freelance science journalist and author
From Nature, 29 May 2019: Western nations claim much of the glory when it comes to biotechnology, but scientists elsewhere are making substantial progress. Meet five amazing biotechnology scientists working in Jamaica, Nepal, Malaysia, South Africa and Thailand. Read more.
From Nature, 15 May 2019: Aside from a 20-second exposure to the outside world at birth, David Vetter spent his entire life cocooned in plastic. Afflicted by severe combined immunodeficiency or SCID, a hereditary disease that severely compromises or destroys the immune system, the ‘boy in the bubble’ was exquisitely vulnerable to infection. Eventually, a … Continue reading Stem-cell and genetic therapies make a healthy marriage
From MIT Technology Review, 25 April 2019: The Blue Mountains are burning. I stand in the doorway of our home and take a long look around: the handmade rugs, the jumble of artworks, the shelves crammed with books, the scattered toys. The house is a tinderbox: wooden walls, doors, balcony, window frames, all built into … Continue reading Inside Australia’s plan to survive bigger, badder bushfires
From Nature News, 15 March 2019: Nearly four hundred Australian scientists have signed a letter protesting against a steep rise in land clearing over the past decade. They have called on national and state governments to legislate to protect native vegetation. The letter describes Australia as a ‘global deforestation hotspot’, following the relaxation of laws … Continue reading Australian scientists call for tougher restrictions on land clearing
From the Sydney Morning Herald, 23 February 2019: What is life? Questions don’t come much bigger than that. It’s asked regularly by biologists, philosophers, lawyers, law-makers, astrobiologists and, occasionally, wide-eyed children. It’s not so often asked by physicists, which makes Paul Davies’ new book The Demon In The Machine that much more fascinating. Not only … Continue reading Book review: The Demon in the Machine
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
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
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’
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
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
