• Society

    7.8 billion is the loneliest number


    Alan Stevenson |  January 28, 2020


    There are more people on Earth than ever before, most of us living in teeming cities. Yet, despite the devices which theoretically connect us to everyone else, loneliness is a growing problem. The answer lies with us.


  • Defence

    Caught between the sword and shield


    Sam Fairall-Lee |  January 28, 2020


    For the last 50 years, Australian defence policy has wavered between the sword and shield, but as the strategic environment changes, we may have to choose between them once and for all.


  • Health

    First, do no harm


    Open Forum |  January 28, 2020


    Australians are increasingly being diagnosed with cancers that will do them no harm if left undetected or untreated, exposing them to unnecessary surgeries and chemotherapy.


Latest Story

  • The myths of Australia’s role in East Timorese independence

    John McCarthy     |      January 20, 2020

    Twenty years after the ballot in which the East Timorese decided their future, it’s time to reflect on Australia’s East Timor legend.

  • Under the telescope

    Clare Kenyon     |      January 19, 2020

    The 2020s will see the use of increasingly complex technology on Earth and in space to ramp up our understanding of the Universe.

  • The fires demand a strategic response to climate change

    Michael Thomas     |      January 19, 2020

    The bushfires which swept across Eastern Australia offered a glimpse of a dystopian future and demand a strategic response from the Federal government.

  • Using maths against the bushfires

    Adam Phelan     |      January 19, 2020

    UNSW Canberra extreme bushfire researcher and mathematical scientist, Professor Jason Sharples, has dedicated his career to understanding the complex behaviour of bushfires.

  • Arvanitakis on American Politics: This week’s controversies, chaos and why Trump keeps his base

    James Arvanitakis     |      January 18, 2020

    This week’s events in the United States once again highlight how the Trump Administration continues to move from chaos to controversy (and back).

  • Out of the ashes

    Open Forum     |      January 18, 2020

    Rather than an untidy mess, fire-damaged trees and half burnt logs left behind by a fire are valuable habitat for recovering wildlife, according to a group of leading Australian environmental scientists.

  • BlackRock is the canary in the coalmine

    John Quiggin     |      January 18, 2020

    The government’s case for doing nothing about climate change has been the “economy-wrecking” costs of serious action, but as investments associated with coal become toxic, inaction will cause even greater economic harm.

  • Do we need a bushfire royal commission?

    Paul Barnes     |      January 17, 2020

    The prime minister has announced that the cabinet will consider a royal commission into aspects of the ongoing fire disaster once the bushfires are under control, so how might this be organised to ensure it produces results?

  • Time out for TikTok

    Fergus Ryan     |      January 17, 2020

    The news that Chinese-owned video-sharing app TikTok is not approved for use on devices owned by Australia’s Department of Defence should come as no surprise.

  • UniSA expert calls for ‘fire-line’ to future-proof against bushfire disaster

    Open Forum     |      January 17, 2020

    UniSA sustainability expert, Dr Sukhbir Sandhu, is calling for Australia to consider drawing a bushfire demarcation line to identify high-risk areas unsuitable for human habitation.

  • How bad is breathing bushfire smoke?

    Robyn Langham     |      January 16, 2020

    Once the smoke clears, and the immediate issues of infrastructure, jobs and lives are being rebuilt – there will be ongoing questions about the health impacts of urban populations breathing air heavy with bushfire smoke for weeks on end.

  • Appealing to duty may encourage organ donation

    Open Forum     |      January 16, 2020

    The shortage of blood and organ donors could be eased by appealing to people’s sense of duty to others, rather than advertising ‘the gift of life’ according to QUT researchers.