Energy

Health & Medicine
Your cold house is bad for your mental health
New research finds that the poorest Australians in the worst health are living in the coldest homes during Australian winter and it’s putting their mental health at risk

Sciences & Technology
Why you don’t want ‘phantom energy’ on a spacecraft
Measuring and removing unexpected ‘phantom’ levels of electricity from energy harvesting devices has been challenging – until now

Sciences & Technology
Nano inks could change how we use energy
New research uses ‘phase change inks’ to control temperature in everyday environments – reducing our energy consumption for a sustainable climate future

Health & Medicine
Reducing COVID-19 transmission without costing the Earth
While opening windows reduces COVID-19 spread, it also increases buildings’ energy use – new research has tested more efficient alternatives

Sciences & Technology
Tech can do a lot, but won’t get us to net zero on its own
The Morrison government’s emphasis on technology to drive down emissions will still need taxes and subsidies to achieve net zero

Environment
How our housing can make it feel like an Arctic winter
Australia’s housing just isn’t good enough when it comes to dealing with winter temperatures – we need to take lessons from the Northern Hemisphere

Sciences & Technology
The nanowires building greener nanodevices
A new material for nanowires, designed by computer simulations, paves the way for a new era of photonic and quantum electronic technologies, consuming less energy and reducing operating costs

Sciences & Technology
A solution to engineering energy-saving smart materials
Smart materials block harmful radiation and heat, combatting energy wastage. A new way to engineer smart materials at lower temperatures could make more buildings energy-saving

Environment
COVID-19 is an opportunity to reset our environmental future
The COVID-19 restrictions are having short-term environmental benefits, but the crisis also presents an opportunity to plan Australia’s low or zero net emissions future

Sciences & Technology
Making milk powder less energy intensive
A new pilot study demonstrates the potential to use a cheese by-product to concentrate skim milk, reducing the energy required in dairy powder production