Invasive grasses are worsening bushfires across Australia"s drylands
As the semi-arid Pilliga Scrub burns in New South Wales, many of us are thinking about fire once again. It's an El Niño summer in the hottest year on record. And there's a remarkable amount of grass drying out and ready to burn......»»
Grasses in the fog: Plants support life in the desert
Researchers from the Senckenberg Center for Human Evolution and Paleoenvironment (SHEP) at the University of Tübingen and the Senckenberg Natural History Museum in Görlitz have studied the role of the desert grass Stipagrostis sabulicola in the Afr.....»»
Rare footage reveals intimate family lives of blue whales
The intimate family lives of blue whales, including a blue whale nursing its calf underwater, has been revealed in extraordinary footage captured in a project led by an international marine ecologist from Charles Darwin University (CDU) and Australia.....»»
Out in the cold: Enhancing frost tolerance in wheat
Rugging up against winter chills is a cozy and easy option for most of us. But our crops are facing frosts and freezing temperatures without the warmth of winter woolies. Frost poses a significant threat to agriculture, particularly in Australia's wh.....»»
Vision Pro pre-orders open today in five more countries
Vision Pro pre-orders open today in five more countries, just as the first customers in China, Hong Kong, Japan, and Singapore take delivery of theirs. Customers in Australia, Canada, France, Germany, and the UK will be able to pre-order the spati.....»»
In Belgian farmland, "Saving Bambi" one dawn mission at a time
Cedric Petit's drone hummed above a Belgian field. He spotted a white dot on the control screen: a tiny fawn nestled in the tall grasses—soon to be rescued from a grisly end......»»
Unveiling sea country management monitoring trends in Australia
AIMS scientists have partnered with Indigenous communities in the remote Kimberley region of Australia's northwest to monitor culturally important fish populations on coral reefs and incorporate the variability in data to better inform sea country ma.....»»
Research confirms fraudulent Kakadu plum extracts circulating online and in international marketplace
To coincide with Australia's National Reconciliation Week, ANSTO is sharing research published recently in the journal Food Control that confirms fraudulent Kakadu plum extracts are in circulation online and in the international marketplace. Kakadu.....»»
Sleight of hand: Australia"s Net Zero target is being lost in accounting tricks, offsets and more gas
In announcing Australia's support for fossil gas all the way to 2050 and beyond, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has pushed his government's commitment to net zero even further out of reach......»»
Drones offer new perspective on vulnerable tide-exposed coral reefs
A new study has used drone technology and cutting-edge analytical methods for the first time to map the intertidal coral reefs of the Rowley Shoals off the Kimberley coast of Western Australia......»»
What does AI mean for Australian democracy? And what can we do about it?
Last week, the head of Australia's election regulator warned the organization "does not possess the legislative tools or internal technical capability to deter, detect or adequately deal with false AI-generated content concerning the election process.....»»
Neuralink rival sets brain-chip record with 4,096 electrodes on human brain
Precision expects its minimally invasive brain implant to hit the market next year. Enlarge / Each of Precision's microelectrode arrays comprises 1,024 electrodes ranging in diameter from 50 to 380 microns, connected to a customi.....»»
Study finds fewer invasive alien species on lands of Indigenous Peoples
The introduction of animal and plant species into new regions by humans is increasing rapidly worldwide. Some of these alien species, such as the gray squirrel, have a far-reaching impact on nature as they displace native species......»»
Changing native vegetation laws to allow burning on private land is good fire management, say Australian researchers
Bushfires cause catastrophic biodiversity loss across Australia. In the Black Summer of 2019–20 alone, 103,400 square kilometers of habitat went up in flames......»»
Replanting trees can help prevent devastating landslides like the one in Papua New Guinea, but it"s not a silver bullet
More than 2,000 people are now feared dead after a huge landslide buried a village in the highlands of Papua New Guinea, Australia's nearest neighbor. Rescue efforts are being stymied by the fact the land is still sliding and moving. The disaster has.....»»
Australia"s new consent campaign gets a lot right: But consent education won"t be enough to stop sexual violence
The Australian government has recently launched Consent Can't Wait, a campaign focused on supporting sexual consent communication between adults and young people......»»
Researcher says not every exotic species needs to be controlled
Certain invasive exotic species, such as the red swamp crayfish, are harmful to our environment because they nibble on aquatic plants, dig burrows in banks, and transmit crayfish plague to native species. "But there are also non-native fish and crayf.....»»
Spectator racism is still rife in Australia"s major football codes—new research shows it may even be getting worse
The annual Indigenous rounds in the Australian Football League (AFL) and National Rugby League (NRL) celebrate Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultures......»»
Survey reveals growing support for changing Australia Day date
Support for retaining 26 January as Australia's national day of celebration appears to be slipping, according to a new survey that shows growing numbers of people are open to changing the date......»»
Q&A: Investigating the remarkable reproductive cycle of Michigan"s threatened mollusks
Michigan is home to 43 species of native freshwater mussels, 30 of which are considered to be at risk of extinction. Among the many factors that threaten the hard-shelled bottom dwellers are competition from invasive zebra and quagga mussels, water p.....»»
Researchers: A rush on critical minerals is coming for Australia"s most remote and disadvantaged communities
The Australian mining industry was promised billions of dollars in last week's federal budget to boost critical minerals such as lithium, copper and rare earth metals. This includes tax incentives, an innovation fund and money for Geoscience Australi.....»»