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Shutterstock For many the wedding gown is the most expensive item of clothing they will ever own, and it has significant emotional and social value. The recent case of a Queensland woman allegedly scamming brides out of their wedding dresses on the pretext of dry-cleaning no doubt bought...

Ground Picture/Shutterstock The Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) has approved a vaccine against respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) in Australia for the first time. The shot, called Arexvy and manufactured by GSK, will be available by prescription to adults over 60. RSV is a contagious...

San Francisco skyline. Marti Bug Catcher/Shutterstock 2024 looks set to be another year of rising rents, stalling supply and intense debate over how to respond to the housing crisis. Occupying an increasingly prominent place in that debate is the YIMBY movement. Short for “Yes, In My...

Shutterstock Transport is likely the hardest economic sector to decarbonise. And road vehicles produce the most greenhouse gas emissions of the Australian transport sector – 85% of its total. Freight trucks account for only 8% of travel on our roads but 27% of transport emissions. We analysed...

Special Forces soldiers in action: Ecuador is hostage to organised crime, amid a culture of violence rooted in the foundations of a society with a fragile economy and political and legal systems compromised by corruption. AP Photo/Dolores Ochoa In 1991, Ecuadorian President Rodrigo Borja...

Peter Cade/Getty Images With the cost of living soaring and many struggling to get a pay rise, it’s not surprising people are using debt to navigate life’s financial twists and turns. Owing money can sometimes feel challenging, but not all debts should keep you awake at night. So which...

Wolf Avni/Shutterstock Last year, 1,266 Australians died from road accidents involving at least one car and a driver, passenger, pedestrian or cyclist. The economic cost of Australian road trauma exceeds A$27 billion each year. That’s 1.8% of Australia’s GDP. Australia has committed to an...

Weight loss pills aren’t a replacement for a healthy diet and lifestyle. JW LTD/Stone via Getty Images Wegovy, Ozempic and Mounjaro are weight loss and diabetes drugs that have made quite a splash in health news. They target regulatory pathways involved in both obesity and diabetes and are...

‘You’re welcome!’ Shutterstock/Roman Samborskyi Misinformation is the number one risk facing society over the next two years, according to the World Economic Forum. With key elections due in the US, UK and many other nations this year, an onslaught of political misinformation can be expected...

A yellow-footed antechinus. tracylouise/Getty Images If you are exploring our beautiful Australian wilderness this year, keep an eye out for animals behaving in interesting ways. You never know what you might see, as our research team discovered. In 2023, our colleague from Sunshine Coast...

Meritt Thomas/Unsplash Protecting yourself and family from mosquito bites can be challenging, especially in this hot and humid weather. Protests from young children and fears about topical insect repellents drive some to try alternatives such as wristbands, patches and stickers. These...

MalikNalik/Shutterstock It’s that time of year when many people are getting started on their resolutions for the year ahead. Doing more physical activity is a popular and worthwhile goal. If you’re hoping to be more active in 2024, perhaps you’ve invested in an activity tracker, or you’re...

Still from You Are What You Eat. Netflix A new Netflix documentary, You Are What You Eat, showcases sets of identical twins as they adopt different diets. For eight weeks one twin follows a vegan diet while the other one follows an omnivorous diet. The experiment is compelling because, being...

Foxys Forest Manufacture/Shutterstock In January, many people are setting new year’s resolutions around healthy eating. Achieving these is often challenging – it can be difficult to change our eating habits. But healthy diets can enhance physical and mental health, so improving what we eat is...

Ultra-processed foods have received a lot of attention in recent months. Julia Sudnitskaya/ Shutterstock The perils of ultra-processed foods received widespread coverage in recent months – thanks in no small part to the publication and promotion of TV presenter and doctor of virology Chris Van...

Jeon Heon-Kyun/EPA The South Korean dog meat trade will officially end in 2027 after a bill was passed making the slaughter of dogs and the sale of dog meat for human consumption illegal in the country (though the consumption of dog meat will still be legal). People who violate this new law...

Scarlett Howard If you’ve ever been tricked by a visual illusion, you know the feeling of disconnect between what your eyes perceive and what is actually there. Visual illusions occur due to errors in our perception, causing us to misperceive certain characteristics of objects or scenes. As...

Shutterstock A man was airlifted to hospital last weekend after falling ten metres from a waterfall in Queensland’sTamborine National Park, which was closed to due to storms. And last month, a major safety operation was launched to rescue nine bushwalkers in Wollemi National Park near Sydney...

Laundry washwater is a major source of microplastic fibers that can end up in water and soil. Venca-Stastny/iStock via Getty Images Microplastics are turning up everywhere, from remote mountain tops to deep ocean trenches. They also are in many animals, including humans. The most common...

Shutterstock If you’ve watched cat videos on social media lately, you may have encountered the idea a cat’s coat colour tells us something about their personality. Orange cats are supposedly “dumb”, always falling off beds or getting themselves stuck in awkward places. Tortoiseshell cats are...