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MEDIA & DEMOCRACY: On the final day of The Conversation’s series on how the media influences the way our representatives develop policy, John Keane examines how the relationships between politicians…
Sydney talkback radio has led the charge for a ‘ban on the burka’
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MEDIA & DEMOCRACY: Today, Alyce McGovern and Elaine Fishwick look at how the impact a tabloid campaign has had on the law as part of The Conversation’s week-long series on how the media influences…
New research suggests a bit of clutter actually helps us be more productive.
Flickr/Maggiejumps
BHP copped a fair amount of flak for a leaked memo which outlined its daunting list of rules about employee behaviours. BHP’s “office environment standard” reportedly includes making staff remove post-it…
New Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda faces major challanges.
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Former Finance minister Yoshihiko Noda has become Japan’s sixth prime minister in five years after winning a leadership vote in the parliamentary wing of his Democratic Party of Japan. Noda replaces Naoto…
How long’s a piece of string? You may want to sit down for a minute.
Gnu2000
String theory entered the public arena in 1988 when a BBC radio series Desperately Seeking Superstrings was broadcast. Thanks to good marketing and its inherently curious name and features, it’s now part…
Calls by senior union figures Paul Howes and Dave Oliver for an inquiry into manufacturing have fallen on deaf ears.
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Does manufacturing have a future in Australia? This question has now been brought sharply into focus, as industry leaders and unions pressure the Federal Government to consider new measures to safeguard…
A long-term threat of natural disaster is likely to increase rates of anxiety among young people.
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In September 2010, BHP Billiton CEO Marius Kloppers proposed Australia take action on climate change before the rest of the world to maintain its international economic competitiveness. A report released…
Depression and anxiety are separate disorders despite their frequent co-occurrence.
fancylittleme.com.au
Mental health disorders have a major impact on our ability to function in the home and at work. A third of the population will experience an anxiety disorder in their lifetime, and a fifth will experience…
If the government wants to support private health, it should fund the system directly.
Robin Thom
The government’s plan to means test the 30% private health insurance rebate faces an uncertain future after yesterday’s scheduled parliamentary debate was delayed. Under the scheme, singles with health…
Some facts about BHP Billiton. Its full year annual profit of $US23.6 billion ($A22.46 billion) is the largest ever for an Australian corporation and is double that of last year’s. It employs close to…
Legislation requiring tobacco products to be in plain packaging was passed by the House of Representatives last night. This is the first such measure in the world to come so close to becoming law. We asked…
The development and dissemination of Salmonella Kentucky’s antimicrobial resistance may be caused by the antibiotics used in animals farmed for food.
shannonkringen/flickr
Recent outbreaks of enterohaemorrhagic Escherichia coli (e-coli) in Germany and reports about the emergence of “new superbug” Salmonella Kentucky have re-focused public attention on food-borne diseases…
High profile Wickenby targets like Glenn Wheatley make good headlines, but conflate avoidance and evasion.
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Distinctions matter. Maybe lawyers devote more effort than the average citizen to making distinctions, and invest the ones they find with improbable significance, but these are occupational hazards. Even…
Chiropractors may be good at what they do but immunisation is not their field.
Planetc1/Flickr
The publication by Australian Doctor of a controversial public lecture given earlier this year by Sydney chiropractor, Nimrod Weiner, has created a flurry of criticism about the lecture, particularly regarding…
Teens have a right to confidential and private health care.
Ed Yourdon
If your teenage daughter was sexually active and wanted to go on the pill, you’d want to know, right? Well, think back to when you were her age – would you have told your parents? These questions were…
Uncertainty about how drugs will be listed on the PBS has patient groups, health professionals and the pharmaceutical industry worried.
LadyofProcrastination/Wikimedia Commons
Any parent who watches kids’ weekend footy knows that if the ref misses a breach of the rules, merry hell breaks loose. But referees are human and sometimes make errors. We forgive the odd one pretty quickly…
The benefits of circumcision outweigh the risks by 100 to one.
Jeff Dickerson
Medical circumcision of baby boys has plummeted in Australia, with only 20% of male infants now undergoing the procedure, down from 90% in the 1970s. Meanwhile, HIV infections continue to rise in the broader…
Simple seagrass can answer some complex climate problems.
Joanne Saad
Reducing carbon emissions is necessary, but what about the carbon that has already been released into the atmosphere? Many countries are turning to “biosequestration” for the answers: using nature - including…
The epidermal electronic system can measure your vital signs in a completely unobtrusive way.
John A. Rogers
When you think of tattoos you probably imagine bikies, celebrity tats or that Japanese flourish on your left foot that means “Honour” (or so you think). You probably don’t picture medical revolution…
The Gillard government can expect resistance to implementing the report’s recommendations.
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What is the most remarkable aspect of this report? The Productivity Commission is proposing an important set of reforms with its Caring for Older Australians Report. These reforms chart a way to cut through…