Review of four methods for generating Australian carbon credits units
Science policy report, October 2022.
Should I get a COVID-19 vaccine? How to weigh up your risks and benefits
Understanding both the risks and benefits of vaccination (and how we think about risk) can help you make the right decision for you or your family about having a COVID-19 vaccine.
What we know about the AstraZeneca vaccine and blood clots
What we know so far about the science behind blood clotting, our understanding of how it might be connected to the AstraZeneca vaccine, and how scientists and health authorities are investigating the risks.
Vaccine safety and effectiveness: how is it tested?
How scientists and health authorities keep a close eye on the safety and effectiveness of vaccines, including after those vaccines are rolled out to the public.
Getting a bird's eye view
Humans are not the only ones who enjoy optical illusions. Great bowerbirds make forced perspective illusions, too.
Pluto’s planetary predicament
Poor old Pluto never asked for all this drama, yet it has found itself at the centre of a storm of controversy ever since it was demoted from a ‘planet’ to a ‘dwarf planet’ back in 2006.
Saving big cats with VR and clever stats
Conservation relies on data—lots of data. So how do you protect a species that’s difficult to count, living in an environment that’s difficult to access?
AI and the robotics revolution
Machines that can learn, make decisions and automate tasks are already part of our lives—the big question is, how do we make sure they’re helping society, rather than harming us?
Zap! How to make a REALLY intense laser beam
The powerful lasers researchers were trying to build had a nasty habit of damaging the machinery being used to generate them. Then a new way to make lasers changed everything.
Tools of light: laser tweezers
Lasers can be some of the most delicate tools in a science laboratory, capable of holding tiny microorganisms without killing them.
Mining the Moon
Space mining. It’s the stuff of science fiction for now, but it could be a real possibility very soon—and our very own Moon could be a prime target.
Using viruses to make new medicines
Two biochemists found ways to use nature’s evolutionary processes to make new proteins. Those methods led to the development of new medicinal treatments, all thanks to something called ‘phage display’.
Enzyme engineering with evolution
We’ve been able to harness the power of evolution to create biochemical tools that can build better medicines and cleaner fuels.
How (and why) to unboil an egg
Have you ever boiled an egg and wished you hadn’t? Thankfully, science is here to help. All you need is a handy invention called the Vortex Fluidic Device.
All about wombat scat
There’s one animal with seemingly physics-defying faeces: the wombat.
The link between cats, your brain and your behaviour
If you’ve ever owned a cat—or been in contact with undercooked meat, or unwashed vegetables—you may be carrying a parasite called Toxoplasma gondii.