Welcome to 'Would You Rather' a podcast where Cosmos science journalists debate a topic and only one comes out the victor. Today, Cosmos journalists Jacinta Bowler and Imma Perfetto debate the merits of whether a plague of locusts or frogs – naturally of biblical proportions - would be worse. Find the science of everything at the Cosmos Magazine website Subscribe to Cosmos Magazine (print) or the Cosmos Weekly Listen to all our Cosmos Podcasts Special 10% discount on Cosmos magazine print subscr...
Mar 16, 2023•19 min
Welcome to a Cosmos Insights podcast, where we talk to scientists in Australia about the impact of their work. Today, Cosmos journalists Matthew Agius and Evrim Yazgin ponder whether EVs are the answer to our climate commuting questions or whether a bit more planning and incentives for alternative transport would do the trick. They are joined by Dr Dorina Pojani, an associate professor in Urban Planning at the University of Queensland’s School of Earth and Environmental Sciences, and Professor J...
Mar 09, 2023•26 min
Welcome to 'Would You Rather' a podcast where Cosmos science journalists debate a topic and only one comes out the victor. Today, Cosmos journalists Petra Stock and Ellen Phiddian debate the merits of high-tech spacesuits verses high-tech sportswear. Find the science of everything at the Cosmos Magazine website Subscribe to Cosmos Magazine (print) or the Cosmos Weekly Watch and listen to all our Cosmos Briefings Special 10% discount on Cosmos magazine print subscriptions (1 or 2 year), or 1 year...
Mar 05, 2023•20 min
Welcome to a Cosmos Insights podcast, where we talk to scientists in Australia about the impact of their work. At some point on a TV documentary, an internet video or even a school textbook, you've probably seen animation or still images of the earth's surface changing over time: from one massive content hundreds of millions of years ago to the surface we know today. Today, Cosmos journalist Matthew Agius talks to Dr Tristan Salle, whose team from the University of Sydney - working with French s...
Mar 02, 2023•13 min
Welcome to a Cosmos Insights podcast, where we talk to scientists in Australia about the impact of their work. Kathleen Folbigg has served 20 years of a 30-year sentence for killing her four children. She had exhausted all her avenues for appeal. Only after petitioning from grassroots supporters and legal representatives on the basis of new forensic pathology assessments did the New South Wales’ Governor open an inquiry into her convictions. That was back in 2019, and despite those new forensic ...
Feb 24, 2023•16 min
Welcome to a Cosmos Insights podcast, where we talk to scientists in Australia about the impact of their work. Australia is facing its greatest ever engineering skills shortage, according to Engineers Australia. The clean energy transition, major infrastructure projects and emerging sectors like space are increasing demand for engineering skills. Some 50,000 to 100,000 engineers are needed by 2030, just as fewer students, particularly girls, are choosing to enter the profession. Ok it may sound ...
Feb 23, 2023•9 min
Welcome to a Cosmos Insights podcast, where we talk to scientists in Australia about the impact of their work. This week the Kathleen Folbigg inquiry began again in Sydney. Folbigg was convicted in 2013 for the deaths of her four children. It’s a case which has engaged the scientific community, which is interested in how science is treated in the judicial process. And particularly complex science. But what about how scientists themselves perform in court? It’s often an alien world but ultimately...
Feb 16, 2023•24 min
Welcome to a Cosmos Insights podcast, where we talk to scientists in Australia about the impact of their work. Daisuke Kanazawa is a collaborative researcher at the Centre for Global Commons in the University of Tokyo, Japan. He is one of the authors of the Planet Positive Chemicals report, which details how the global chemical industry, responsible for 8% of greenhouse gas emissions, can get to net zero. Cosmos journalist Ellen Phiddian spoke to Kanazawa to find out more. Find the science of ev...
Feb 14, 2023•17 min
Welcome to a Cosmos Insights podcast, where we talk to scientists in Australia about the impact of their work. If we can predict the behaviour of individual molecules, we can do extraordinary things with them. We can desalinate water to almost perfect purity, fine tune batteries to perform as well as possible – and that’s just the beginning. But it’s really difficult to simulate molecules to enable that prediction. A nearly-invisible microlitre drop of water has 10 billion billion molecules in i...
Feb 09, 2023•15 min
Welcome to a Cosmos Insights podcast, where we talk to scientists in Australia about the impact of their work. Cricket bats might be losing their quality thanks to climate change's impact on willow growth, could bamboo be a better option? One team out of Cambridge University thinks it might. Today Cosmos journalist Matthew Agius talks to Cambridge University’s Ben Tinkler-Davies, about the potential of bamboo. Find the science of everything at the Cosmos Magazine website Subscribe to Cosmos Maga...
