Nov
3
2016
A landmark legal case in Australia has highlighted how Australians have become among the world’s most extravagant gamblers, last year losing a total of nearly $23 billion Australian dollars ($17.65 billion) on gambling and A$11.6 billion on gaming machines (excluding those in casinos), according to Australian government statistics.
Oct
21
2016
The Zika virus is far more prevalent in Southeast Asia than many nations are willing to admit, according to a leading Australian scientist. Scott O’Neill, dean of science at Monash University in Melbourne, said Asian nations might be in denial regarding concerns that Zika could threaten their tourism revenue.
Oct
12
2016
A multi-pronged campaign to control feral cat numbers is underway in Australia, with the commercial rollout of a new poison bait in coming months, the development of more sophisticated trapping devices, and the increasing use of dogs to both guard vulnerable native animal populations and to hunt down the felines.
Jan
27
2015
In the aftermath of the Sydney siege and the Paris shootings, and in light of the growing might and reach of Islamic State, Boko Haram, and other terror movements, US President Barack Obama is talking tough. In his State of the Union speech last week, President Obama said the US stands united with all those …read more
Jan
15
2015
On the hunt, ready to kill, she emerges from behind the rock pile at dusk; eyes gleaming green, tail twitching. As heavy as ten kilos and remarkably agile for her size, she has spent the day hiding from the sun in a den under some boulders, or maybe in a sandy hollow under some scrub. …read more
Jun
21
2014
Far North Queensland’s wet season begins with a drumroll of heavy raindrops splattering on roofs and sidewalks and the inevitable arrival of hordes of newly hatched mosquitoes. Floating in and around houses and yards, these tiny blood-suckers are on a relentless search for unprotected human flesh.
May
10
2014
Hungry mosquitos float out into the steamy air as soon as Sularto snaps open the container lid. Blowing the insects gently on their way, as gently as he might blow on a spoonful of hot soup, the stocky Indonesian waits for a minute before hitching his denim bag more securely onto his shoulder and setting …read more
May
10
2014
Aung Lin Tin is a tiny, struggling scrap of humanity. Born six weeks prematurely, he weighed 1.08 kilograms when he arrived. He couldn’t suckle. He had a fever. He lost more weight in his first days of life. His mother, Tin Zar, is 24 years old and a Karen – one of the long-battling people …read more
Apr
11
2014
The deadliest creature in the world can be squashed with a casual slap. Yet the tiny mosquito still manages to kill hundreds of thousands of people a year with the diseases it carries: malaria, dengue, Japanese encephalitis and yellow fever. Now it seems science is getting closer to controlling some of the mosquito’s cargo of …read more
Feb
1
2014
Sheer hard work, dedication, and a refusal to be distracted: Asian-Australian teenagers have their eyes on the glittering prizes – scholarships, top exam marks, sought-after university places. Jackson Huang, for one, insists he doesn’t mind a 90-minute commute to school every day. The long trip, he says, gives him time to “relax”. Otherwise, he’s in …read more