Molecular architects: how scientists design new materials

Apr 27, 2016 21:32 pm UTC| Science

When Thomas Edison wanted a filament for his light bulb, he scoured the globe collecting thousands of candidates before settling on bamboo. (It was years before people were able to make tungsten work properly.) Thats our...

How women can deal with their periods in space

Apr 25, 2016 23:51 pm UTC| Science

Who was the first woman to have her period in space? What is it like changing sanitary products while being weightless? And why doesnt menstrual flow just float up into the body when gravity isnt around? These were some...

Why are we still searching for the Loch Ness monster?

Apr 25, 2016 23:32 pm UTC| Science

People are fascinated by the unknown, by the possibility that there are things out there that are yet to be discovered. We think that most of our planet has been mapped by satellites and continents have been thoroughly...

What the universe's most elusive particles can tell us about the universe's most energetic objects

Apr 22, 2016 08:05 am UTC| Science

In 2012, a tiny flash of light was detected deep beneath the Antarctic ice. A burst of neutrinos was responsible, and the flash of light was their calling card. It might not sound momentous, but the flash could give us...

Sci-fi still influences how society thinks about genes – it's time we caught up

Apr 21, 2016 07:38 am UTC| Science

We used to think that our fate was in the stars. Now we know in large measure, our fate is in our genes. When the Nobel laureate and co-discoverer of the DNA double helix James Watson made his famous statement in...

Genetics: what it is that makes you clever – and why it's shrouded in controversy

Apr 21, 2016 05:53 am UTC| Science Health

For nearly 150 years, the concept of intelligence and its study have offered scientific ways of classifying people in terms of their ability. The drive to identify and quantify exceptional mental capacity may have a...

Interstellar travel, galactic cannibalism and Martian beer

Apr 20, 2016 06:14 am UTC| Science

Every other Monday morning I get to chat on ABC Breakfast News TV and try to remember that not everyone at 7.30am is as excited about exploding stars or colliding galaxies as I am. This week in space with astronomer...