Drinking is bad for you – that's why it's fun

Jan 16, 2016 10:27 am UTC| Life

Why do we drink alcohol? And what would make us do less of it? The government has its own answers on January 8, the chief medical officer for England, Dame Sally Davies, announced the new government alcohol guidelines....

Clean your way to happiness: unpacking the decluttering craze

Jan 14, 2016 04:11 am UTC| Life

Sydneys first Muji store opened in 2015 and with it came attractive minimalism, simplicity, and functionality a kind of consumption that was somehow about consuming less. The Japanese retailer offering home-wares,...

Are Powerball drawings and 'Quick Pick' numbers really random?

Jan 14, 2016 04:02 am UTC| Life

The math behind all the discussion of tonights Powerball drawing assumes true randomness equal likelihood for each number to be chosen, both in the drawing itself and, crucially, in the process of assigning Quick Picks to...

Has winning the lottery jackpot become too difficult?

Jan 13, 2016 16:19 pm UTC| Life

The UKs National Lottery recently added more balls to its Lotto machines, meaning that the chances of winning the jackpot are smaller. Has this ruined the fun? Do the lower odds mean that the vast majority of weeks are...

Woof! Dogs really can tell how their owners are feeling, new study shows

Jan 13, 2016 00:15 am UTC| Life

Can dogs tell when we are happy, sad or angry? As a dog owner, I feel confident not only that I can tell what kind of emotional state my pets are in, but also that they respond to my emotions. Yet as a hard-headed...

Why we should learn to love all insects – not just the ones that work for us

Jan 12, 2016 14:50 pm UTC| Insights & Views Life

Insects, which include more than a million described species, represent roughly two-thirds of the biodiversity on Earth. But they have a big PR problem many think of insects as little more than crop-eating,...

How universities can avoid plagiarism: foster students to write better

Jan 12, 2016 11:39 am UTC| Insights & Views Life

As universities get better at detecting plagiarism, students are having to find new ways to avoid getting caught. I have recently had quite a few students asking to see their reports from Turnitin a plagiarism...