REMIX Museum Hack 2016 REMIX Museum Hack 2016 will be a first of its kind event in Western Australia, connecting our best technology innovators, coders and designers with primary school children. In line with STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Maths) principles, hack teams will interpret children’s drawings developed in response to a Western Australian Museum […]
Inoculating against science denial John Cook, The University of Queensland Science denial has real, societal consequences. Denial of the link between HIV and AIDS led to more than 330,000 premature deaths in South Africa. Denial of the link between smoking and cancer has caused millions of premature deaths. Thanks to vaccination denial, preventable diseases are […]
Where do profit and productivity sit in creative economies? By Anne Harris, Monash University Creativity – variously defined as innovation, critical thinking, and cognitive flexibility amongst others – is ubiquitous these days. From creative corporate conglomerates such as Google and Pixar to primary school coders and hackers to creative mathematics, creativity seems to be everywhere […]
Humanity is in the existential danger zone, study confirms By James Dyke, University of Southampton The Earth’s climate has always changed. All species eventually become extinct. But a new study has brought into sharp relief the fact that humans have, in the context of geological timescales, produced near instantaneous planetary-scale disruption. We are sowing the […]
12 ways to deal with a climate change denier – the BBQ guide By Will J Grant, Australian National University and Rod Lamberts, Australian National University The end of the year is nigh and it’s a time for Christmas and New Year parties and gatherings. In the southern hemisphere that means barbecues and beaches. In […]
G20 climate challenge calls for a rethink of economics By Geoff Harcourt, UNSW Australia Business School and Anne Junor Focusing on growth, the Brisbane G20 leaders’ summit has not grappled with three key issues. How much more growth can the planet survive? How can poorer nations raise their living standards to parity with the “developed” […]
To get climate change under control, our growth fetish must go By Christopher Wright, University of Sydney The recent US-China climate announcement is a significant development in humanity’s equivocal response to the climate crisis. Despite over four decades of political engagement with climate change, tangible action has remained limited to rhetorical flourishes by politicians against […]
Obama: protect Barrier Reef from climate change By Michelle Grattan, University of Canberra US president Barack Obama has given Australia a sharp prod on climate change, saying he wanted his future grandchildren to be able to enjoy the Great Barrier Reef. Obama, addressing an enthusiastic audience including mostly young people at the University of Queensland, […]
Buying essays: how to make sure assessment is authentic By Shirley Alexander, University of Technology, Sydney The essay, as the primary form of assessment, should be dead. This is the kind of comment that terrifies academics everywhere – but it is an idea that I think we all need to consider. The “news” that there […]
Palm oil continues to destroy Indonesia’s wildlife By Penny van Oosterzee, James Cook University and Bill Laurance, James Cook University How do the products we buy affect the world’s rainforests? In the lead up to the Asia-Pacific Rainforest Summit held in Sydney this week, The Conversation is running a series on rainforest commodities. If you […]