Tag: Science
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Venomous vipers’ lightning strikes in slow-mo
Blink and you’ll miss it. Snake bites have always been the stuff of nightmares, but Australian researchers have revealed in fresh and terrifying detail just how different venomous reptiles strike at their prey. In the largest study of its kind, published in the Journal of Experimental Biology on Thursday, Monash University researchers Alistair Evans and…
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Jane Goodall: The gentle disrupter who redefined what it means to be human
Anyone proposing to offer a master class on changing the world for the better, without becoming negative, cynical, angry or narrow-minded in the process, could model their advice on the life and work of pioneering animal behavior scholar Jane Goodall. Goodall’s life journey stretches from marveling at the somewhat unremarkable creatures – though she would…
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Cows painted like zebras and pizza-eating lizards – Ig Nobel Prizes honour oddball science
A team of researchers from Japan wondered if painting cows with zebra-like stripes would prevent flies biting them. A group from Africa and Europe together pondered the types of pizza lizards preferred to eat. It was those researchers and other slightly odd inquiring minds who were honoured at the recent Ig Nobel awards for comical…
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Breakthrough discovery in Queensland brain stem cell research
A collaborative study conducted by QIMR Berghofer and London’s Francis Crick Institute explored the resting state of brain stem cells. Scientists identified how brain stem cells transition between deep and shallow resting states, called ‘quiescence’, to create new nerve cells. This combats long-held beliefs that the neurons we were born with are all we ever…
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‘Crazy idea’ may lead to high-density, low-cost fuel cell
Scientists have designed a fuel cell they say could deliver three times as much energy per unit of weight as existing lithium-ion batteries used in electric vehicles. Unlike a battery, the liquid sodium-air device needs only to be refuelled, not recharged. Luckily, sodium (a constituent of table salt) is inexpensive and one of the most…
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Genes, environment or a special bond? Why some twins talk and think in unison
An interview with Paula and Bridgette Powers – identical twins who witnessed their mother’s carjacking – recently went viral. The way they spoke and gestured in unison has captivated global audiences. Bridgette and Paula Powers gained global attention for the way they speak, recently appearing on ABC’s Australian Story. So why are we so fascinated,…
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Woman gives birth to stranger’s baby
Monash IVF, which operates across Australia, has apologised after a patient at one of its Brisbane clinics had an embryo incorrectly transferred to her, meaning she gave birth to a child of another woman. The error was identified in February after the birth parents requested their remaining embryos to be transferred to another IVF provider.…
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Nanoscale 3D-printing is saving lives and scoring awards
Associate Professor Jiawen Li received a Judges’ Commendation at the Sony Women in Technology Award with Nature, at the award ceremony in Tokyo in February. She is the only Australian researcher among the four finalists. “It’s really exciting … to be recognised by a big-name technical company and be seen as scientists, not only women…
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Dinosaur secret unearthed after hiding in plain sight
For 20 years, a boulder sat at a regional high school without anyone realising its significance. Its remarkable secret has finally been revealed after researchers discovered it contained one of the highest concentrations of dinosaur footprints ever documented in Australia. The white clay boulder about the size of a small table features 66 fossilised footprints…
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Too keen on carbs? Your ancient DNA might be the reason
Humans may have developed the ability to start digesting these foods in the mouth long before they started farming, and maybe even before the split from Neanderthals, according to the study. The research found that the gene for starch-digesting saliva may have first duplicated more than 800,000 years ago, setting the scene for the genetic…