Biology
Confessions of a professional baby maker
Reproductive biologist David Gardner explains what we're still learning about healthy embryo development and how it's being applied to improve IVF technologies.
Plants have feelings too
Plants' skin helps them adapt to their environment, meaning they can respond to challenges like high winds and rocky soil, says a University of Melbourne expert
Genetic snip and snap
Molecular biologist Professor Jacob Corn on the benefits and ethical challenges of CRISPR gene editing technology, covering human health and food security.
Outbreak! Managing human pandemics
Virologist Eddie Holmes on how better biosecurity and surveillance give us a chance of containing still-inevitable viral and bacterial pandemics.
A stone, skip and a hop away from saving a bay
Scientists are using healthy reefs in Port Phillip Bay, Victoria, to help repair damaged ones via a mechanism known as population connectivity.
Planting the seeds of sovereignty
Two plants that were brought to Australia more than 100 years ago bred together. But instead of creating a new hybrid, one plant has taken over.
Seven Super Mums of the animal kingdom
From orang-utans to koalas, from octopuses to spiders, these mothers of the animal kingdom take mothering to the extreme.
Some newborns hit the ground running – and why others don’t
Giraffes start running with the herd the same day they are born but humans can take a year or more just to start walking. The answer is economic.
Go with the gut: Our symbiotic relationship with our intestinal bacteria
Chemist Spencer Williams talks to the Up Close podcast on rapidly emerging understandings of human microbiota, the microorganisms residing on and in our bodies.
Brain ever changing: Neuroplasticity and its role in mental health
On this Up Close podcast, behavioural neuroscientist Anthony Hannan explores the dynamic, biodirectional interplay of brain and body.