science wire

Wake up call for koala protection
Koalas, small wallabies, bandicoots and other endangered animals could be 'traded' across Australia to prevent extinction, according to a wildlife expert at ANU.

Redefining our relationship with Indonesia
Australia's relationship with Indonesia has always been defined by our neighbour being poorer and weaker than us.

ANU and Chamber come together on music
The Australian National University and the ACT and Region Chamber of Commerce and Industry are working together to ensure a strengthened future for the ANU School of Music and the ACT music community.

Quantum computer leap
The main technical difficulty in building a quantum computer could soon be the thing that makes it possible to build one, according to new research from The Australian National University. André Carvalho, from the ARC Centre for Quantum Computation and Communication Technology and the Research School of Physics and Engineering, part of the ANU College of Physical and Mathematical Sciences, worked with collaborators from Brazil and Spain to come up with a new proposal for quantum computers.

Astronomy star to lead research school
One of Australia's foremost astronomers, Professor Matthew Colless, has today been announced as the new Director of the Research School of Astronomy and Astrophysics at The Australian National University.

How Malaysia’s tiger economy lost its growl

Brad crosses the line for charity
After a four month marathon journey, Brad Carron-Arthur will today fulfil his goal of running from Canberra to Cape York to raise money for mental health research.

No Chinese whispers: US and China should be equal
Both the US and China will have to make big compromises if they are to see one another as equals, Hugh White writes in East Asia Forum .

$31M boost to regional medical care

Australia and Asia: ties that bind

Environmental myths no fairytale
Should we be worried about running out of oil? Is economic development causing the demise of the environment? Is it vital that we 'reduce, re-use and recycle' so that no waste goes to landfill? Th

Schmidt and O’Neill elected to Royal Society

Boom: the demand for iron ore

Suu Kyi’s political rubber to hit the road: expert
Burma's commitment to democratic reform will be tested when Aung San Suu Kyi takes her seat in Parliament next week, according to a leading Burma expert from The Australian National University.

From guerilla war to government

Hey, big energy spender
How will the unrelenting demand for energy in China be met? And where does Australia fit in the picture? Frank Jotzo answers these questions in East Asia Forum.

Are bogans the new underclass?
Mullets. Singlets. Thongs. Stubby holders. In Inside Story , Frank Bongiorno asks what we talk about when we talk about bogans.

New ANU ‘Kennedy School’ to play leading national public policy role

Milestone for ANU Research repository
The open access ANU Research repository has catalogued its 4,000th item. Vice-Chancellor Professor Ian Young was the author of the work, which was published in the Journal of Geophysical Research Oceans . The repository is a valuable way of sharing a broader range of research undertaken at ANU, including digital PhD and masters theses, says Professor Young.

Sounds of silence proving a hit
Researchers at The Australian National University have developed the fastest random number generator in the world by listening to the 'sounds of silence'. The researchers - Professor Ping Koy Lam, Thomas Symul and Syed Assad from the ANU ARC Centre of Excellence for Quantum Computation and Communication Technology - have tuned their very sensitive light detectors to listen to vacuum - a region of space that is empty.

Asylum seekers have right to sail on - expert
The Australian Government has no legal right to try to detain 10 Chinese asylum seekers who are currently in Darwin en route to New Zealand, according to a legal expert from The Australian National University.

Million dollar grant to help map the skies

Microworld of Sullivans Creek
The tiny living organisms that call Sullivans Creek home were not fans of the recent storm water flood.

New dawn for democracy in Burma
Aung San Suu Kyi is likely to be elected to Burma's parliament in this Sunday's by-election, according to a leading Southeast Asia expert from The Australian National University.

Four new Fellows welcomed by Academy
ANU Vice-Chancellor Ian Young welcomed news that four ANU professors have been elected as Fellows of the Australian Academy of Science.

Big Bang on Earth
Astronomers have begun to blast 3 million cubic feet of rock from a mountaintop in the Chilean Andes to make room for what will be the world's largest optical telescope when completed near the end of the decade.

Sun shines on ANU research
The Australian National University continues to be at the forefront of national and international solar research thanks to funding provided by the Commonwealth via the Australian Solar Institute (ASI).

