Mar 31Member-onlyIf great works of literature were scientific papersMany canonical works of literature describe some form of experiment. Imagine if these books — whether epic saga, stage play, speculative fiction, satire or comedy of manners — had instead been written in the form of scientific papers. Despite their flawed methodologies and questionable ethics, the manuscripts might have been…Literature7 min read
Aug 25, 2021The History of Pride in New South Wales, AustraliaThe festivities for Pride Week are in full swing, but many of us don’t know much about the historical background behind the celebration. This gives us the timely opportunity to learn more about New South Wales’ rich LGBTIQ history, including the history of Mardi Gras. Let’s pay tribute to the…History5 min read
Jul 23, 2021Adventure travel: journeying through the world and the mindTravel and adventure go hand in hand (although most of us are only dreaming of travelling right now). In literature, plenty of travel and adventure novels describe a journey or quest through unfamiliar territory: The Odyssey*, Don Quixote, Gulliver’s Travels, The Hobbit, On the Road (just to name a few)… …Travel7 min read
Jul 12, 2021Positive psychology and why negative emotions give our life meaningLet’s talk emotions. Unhappiness. Anger. Envy. Guilt. Joy. Gratitude. Fulfilment. Do you categorise the first group as negative, and the second group as positive? Do you aim to maximise positive emotions, and minimise negative ones? Do you express them equally? Is happiness something you strive for? It’s a veritable Pandora’s…Science8 min read
Jul 8, 2021Internet of Spin? The most useless IoT devices everInnovation. Must-have. Revolution. These are words that get thrown about a lot in the tech sphere, and the land of internet-connected devices (aka the Internet of Things, or IoT) is no exception. But what happens when connectivity adds approximately zero value? Redundancy doesn’t seem to be barrier for the manufacturers…Technology5 min read
Jul 5, 2021Down and out: why we need downtimeThe past decade has seen an explosion in research into how we can maximise our downtime to improve our wellbeing, reduce stress and even increase our productivity. In the spirit of scientific self-improvement, here’s a (relaxing) stroll through some established and emerging areas of research into downtime. Downtime: getting down to business? Mental downtime isn’t…Mindfulness6 min read
Jul 2, 2021Naturally irritating: essential oils are just as bad as synthetic fragrancesYour skin can’t tell the difference if fragrance was created in a lab or extracted from a flower, writes Larissa Fedunik “Nothing is black and white when it comes to fragrances…of course, synthetic fragrances are bad. Fragrances derived from essential oils can be wonderful. Fragrance isn’t categorically bad. I would really implore you guys to not be afraid of essential oil-derived fragrances.” That’s Brooke DeVard of the delightful Naked Beauty Podcast…Skincare11 min read
Dec 21, 202012 Days of Christmas in science bitesA compilation of science stories of 2020 (very) loosely inspired by the carol. The 12 Days of Christmas has been described as the holiday’s most annoying carol — bah, humbug! The song may or may not be a coded, Catholic mnemonic that could be sung around Protestants without fear of persecution — an enticing, but disputed history. In the spirit of Christmas, what about…Science4 min read
Sep 21, 2020Stackable energy storage start-up rebooting coal plant to run emissions-freeRoughly the shape and size of a brick, the energy storage blocks developed by Australian research start-up MGA Thermal can be stacked and scaled to store millions of kilowatt hours of energy. …Renewable Energy4 min read
Mar 13, 2020Selling skincare scienceDoes anyone really know how hyaluronic acid works? If you grew up reading fashion and beauty magazines in the 1990s like I did, you’ll be familiar with print advertisements that looked a little something like this: Yes, alright, this particular advertisement is from 1909, but the marketing strategies of the…Skincare15 min read
