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Young people are mapping viable futures

August 15, 2022

By Associate Professor Jane Dyson Published on August 15, 2022 Young people globally are facing unprecedented social, economic, political and environmental challenges related to the restructuring of work, poor access to key welfare services, the decline of democratic practices and the climate emergency. In Australia, rising numbers of young people are engaging in ‘side hustles’ to make ends meet, highlighting how young people are actively and creatively responding to these pressures.

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Seeking authentic mindfulness in this era of ‘wellness’

August 12, 2022

By Dr Nicholas Van Dam Published on August 12, 2022 Meditation and mindfulness practices in Western nations are booming. One report estimates that 55 million Americans engaged in meditation in 2017, a nearly 250 per cent increase from five years earlier. Mindfulness and mediation can offer considerable benefits, including reduced stress and anxiety, improved sleep, and better pain management. There are also claims that it can enhance performance, and productivity, and give you a competitive edge.

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The palaeontology field keeps you on your toes

August 11, 2022

By Dr Vera Korasidis Published on August 11, 2022 I just returned from a two week dig in the Wyoming Badlands. This is my third field season there. Two weeks on a dig is a good amount of time to adapt to the conditions and get a lot of science done. This year, there were around 50 palaeontologists and geologists working in the Bighorn Basin. Some were looking for dinosaur bones and others were looking for fossil mammal species, while I was looking specifically for fossil pollen.

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Seeing the invisible vulnerable in our cities

August 10, 2022

By Dr Yvette Putra Published on August 10, 2022 In 2021, taking advantage of the instability caused by both the pandemic and monsoon season, the Indian government – using the rhetoric of ‘forest conservation’ – destroyed the Khori Gaon settlement on the Delhi border. For its residents, already among the most vulnerable in the city, any recompense was stonewalled by cadastral tyranny and bureaucratic indifference, as the settlement straddles two municipalities.

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Using mathematics to treat malaria

August 10, 2022

By Professor Jennifer Flegg Published on August 10, 2022 The global effect of malaria is devastating. In 2020, there were more than 240 million cases and over 600,000 deaths, mostly in lower income countries in Africa. The most vulnerable are children under the age of five. The World Health Organization has set ambitious targets for eliminating malaria by 2030. However, these malaria elimination targets hinge on having effective treatments – a difficult feat given the parasite that causes malaria, Plasmodium falciparum, is developing resistance to the different antimalarial drugs in use.

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