Secret trade treaty should be rejected
A secretly negotiated treaty, called The Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement (ACTA), should be rejected by the Australian Parliament, according to a leading intellectual property expert.

China pays for crimes against business
The Chinese Government is struggling to prevent crimes against businesses, according to a new study from The Australian National University.

Life-size Yunupingu artwork delivered by crane
A one-ton wooden artwork by internationally-renowned Indigenous artist Gulumbu Yunupingu was installed in the Hedley Bull Centre on Saturday.

ANU opens Lena Karmel Lodge
The latest addition to residential accommodation at The Australian National University, Lena Karmel Lodge, was officially opened by ACT Chief Minister Katy Gallagher.

Shadow RBA flags interest rate uncertainty
There is considerable doubt the Reserve Bank has got its current economic settings right and it should consider cutting interest rates by at least 25 basis points, according to the Shadow Reserve Bank (Shadow RBA) board.

Society: step up to save planet
Scientific knowledge alone isn't enough to save the planet - we must also act on that knowledge and radically change our behaviour, according to the authors of an international study.

Get real
A new cookbook by ANU students is putting real food back on the menu and spilling the beans on what we eat.

Leadership tussle - constitutional doubts

The fine art of filigree
Artist and historian Ximena Briceño has found that the twists, weaves and intricacies of finely-crafted filigree objects are every bit as complex as the art form's history. By MARTYN PEARCE. The fine art of filigree is just that - fine. Its delicately entwined silver wires have patterns and an intricacy more familiar in the natural world of vines and twines than the man-made world of silver jewellery.

Living with the city
The quiet personalities of our cities are in danger of being buried under the noise of the concrete jungle, writes TEGAN DOLSTRA.

The secret science of The Simpsons
A collaborative study involving undergraduate students and researchers has revealed that science in our favourite TV shows often slips under the radar.

Gamelan gangsta
New beats for old sounds on the island of Java are redefining and reviving local identities, writes JAMES GIGGACHER.

Perched with the parrots
The eclectus parrots of Cape York Peninsula have an unusual and gruesome habit, writes LEANNE O'ROURKES.

Less prison, better prevention of crime
Spending money on crime prevention might prove a wiser investment than building more prisons, writes Australian Research Council Federation Fellow JOHN BRAITHWAITE. Between 1910 and 1990 Australia had an imprisonment rate at approximately half what it is today. Punitive thinking led to the tragedy of massive public investment in prison building in an era when the evidence suggested this was not an effective way of reducing crime.

Casting the net
Valerie Kirk tells KATHARINE PIERCE why not knowing who you're working with shouldn't hold you back.

Drill Hall Gallery by Erin Stewart

Life sentences
The Australian Dictionary of Biography (ADB) Research Editor PAM CRICHTON explores the role of booksellers in Australia.

Chronicles of the deep
With the help of one of the planet's oldest marine organisms, an ANU scientist is revealing the natural environment's true history. By LUCY WEDLOCK. She may have grown up in Africa's land-locked Republic of Uganda, but Aimée Komugabe has always felt the inescapable pull of the ocean tide. But it wasn't until after finishing school, when Komugabe was living in another land-locked country, Austria, that the siren call of the deep blue sea became irresistible.

Go ahead for solar art installation

Power profiles help electronics go green
New and better ways of measuring high-tech energy consumption could lead to significant environmental and economic gains, a study from The Australian National University has found.

Tougher laws to smash green smoke screens
Law reform and tougher legal sanctions to stop greenwashing are critical, according to a leading intellectual property expert from The Australian National University.

New wave of scholars explore maritime history
A little known and deep historical link between Australia and Indonesia will be explored at a two-day symposium starting this Thursday at The Australian National University.

Looking at the micro could mend broken hearts
Researchers have completed the first comprehensive survey of the tiny cellular molecules found in the heart and which are essential for its healthy function. The breakthrough could lead to the development of targeted therapeutic treatments for heart disease. Professor Thomas Preiss and Jennifer Clancy and their team commenced the research at Sydney's Victor Chang Cardiac Research Institute in 2008 and completed it at The John Curtin School of Medical Research at ANU.

