Our stories from 2024

Science and Technology 5 min read

Why are auroras so hard to predict? And when can we expect more?

by Hannah Schunker, ARC Future Fellow in Physics at The University of Newcastle, and Brett Carter, Associate Professor in STEM at RMIT University

On Saturday evening before Mother’s Day, Australians witnessed a rare celestial spectacle: a breathtaking display of aurora australis, also known as the southern lights.

Health and Wellbeing 5 min read

Yes, adults can develop food allergies. Here are 4 types you need to know about

by Clare Collins - Laureate Professor NHMRC Investigator Fellow School of Health Sciences

If you didn’t have food allergies as a child, is it possible to develop them as an adult? The short answer is yes. But the reasons why are much more complicated.

Business, Law and Politics 5 min read

Digital ‘death knocks’: is it fair game for journalists to mine social media profiles of victims and their families?

by Alysson Watson, Associate Lecturer at the School of Humanities, Creative Industries and Social Sciences

The family of Ash Good, one of the Bondi stabbing victims and the mother of the nine-month-baby who was also stabbed, issued a plea overnight for media to stop reproducing photos of Ash, her partner and their baby without consent.

Arts, Culture and Society 7 min read

Big dreams built through remote community partnership

by Shahni Wellington

The unlikely pairing of outback Menindee and seaside Newcastle have successfully bridged the distance

Education 6 min read

Research has found a way to help the teacher shortage and boost student learning

by Jennifer Gore, Laureate Professor at the School of Education and Drew Miller, Senior Lecturer at the School of Education

Australian schools are facing unsustainable pressures. There are almost daily reports of too many students falling behind and not enough teachers to teach them. Meanwhile, the teachers we do have are stressed, overworked and lack adequate support in the classroom.

Education 10 min read

Teacher transformation scores top marks

by Madelaine Love

A new way of teaching has helped turn the tables at Cessnock High School. The results speak for themselves.

Education 4 min read

It’s common to ‘stream’ maths classes. But grouping students by ability can lead to ‘massive disadvantage’

by Professor Elena Prieto-Rodriguez at the School of Education (Mathematics)

It is very common in Australian schools to “stream” students for subjects such as English, science and maths. This means students are grouped into different classes based on their previous academic attainment, or in some cases, just a perception of their level of ability.

Environment 8 min read

Partnering to solve the Pacific plastics plight

by Penny Harnett

Microplastics are notoriously hard to detect but their impact is significant. How deep is the problem in the Pacific Ocean? Scientists from Australia and Samoa teamed up to find out.

Arts, Culture and Society 5 min read

Who invented the flat white? Italian sugar farmers from regional Queensland likely played a big role

by Garritt Van Dyk - Lecturer at the School of Humanities, Creative Industries and Social Sciences (History)

Australia’s coffee culture – a source of great national pride – is usually associated with the wave of Greek and Italian migrants who settled in Melbourne and Sydney following the second world war. But it was very likely in regional Queensland that one of Australia’s favourite brews first took root.

Environment 4 min read

The botanical imperialism of weeds and crops: how alien plant species on the First Fleet changed Australia

by Garritt Van Dyk - Lecturer at the School of Humanities, Creative Industries and Social Sciences (History)

Locally grown produce fills Australian shops, but almost all of these species were imported, as native as cane toads. Icons of Australian agriculture, like the Big Banana and Big Pineapple, proudly display the regions’ crops, but these are newcomers to the continent.

Business, Law and Politics 5 min read

The ‘Bank of Mum and Dad’ is exposing older Australians to the risk of financial abuse

by Julia Cook, Senior Lecturer in Sociology at The University of Newcastle, and Peta S Cook, Senior Lecturer in Sociology at the University of Tasmania

Young Australians who would have once been locked out of home ownership are increasingly relying on the so-called Bank of Mum and Dad to get a deposit or to guarantee a bank loan.

Business, Law and Politics 5 min read

The policing of LGBTQ+ people casts a long, dark shadow. Marching at Mardi Gras must be backed up with real change.

by Justin Ellis, Lecturer in the School of Law and Justice at the University of Newcastle, and Nicole L. Asquith, Professor of Policing in the School of Social Sciences at he University of Tasmania

Public trust and confidence in NSW Police has been sorely tested in the past two weeks. The charging of a police officer with the murders of a Sydney gay couple, Jesse Baird and Luke Davies, has seen shock turn to grief and then anger.

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