Science

Environment

Tackling the chemicals we can’t see: PFAS

by Penny Harnett

PFAS contamination is persistent, but so is the determination of scientists working on solutions to remediate it.

Science and Technology

Girls to the front

by Rosemarie Milsom

Female high school students in the Hunter are being inspired to pursue meaningful careers in STEM thanks to a unique program created over a conversation at a campus cafe.

Environment

Why are sunsets so pretty in winter? There’s a simple explanation

by Chloe Wilkins - Associate Lecturer and PhD Candidate, Solar Physics, University of Newcastle

If you live in the southern hemisphere and have been stopped in your tracks by a recent sunset, you may have noticed they seem more vibrant lately.

Health and Wellbeing

Air is an overlooked source of nutrients - evidence shows we can inhale some vitamins

by Flávia Fayet-Moore. Adjunct Lecturer, School of Environmental and Life Sciences (University of Newcastle) and Stephen R. Robinson, Professor in Psychology, Research (RMIT University)

You know that feeling you get when you take a breath of fresh air in nature? There may be more to it than a simple lack of pollution.

Science and Technology

Can we find hidden graves of murder victims with soil imaging? New Australian study gives it a try

by Victoria Berezowski Lecturer in Forensic Science at Deakin University, Ian Moffat an Associate Professor of Archaeological Science at the Flinders University, Xanthe Mallett a Forensic Criminologist at the University of Newcastle

To avoid being caught, murderers often attempt to hide bodies using various methods. This can include shallow or deep burials, submersion in water, encasing in concrete or even disposing of remains in rubbish bins and suitcases.

Busines, Law and Politics

Conservative governments protect more land while socialists and nationalists threaten more species

by Matt Hayward, Professor of Conservation Science, School of Environmental and Life Sciences, Andrea Griffin, Associate Professor in Wildlife Conservation Science, School of Environmental and Life Sciences, and Jacob Jones, PhD Candidate in Conservation Politics, School of Environmental and Life Sciences

The dire state of biodiversity across the globe suggests not all governments are willing to act decisively to protect nature. Why is that the case, and is a country’s political ideology a factor?

Environment

New video shows sharks making an easy meal of spiky sea urchins, shedding light on an undersea mystery

by Jeremy Day, PhD researcher

Long-spined sea urchins have emerged as an environmental issue off Australia’s far south coast.

Science and Technology

I heard there's an aurora coming. How do I check?

by Dr Hannah Schunker, ARC Future Fellow in the School of Information and Physical Sciences (Physics)

Few sights in the night sky are as awe-inspiring as aurora. The vibrant dancing lights – usually seen close to the planet’s poles – are produced by a wind of charged particles streaming from the Sun into Earth’s atmosphere. The resulting disturbances are called geomagnetic storms.

Environment

Groundwater is heating up, threatening life below and above the surface

by Gabriel C Rau, Lecturer in Hydrogeology, School of Environmental and Life Sciences (University of Newcastle), Barret Kurylyk Associate Professor and Canada Research Chair in Coastal Water Resources (Dalhousie University), Dylan Irvine Outstanding Future Researcher - Northern Water Futures (Charles Darwin University) and Susanne Benz Freigeist Fellow, Institute of Photogrammetry and Remote Sensing (IPF) (Karlsruhe Institute of Technology)

Under your feet lies the world’s biggest reservoir. Groundwater makes up a whopping 97% of all usable freshwater.

Environment

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.

Environment

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.

Environment

What has the Nobel Prize in Physics ever done for me?

by Karen Livesey

Each October, physics is in the news with the awarding of the Nobel Prize. The work acknowledged through this most prestigious award often seems far removed from our everyday lives, with prizes given for things like “optical methods for studying Hertzian resonances in atoms” and “elucidating the quantum structure of electroweak interactions”.

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