Climate change history reveals future threats
The historical record foreshadows a grim picture for a future threatened by even greater climate change according to a study from The Australian National University. Professor Tony McMichael from the ANU National Centre for Epidemiology and Population Health looked at climate changes and their impacts over the last 6,000 to 7,000 years, as documented in historical, archaeological and fossil records.

China’s investment flow helps region grow
A new study from The Australian National University shows that foreign direct investment (FDI) both into and out of China is improving economic stability and driving development in Asia and the Pacific. In a major study, Chunlai Chen from the ANU Crawford School examined levels of FDI in 49 developing countries between 1992 and 2008.

ANU people given the order on Australia Day
A world-renowned quantum physicist and a researcher working to improve space travel are among the members of the ANU community recognised with 2012 Australia Day honours.

Caring for country creates new land of opportunity
New conservation partnerships between Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australians are saving threatened animals, returning Aboriginal people to their ancestral homeland, discovering new types of plant species and developing novel cross-cultural ways of managing country.

Picky females prefer well-fed males
A good upbringing can make you more attractive to females - if you are a mosquitofish, that is.

Fortunately for men, size doesn’t matter (much)
Researchers from The Australian National University have discovered that the male-specific Y-chromosome is shrinking - and it's happening at different rates across species. The research team discovered that a marsupial's Y-chromosome is genetically denser than the human Y-chromosome, meaning that animals like the tammar wallaby are bounds ahead on the 'manliness' scale.

Whaling activists face uncertain future
The three Australian environmental activists detained on a Japanese whaling ship could face a wide range of charges and may even have broken Australian law, according to an international law expert from The Australian National University.

’Book of the year’ says Nobel Laureate

International praise for ANU authors
ANU linguist Professor Anna Wierzbicka's work has been praised by Nobel Prize winner JM Coetzee. Mr Coetzee mentioned Professor Wierzbicka's book about the English language in the Books of the Year section of the Weekend Australian last month.

Academic puts summer on ice
An ANU historian is swapping the sweltering Australian summer for the icy sheets of Antarctica as part of a historic journey commemorating the nation's first expedition to the great southern continent.

Young minds experiment with a future career in science

Series sheds light on Universe’s darkest secrets

Brad steps up in marathon for mental health
ANU graduate Brad Carron-Arthur is moving his feet for a good cause, running up the east coast of Australia to raise money for mental health research, programs and awareness.

New PVC International and Outreach appointed

ANU to boost public service performance
New research from The Australian National University is set to help public servants step up a gear, by developing a high performance culture in the Australian Public Service.

Plumes of plankton blooms wins New Zealand’s top science prize
Robert Strzepek, a visiting scientist in the Research School of Earth Sciences, has won the New Zealand Prime Minister's Science prize.

ANU philosopher urges consensus on 50-year debate
Misinterpretation of a key scientific concept has led to decades of fierce debate according to an ANU philosopher. In a hugely influential paper published fifty years ago, eminent scientist Ernst Mayr distinguished between 'why' questions and 'how' questions in biology; for example, the difference between asking 'why do birds migrate' and 'how they know when to migrate'.

Prime Minister recognises leaders of tomorrow

Researchers win major health grants

ANU honours Chubb’s service to education

ANU leads Australia in philosophical matters

ANU experts join Academy Council

Brian Schmidt receives Nobel Prize in Stockholm

Algorithm marchers put their best feet forward

Researchers star in Academy awards

Staff recognised in university media awards

Dealing with a lifetime of disease
How individuals and communities can better deal with increasing rates of chronic illness in Australia will be the main focus of a health policy roundtable taking place at The Australian National University today.

ANU Chancellor named top global thinker
ANU Chancellor Professor the Hon Gareth Evans AO QC has been named one of Foreign Policy magazine's Top Global Thinkers of 2011.

ANU immunologist wins new medical fellowship
Professor Carola Vinuesa from The Australian National University has won a new fellowship recognising Australia's top female medical and health researchers.

Durban climate deal needs IP decision
The United Nations conference on climate change in Durban should address outstanding issues about intellectual property or risk developing countries failing to meet mitigation targets, according to an IP expert from The Australian National University.