Bianca Nogrady

Landmark Australian ruling rejects coal mine over global warming

February 12, 2019No Comments

From Nature News, 12 February 2019: An Australian court has rejected an application for an open-cut coal mine because of its potential contribution to greenhouse-gas emissions and global warming. The New South Wales Land and Environment Court turned down an appeal by mining company Gloucester Resources, which had sought to overturn a previous government decision … Continue reading Landmark Australian ruling rejects coal mine over global warming

Meet 3 awesome women in STEMM

February 12, 2019February 12, 2019No Comments

From Victorian Women’s Trust blog, 11 February, 2019: For so long, the stereotypical image of a scientist was some old white bloke with zany hair wearing a lab coat. While some dark corners of media and advertising still occasionally fall back on this prehistoric caricature, thankfully now life no longer imitates art. Science, technology, engineering, … Continue reading Meet 3 awesome women in STEMM

Management of Australia’s Murray–Darling basin deemed ‘negligent’

February 2, 2019February 2, 2019No Comments

From Nature News, 1 February 2019: An independent inquiry into the management of Australia’s troubled Murray–Darling Basin river system has delivered a scathing report, accusing the agency responsible of mismanagement and negligence. A royal commission was established last year by the state of South Australia, where the Murray River ends, to review the state and … Continue reading Management of Australia’s Murray–Darling basin deemed ‘negligent’

Mass fish deaths in Australia set to continue

February 2, 2019February 2, 2019No Comments

From Nature News, 15 January 2019: Hundreds of thousands of native fish in Australia’s Darling River have died following a major outbreak of blue–green algae and some severe weather. Two mass die-offs have been reported near Menindee in western New South Wales — the first was late last year, and the second last week. Read … Continue reading Mass fish deaths in Australia set to continue

Hunting for cancer of unknown primary

January 13, 2019January 13, 2019No Comments

From ABC Online, 13 January 2019: Ken Lee woke up one morning and couldn’t move his legs. The 72-year-old had been experiencing numbness for a few weeks, but his doctor hadn’t been able to find anything amiss. When he lost the use of his legs, his family took him straight to hospital where scans revealed … Continue reading Hunting for cancer of unknown primary

Our fisheries in 2050

December 19, 2018No Comments

From Fish magazine, November 2018: The fishing industry is no stranger to seasonality. Fish migrate, invertebrates spawn or moult at varying times of year, and larger meteorological forces such as the El Niño-Southern Oscillation change how, where and in what numbers fish and seafood can be harvested. But the changes now being seen in many … Continue reading Our fisheries in 2050

How Indian biotech is driving innovation

December 18, 2018No Comments

From Nature, 12 December 2018: Anu Acharya was in her twenties when the human genome was first mapped in its entirety. In 2000, the young Indian entrepreneur was just breaking into the biotechnology arena with her first start-up — the genomics and bioinformatics company Ocimum Biosolutions in Hyderabad. She saw the Human Genome Project’s achievements … Continue reading How Indian biotech is driving innovation

Genetically modified T cells target lymphoma

November 21, 2018November 21, 2018No Comments

From Nature Outlook, 14 November 2018: First-in-human trials are risky. That’s why they tend to involve the sickest of the sick — people whose disease has progressed beyond the reach of any existing treatment, and who have no other options. So it is a testament to the revolutionary nature of chimeric antigen receptor T-cell therapy … Continue reading Genetically modified T cells target lymphoma

From German trains to South Korean buses, hydrogen fuel is back in the picture

November 21, 2018November 21, 2018No Comments

From Ensia magazine, 8 November 2018: Jorgo Chatzimarkakis was refueling his hydrogen fuel-cell car at one of the 50-plus refueling stations scattered around Germany when a Tesla driver, who was recharging his own car, approached. The man was excited to see a hydrogen-powered car in action, and was brimming with questions. Chatzimarkakis, who is secretary … Continue reading From German trains to South Korean buses, hydrogen fuel is back in the picture

‘We need their brains’: donating to the brain bank in search of a dementia cure

November 21, 2018November 21, 2018No Comments

From The Guardian, 14 November 2018: It’s a rainy Wednesday morning and Dr Andrew Affleck is driving more carefully than usual on his way to the Neuroscience Research Australia building in Randwick. It’s not just the slick, crowded roads putting the edge on his caution; in the boot of his car, cocooned in several layers … Continue reading ‘We need their brains’: donating to the brain bank in search of a dementia cure