excited?
Google has built a quantum processor called “Willow” that can solve a problem in five minutes that regular supercomputers would take longer than the lifetime of the universe.