Sciences & Technology

Does Santa have to obey the laws of physics?

How fast does Santa actually have to travel to get presents to the kids of the world? Physics has some of the answers – but the rest is pure magic

Under the Microscope

How Australia’s ancient forests became an arid zone

Studying the genetic relationships between desert plants is helping Dr Rachael Fowler to understand how they evolved in Australia’s arid zone, once dense forest

From sand to superposition: A key step towards a powerful silicon quantum computer

A major obstacle to quantum computing has been overcome by modifying a common industrial method to create large arrays of single atoms in a silicon chip

New genomic toolkit set to boost Australian crop industry

Scientists are in a battle to keep the world’s food supply dependable, and new research into crop genomes is helping to lead the way

A bit of bling helps insects dazzle their predators

Beyond just looking stunning, shininess may help insects confuse predators to avoid being eaten

Opinion

We don’t just need more engineers, we need next-gen engineers

Our profession’s future is not just about training more and more recruits to fill the shortage, we also need to focus on the qualities of our next-gen engineers

On the Road to Gundag(AI): Ensuring rural communities benefit from the AI revolution

AI is already used throughout rural communities from precision agriculture to self-driving trucks. But we need to help regional small businesses benefit from AI while avoiding the harmful aspects

Ethics, privacy and the perils of 'deepfake geography'

Geospatial AI could transform healthcare and disaster management, but we need comprehensive guidelines and laws to mitigate misinformation and safeguard users

Analysis

Banning kids from social media? There’s a better way

The Australian government’s plan to ban kids from social media overestimates the tech available to limit access and overlooks the benefits

How science is making the sci-fi ‘tractor beam’ a reality

A new way of pulling particles with light may sound like the stuff of science fiction, but it’s real and has the potential to make biopsies less invasive