Feb 02, 2023•22 min
Welcome to a Cosmos Insights podcast, where we talk to scientists in Australia about the impact of their work. Big dinosaurs like Tyrannosaurus rex have been extinct for 66 million years, but it’s still fun to think about how they might interact with humans. So, which dinosaur would make a good pet? Honestly, there are many decent options, but how can you look past the king, T. rex? Cosmos journalist Evrim Yazgin recently spoke to world-famous palaeontologist Jack Horner – the inspiration behind...
Jan 25, 2023•20 min
Welcome to a Cosmos Insights podcast, where we talk to scientists in Australia about the impact of their work. After 31 years of planning, radio telescopes called the Square Kilometre Array (SKA) have finally begun construction. The Australian site in the Murchison region of WA – known as SKA-Low – will eventually comprise over 130,000 Christmas tree-like antennae. Today Cosmos journalist Jacinta Bowler talks to Professor Cathryn Trott, astronomer and Chief Operations Scientist at SKA-Low about ...
Jan 23, 2023•7 min
Welcome to a Cosmos Insights podcast, where we talk to scientists in Australia about the impact of their work. In mid-January this year, a Titan Arum (or corpse flower), nearly 10 years old, showed off its first ever bloom at the Adelaide Botanic Gardens. The foul-smelling corpse flower only blooms for a couple of days every few years, so it's a cool thing to see. But this corpse flower is particularly exciting because it’s the first “second generation” corpse flower at the Gardens to do it. Cos...
Jan 19, 2023•7 min
Your favourite Cosmos journalists try to answer the tricky, challenging, funny, and odd questions that arose in science this year. Thanks to the team from the Australian Science Media Centre for compiling the questions and hosting "Quizmas." Find the science of everything at the Cosmos Magazine website Subscribe to Cosmos Magazine (print) or Cosmos Weekly Watch and listen to all our Cosmos Briefings Special 10% discount on Cosmos magazine print subscriptions (1 or 2 year), or 1 year Cosmos Weekl...
Jan 01, 2023•20 min
Your favourite Cosmos journalists try to answer the tricky, challenging, funny, and odd questions that arose in science this year. Thanks to the team from the Australian Science Media Centre for compiling the questions and hosting "Quizmas." Find the science of everything at the Cosmos Magazine website Subscribe to Cosmos Magazine (print) or Cosmos Weekly Watch and listen to all our Cosmos Briefings Special 10% discount on Cosmos magazine print subscriptions (1 or 2 year), or 1 year Cosmos Weekl...
Dec 28, 2022•21 min
Your favourite Cosmos Science journalists try to answer the tricky, challenging, funny and odd questions that arose in science this year. Thanks to the team from the Australian Science Media Exchange for compiling the questioning and hosting "Quizmas." Find the science of everything at the Cosmos Magazine website Subscribe to Cosmos Magazine (print) or the Cosmos Weekly Watch and listen to all our Cosmos Briefings Special 10% discount on Cosmos magazine print subscriptions (1 or 2 year), or 1 ye...
Dec 25, 2022•19 min
Your favourite Cosmos Science journalists try to answer the tricky, challenging, funny and odd questions that arose in science this year. Thanks to the team from the Australian Science Media Exchange for compiling the questioning and hosting "Quizmas." Find the science of everything at the Cosmos Magazine website Subscribe to Cosmos Magazine (print) or the Cosmos Weekly Watch and listen to all our Cosmos Briefings Special 10% discount on Cosmos magazine print subscriptions (1 or 2 year), or 1 ye...
Dec 21, 2022•19 min
Your favourite Cosmos Science journalists try to answer the tricky, challenging, funny and odd questions that arose in science this year. Thanks to the team from the Australian Science Media Exchange for compiling the questioning and hosting "Quizmas." Find the science of everything at the Cosmos Magazine website Subscribe to Cosmos Magazine (print) or the Cosmos Weekly Watch and listen to all our Cosmos Briefings Special 10% discount on Cosmos magazine print subscriptions (1 or 2 year), or 1 ye...
Dec 19, 2022•16 min
Welcome to 'Would You Rather' a podcast where Cosmos science journalists debate a topic and only one comes out the victor. Today, Cosmos journalists Petra Stock and Evrim Yazgin debate whether an ice age or a very warm interglacial would be a better place to be. Find the science of everything at the Cosmos Magazine website Subscribe to Cosmos Magazine (print) or the Cosmos Weekly Watch and listen to all our Cosmos Briefings Special 10% discount on Cosmos magazine print subscriptions (1 or 2 year...
Dec 13, 2022•17 min
Welcome to a Cosmos Insights podcast, where we talk to scientists in Australia about the impact of their work. This year’s Prime Minister’s Prize for Science has gone to a mathematician who wondered how much heat is contained in a kilogram of seawater, while he was swimming in freshwater in Boston. Trevor McDougall AC, Scientia Professor of Ocean Physics in the School of Mathematics and Statistics at the University of New South Wales, has received the Prime Minister’s Prize for Science, recognis...
