Japanese encephalitis outbreak in Australia blamed on climate change

By Alice Klein A Culex mosquito, the genus that can spread Japanese encephalitis Konstantin Nechaev / Alamy Australia is grappling with its first major outbreak of Japanese encephalitis, a viral disease that has already killed two people. The mosquito-transmitted infection is typically found in rural regions of Asia, but climate change is thought to have … Read more

Drones and AI help find pebble-sized meteorite that landed in 2021

Locating meteorites on Earth’s surface is like looking for a needle in a haystack, but using AI to analyse images captured by drones pinpointed a tiny space rock in just four days Technology 11 March 2022 By Chen Ly The meteorite as seen by the drone and algorithm: the yellow box is 100 square centimetres … Read more

Lake Hillier: Pink Australian lake gets its colour from red and purple microbes

DNA sequencing has revealed that a bright pink lake on an island off Western Australia gets its colour from a mix of salt-loving bacteria and algae Earth 10 March 2022 By Alice Klein Aerial view of Lake Hillier, Australia Tourism Western Australia The unusual bubblegum pink colour of a remote lake in Western Australia has … Read more

Australia floods: Record rainfall in Queensland driven by La Niña and climate change

A slow-moving low-pressure system has dropped 790 millimetres of rain on Brisbane in one week, causing floods that have claimed eight lives Environment 28 February 2022 By Alice Klein A flooded street in Milton, a suburb of Brisbane PATRICK HAMILTON/AFP/AFP via Getty Images Record-breaking rain on the east coast of Australia over the past week … Read more

Omega-3 supplements could reduce the number of premature births

South Australia has launched a world-first programme to reduce premature births by testing omega-3 levels during pregnancy and giving supplements when they are low Health 28 February 2022 By Alice Klein Omega-3 fish oil can be taken as daily supplements R_Szatkowski/Shutterstock Giving omega-3 supplements to pregnant women with low levels of this fatty acid could … Read more

Mike Cannon-Brookes: Can a tech billionaire squash Australia’s coal industry by buying it?

Frustrated with the Australian government’s inaction on climate change, software king Mike Cannon-Brookes is trying to buy several big coal plants so he can shut them down in favour of renewables Environment | Analysis 22 February 2022 By Alice Klein Open-cast coal mining in Hunter Valley, Australia PETER HARRISON/Getty Images Mike Cannon-Brookes, the third-richest person … Read more

Covid-19 news: Australia opens borders to vaccinated travellers worldwide

By Michael Le Page, Clare Wilson, Jessica Hamzelou, Sam Wong, Graham Lawton, Adam Vaughan, Conrad Quilty-Harper, Jason Arunn Murugesu, Layal Liverpool, Carissa Wong and Alex Wilkins Two people embrace on arrival at Sydney’s International Airport on 21 February 2022 in Sydney, Australia. Lisa Maree Williams/Getty Images Latest coronavirus news as of 12pm on 21 February … Read more

Large Review Identifies Common Household Things That Can Make Your Asthma Worse

One in every nine people in Australia has asthma. It is a health burden for many children, and expensive for families because of medication, hospital and out-of-hospital expenses.   The pandemic has added further stress and extra testing measures to check respiratory symptoms. COVID infection can co-exist with asthma and, although research shows allergic asthma … Read more

Personalised medicine: Australia aims to end childhood cancer deaths

An Australian plan to eliminate childhood cancer deaths using personalised medicine will be made available to all Australian children with the condition from 2023 Health 15 February 2022 By Alice Klein DNA sequencing helps offer a personalised approach to cancer Getty Images/iStockphoto An ambitious Australian programme to use personalised medicine to reduce the number of children … Read more

Australia Just Listed The Iconic Koala as ‘Endangered’ in Several States

Australia officially listed koalas across a swathe of its eastern coast as “endangered” on Friday, with the marsupials fighting to survive the impact of bushfires, land-clearing, drought and disease.   Conservationists said koala populations had crashed in much of eastern Australia over the past two decades, warning that they were now sliding towards extinction. Environment … Read more