The quest to save the banana from extinction

Apr 21, 2019 11:41 am UTC| Insights & Views Nature

Panama disease, an infection that ravages banana plants, has been sweeping across Asia, Australia, the Middle East and Africa. The impact has been devastating. In the Philippines alone, losses have totalled US$400m. And...

Cities and countries aim to slash plastic waste within a decade

Apr 21, 2019 11:28 am UTC| Insights & Views Nature

If all goes well, 2030 will be quite a special year. Global and local community leaders from more than 170 countries have pledged to significantly reduce the amount of single-use plastic products by 2030. Success would...

Evolution: how the theory is inspiring a new way of understanding language

Apr 08, 2019 05:26 am UTC| Nature

Words are often seen as the building blocks of languages. But as children we dont learn lists of words like we might in a school language class. We learn longer strings of sounds and break them up into words as we grow up....

Mercury pollution from decades past may have been re-released by Tasmania's bushfires

Apr 08, 2019 05:19 am UTC| Insights & Views Nature

Tasmanias bushfires may have resulted in the release of significant amounts of mercury from burnt trees into the atmosphere. Our research shows that industrial mercury pollution from decades past has been locked up in west...

The swamp foxtail's origin is hidden in its DNA

Apr 08, 2019 05:18 am UTC| Insights & Views Nature

Sign up to the Beating Around the Bush newsletter here, and suggest a plant we should cover at [email protected]. Swamp foxtail (Cenchrus purpurascens) is a delightful grass that forms a neat tussock up to a...

Cyclone Idai showed how some countries battle to handle disasters

Apr 05, 2019 10:17 am UTC| Insights & Views Nature

Cyclone Idai has caused enormous damage in Mozambique, Malawi and Zimbabwe. Hundreds of people have died, about 400,000 people lost their homes and an estimated 2.9 million people have been affected by the...

Invasive ants: federal budget takes aim but will it be a lethal shot?

Apr 05, 2019 10:16 am UTC| Insights & Views Nature

Amid all the usual items we expect to see in the federal budget was one that raised eyebrows: A$28.8 million for three ant eradication programs. Yet amid the inevitable media puns about the government upping the ant-e,...