Dec 11, 2022•8 min
Welcome to a Cosmos Insights podcast, where we talk to scientists in Australia about the impact of their work. With brownish feathers, distinctive fine white streaks, and a long cocked tail, the western grasswren (Amytornis textilis) is a charming but elusive native Australian songbird. If you are lucky enough to spot one, you might find it darting between shrubs as it forages along the ground on Dirk Hartog Island in Western Australia – thanks to the first successful grasswren translocation eff...
Dec 06, 2022•10 min
How beach signs are interpreted by locals and those hailing from overseas is a crucial aspect of beach safety. Today, Cosmos journalist Ellen Phiddian talks to Dr Masaki Shibata, a lecturer in the Japanese Department of Adelaide University's School of Social Sciences - and a competitive swimmer and former lifesaver – about research he’s been doing into this very subject. Find the science of everything at the Cosmos Magazine website Subscribe to Cosmos Magazine (print) or the Cosmos Weekly Watch ...
Dec 04, 2022•14 min
Welcome to 'Would You Rather' a podcast where Cosmos science journalists debate a topic and only one comes out the victor. Today, Jacinta Bowler and Evrim Yasgin debate whether telescopes or microscopes are better! Find the science of everything at the Cosmos Magazine website Subscribe to Cosmos Magazine (print) or the Cosmos Weekly Watch and listen to all our Cosmos Briefings Special 10% discount on Cosmos magazine print subscriptions (1 or 2 year), or 1 year Cosmos Weekly subscriptions for Cos...
Nov 29, 2022•13 min
Welcome to a Cosmos Insights podcast, where we talk to scientists in Australia about the impact of their work. In November 1987, 35 years ago, 266 scientists met at Monash University at what was the first meeting to consider the national scientific response to the greenhouse gas problem. At the time many were working on ridding the atmosphere of chlorofluorocarbons, closing the hole over the Antarctic. Many were sceptical of claims that carbon dioxide was an existential threat. Today Cosmos edit...
Nov 29, 2022•22 min
Welcome to a Cosmos Insights podcast, where we talk to scientists in Australia about the impact of their work. The risk of Hendra virus being passed from bats to horses – increasing the risk to humans – has escalated in Australia in recent decades. When viruses spillover from animals to humans there can be serious consequences. SARS Cov-1, SARS Cov-2 (which causes COVID19) and Hendra viruses have all been linked to this kind of event. A team of researchers, led by conservation biologist Dr Peggy...
Nov 27, 2022•8 min
Welcome to 'Would You Rather' a podcast where Cosmos science journalists debate a topic and only one comes out the victor. Today, Ellen Phiddian and Matt Agius debate whether you would rather give up alcohol or caffeine. Find the science of everything at the Cosmos Magazine website Subscribe to Cosmos Magazine (print) or the Cosmos Weekly Watch and listen to all our Cosmos Briefings Special 10% discount on Cosmos magazine print subscriptions (1 or 2 year), or 1 year Cosmos Weekly subscriptions f...
Nov 22, 2022•29 min
Welcome to a Cosmos Insights podcast, where we talk to scientists in Australia about the impact of their work. Cyber security experts have called for online safety and security fundamentals to be taught from early primary school, after a review of the national curriculum revealed key skills gaps. A report led by Dr Nicola Johnson for the Cyber Security Cooperative Research Centre, has mapped the cyber safety content in the new Australian Curriculum against skills recommended by the Centre, for i...
Nov 20, 2022•12 min
Welcome to 'Would You Rather', a podcast where Cosmos science journalists debate a topic and only one comes out the victor. Today, Petra Stock and Evrim Yazgin debate whether a Tyrannosaurus rex or cute little Minmi paravertebral would be better as a dino-pet. Find the science of everything at the Cosmos Magazine website Subscribe to Cosmos Magazine (print) or the Cosmos Weekly Watch and listen to all our Cosmos Briefings Special 10% discount on Cosmos magazine print subscriptions (1 or 2 year),...
Nov 15, 2022•13 min
Welcome to a Cosmos Insights podcast, where we talk to scientists in Australia about the impact of their work. Andrea Boyd knew she wanted to work in the space field since she first saw Star Trek as a kid. The South Australian has ended up in a career as close to space as possible without leaving the ground. Boyd is the ‘EUROCOM’ flight controller at the European Space Agency (ESA), meaning she’s the person who gets to talk to the astronauts on the ISS. Cosmos Science Journalist Jacinta Bowler t...
Nov 13, 2022•33 min
Welcome to a Cosmos Insight podcast, where we talk to scientists in Australia about the impact of their work. The Adélies gave us the phrase “penguin suit” and are found on almost the entire coastline in the white continent. But recent research has identified a problem with massive reduction in the numbers of breeding Adélie Penguins in some places in Antarctica. In some places their population is expanding, in some places it’s contracting, and in one or two places, numbers are alarming. Austral...
Nov 08, 2022•19 min
