She could only read and write from age 10. She reared children and had a first unsupportive husband. But Mary Somerville was able to correct the work of Isaac Newton, help discover Neptune, and write a science book which became a university text.
The next time you pick up a bag of spuds from the supermarket or fill up the car with petrol, you can thank the Treaty of the Metre for the metric system that underpins daily life. The treaty was signed exactly 150 years ago, when delegates from 17 countries gathered on a Parisian spring day to establish a new and standardised way of measuring the world around us. But the metre's inception predates the treaty that bears its name by nearly 100 years. So how did it come about, and how has its defi...
Amateur fossil hunters make a major discovery. And Marilyn Renfree describes the sophisticated reproduction of marsupials.
Southern right whales (Eubalaena australis) were named by whalers because their high oil content made them the "right" ones to kill. In the decades since whaling was banned, southern right numbers increased — but a new study shows that population growth stalled, and might've dropped a bit, despite current numbers still far below what they were in pre-whaling times. So what's going on with the southern rights?
David Walker at UCLA says he can halt aging in fruit flies. Can the same concepts be applied to humans? And two tertiary students and an artist describe combining science and artistic pursuits.
Cobras, taipans, black mambas — Tim Friede's been intentionally bitten more than 200 times by some of the most venomous snakes on Earth. And he survived, mostly because years of self-injecting venom let him develop immunity to them. (Please do not try this yourself!) Now his blood's been used to make a broad-spectrum antivenom that researchers say may protect against nearly 20 deadly snakes. But this is not how antivenom is usually made. So how are snake antivenoms produced, and where are we wit...
This episode of The Science Show explores diverse topics, starting with the state of the planet, then delving into the formation of elements in stars, and spotlighting the ecological restoration efforts on Cockatoo Island in Sydney Harbour. It further discusses the vital role of dung beetles in the ecosystem, ending with a tribute to David Attenborough and his love for Birds of Paradise.
Mansi Kasliwal describes how she detects supernovae – the massive stellar explosions where elements are formed. We learn how dung beetles saved the Australian environment from the big problem, and David Attenborough shares his love for Birds-of-paradise.
Mansi Kasliwal describes how she detects supernovae – the massive stellar explosions where elements are formed. We learn how dung beetles saved the Australian environment from the big problem, and David Attenborough shares his love for Birds-of-paradise.
Hate getting needles? You're in good company — one in five people in Australia have needle fear.
Sharks have survived 500 million years while mass extinctions have wiped out other species. Now, sharks are under threat.
Somewhere out past Mars in the early hours of Easter Monday, a space probe called Lucy whizzed by an asteroid named Donaldjohanson. Lucy then sent back images showing Donaldjohanson is about five kilometres wide and shaped like a peanut. It's one of a handful of asteroids on Lucy's 12-year itinerary. So what does the billion-dollar mission hope to achieve?
Palaeontology helps reveal why some animals are in desperate need of help while others thrive.
Gout Gout is fast becoming the face of Australian athletics, regularly clocking blisteringly quick times over 100- and 200-metre sprints. And he's only 17. Many think the best is yet to come. So what is it about Gout that makes him such an impressive sprinter at such a young age?
A protein in the immune system, DECTIN-1 - primarily responsible for defending the body against fungal infections, has been found to control the severity of autoimmune diseases such as irritable bowel disease (IBS), type 1 diabetes, eczema, and other chronic disorders.
We've been hearing a lot about a certain proposal to get nuclear power up and running in Australia, but little's been said about what happens when plants reach the end of their life. Decommissioning a single nuclear power plant can cost hundreds of millions of dollars and take decades. So what's involved, and why is the process so long and expensive?
Soils are too often neglected but caring for them brings many benefits for plant nutrition, human health and a boost for the farm economy.
Hearts, kidneys and now livers — over the past couple of years, surgeons have taken all these from gene-edited pigs and put them in people.
Nick Rowley reviews out progress towards net zero carbon emissions, Jared Diamond proposes mining the sea floor, and California’s legacy of Albert Einstein.
As far as planets go, they don't get much more iconic than Saturn. A huge golden ball encircled by gigantic rings. But those distinctive rings — the very things that give Saturn its pizzazz — have seemingly disappeared. So what’s going on, and when will they be back?
Lord Howe Island may appear an island paradise, but its ecology has been under intense pressure from invasive species such as rats and pigs. Now birds are being found with stomachs full of plastic.
They might be the epitome of cool, but Formula 1 race car drivers can get hot — really hot. An F1 cockpit can heat up to 60 degrees Celsius, and this affects cognition — the last thing you want when you're fanging around a track at 300kph. This year, a new rule was introduced to give F1 drivers a bit of relief from that heat … which is just one of the risks of F1 racing. Because we often hear about the performance of the cars in the race, but what about the humans behind the wheel?...
80% of diseases are impacted by environment or lifestyle described as your exposome. Thomas Hartung expects information from studying the exposome will bring benefits on par with those brought by studying the human genome.
For women who get bacterial vaginosis or BV, a common condition that can cause a fishy-smelling discharge, many will get it again (and again). Why some people were prone to recurrent BV was a mystery … until now. Australian researchers have shown that BV-related bugs can be sexually transmitted, and treating male partners significantly cuts recurrence rates.
America’s top research institutions face an uncertain future.
A weekly injection that stops that hankering for hot chips and donuts? Many people on Ozempic and similar medications report this phenomenon, saying they no longer have incessant thoughts about sweets and fried food. So how do these drugs, known as GLP-1 agonists, work in the brain to dial down "food noise" and help people lose weight?
Naomi Oreskes talks about Donald Trump and her latest book The Big Myth ahead of her visit to Australia in early March.
The H5N1 strain of avian influenza is currently ripping through the US, infecting wild animals, livestock and people. One person has died, and around 70 more infections have been confirmed. Meanwhile, the Trump administration has made massive cuts to the nation's leading science and health agencies, and announced plans to withdraw from the World Health Organization. As the risk of another pandemic rises, what does all this mean for us in Australia?...
San Antonio Texas has restored the San Antonio River encouraging plants and animals back to the city.
An asteroid dubbed 2024 YR4 is causing a stir among the space community and a frenzy in the media. It currently has a 2.3 per cent chance of crashing into Earth three days before Christmas in 2032. But this is not our first asteroid rodeo. Get in touch with us: [email protected]
