LATEST ARTICLES

Orientalist scholar Roger Benjamin unimpressed by Birmingham’s Twitter take-down

Orientalist scholar Roger Benjamin unimpressed by Birmingham’s Twitter take-down

The respected art historian and University of Sydney academic was startled to see his research featuring in an unflattering tweet from Simon Birmingham. Professor Roger Benjamin, regarded as one of the world’s leading experts on art inspired by Orientalist or Arabic influence in southern Spain and northern Africa, including the work of renowned artists such …read more

What about my freedom of speech?

What about my freedom of speech?

Fifty years ago, Madeline Ward’s grandfather demonstrated against the Vietnam War on the front lawns of the University of Sydney’s famous quadrangle.

Fossil fat reveals planet’s first known animal

Fossil fat reveals planet’s first known animal

In a breakthrough discovery, scientists from the Australian National University have found molecules of animal fat in a fossil more than 558 million years old, making the “Dickinsonia” the world’s first ­confirmed animal.

Scientists identify the cane toad’s deadly enemies

Scientists identify the cane toad’s deadly enemies

A scientific breakthrough could finally curb the explosive numbers of Australia’s cane toads, the feral pest that has spread across the continent.

Whaling on the high seas

Whaling on the high seas

At the right time every season, Australians gather at whale-watching points along the east and west coasts, or take to the water in boats and canoes in the hopes of seeing the giants of the deep, mostly humpback whales, making their way up and down the coast, travelling to and from their breeding grounds.

Unionist Jeannie Rea prepares to go back to the classroom

Unionist Jeannie Rea prepares to go back to the classroom

Jeannie Rea was one of the lucky ones, one of the generation offered a free university education, along with a living allowance, courtesy of reforms introduced by the pioneering and polarising prime minister Gough Whitlam.

Young V-C David Lloyd makes way for merger

Young V-C David Lloyd makes way for merger

David Lloyd may wear the mantle of the youngest vice-chancellor in Australia. Now 44, he was 38 in 2012 when he was appointed to lead the University of South Australia.

Rufus Black wants university to focus on Tasmania’s needs

Rufus Black wants university to focus on Tasmania’s needs

Rufus Black is a man of many parts. The vice-chancellor of the University of Tasmania is an ­ordained minister in the Uniting Church, a lawyer and a philosopher. He overcame dyslexia to become a Rhodes scholar and study philosophy at Oxford.

Sparks fly over cigarette nicotine limit

Sparks fly over cigarette nicotine limit

Combustible tobacco could be relegated to the ashtray of history one day if health authorities in the US manage to push through unprecedented and highly controversial rules limiting nicotine in standard cigarettes. The US Food and Drug Administration appears committed to the idea of introducing a rule to set a maximum nicotine level for cigarettes, …read more

Falun Gong, Griffith Uni’s Fraser at odds over organs

Falun Gong, Griffith Uni’s Fraser at odds over organs

A spiritual leader’s criticism of a Griffith University academic in a parliamentary hearing was one of the few public skirmishes in a hard-fought battle behind the scenes, now set to culminate in an official misconduct hearing at the university next month.