When you think of leaders in the space sector, big hitters like NASA and private companies like SpaceX spring to mind.But since the very beginning of the Space Age, Australia has played a role in the space flight industry.And this year, an Australian company tried to launch a rocket from Australian soil.So why is Australia building and launching rockets at all, especially when so many nations are already miles ahead?You can binge more episodes of the Lab Notes podcast with science journalist and presenter Belinda Smith on the ABC Listen app (Australia). You'll find episodes on animal behaviour, human health, space exploration and so much more.
As The Science Show concludes its celebration of 50 years, we remember John Clarke’s contributions to early Science Shows and point to a film just released looking at John’s life, produced by his daughter Lorin.
One in four Australians get hay fever, and as the planet warms, our seasonal sneezes and sniffles are tipped to get much, much worse.
Join us for highlights from fifty years of The Science Show including Fred Dagg, who helps us with the big questions: what is it all about and why are we here?
Every now and again, dozens or even hundreds of perfectly healthy looking whales strand themselves on a beach. Scientists have a few theories on why they do this.
Samples from asteroids have helped build a theory of the origin of complex molecules and how they made it to Earth.
Fresh Australian dietary guidelines are due next year, and they’ll likely focus on the health of the planet as well as people.
Small chemical groups inserted or removed from around DNA may affect gene expression and so be a way to control genetic blood disorders such as sickle cell anaemia and beta thalassemia.
Meat ants don't sound like the most endearing Australian animals. These purple-red insects are super territorial, swarming and biting anything that threatens their nest. But it turns out they're not just aggressive, flesh-tearing fighters. They're also farmers, architects, and — best of all — cane toad exterminators.
Is the US shooting itself in the foot, or shooting itself in the head? As Donald Trump removes funding for medical research, climate research and more, Matthew England reflects on how science will help us cope with a changing world.
It's impossible to escape microplastics. They're in our food and water, and the air around us is teeming with them.So considering they're all around us, how can we minimise our exposure to tiny plastic fragments without resorting to living in a cave?
A 100-yr flood is now a more regular occurrence in the German town of Passau, bringing widespread destruction, another local impact of a planet getting hotter.
It feels like you can't go a week without hearing about some new quantum technology which promises to change our lives for the better. But quantum mechanics is already well and truly present in our daily life — and you don't even have to be a physicist to be using it.
There was a famous debate. And truly weird ideas about how the universe works at a subatomic level. Shelby Traynor traces the history of quantum mechanics.
If you've given birth to three daughters, what are the odds that your next child will also be a girl?One in two, right? Well … maybe not.The odds of having a fourth girl could be a fair bit higher than 50 per cent, according to a new study into families with single-sex sets of siblings.
Discover the story of a pair of brothers who invented an early electric scooter, humidicrib, fax machine, Olympic scoreboard — and much more! — in their South Australian workshop from the 1930s to the 60s.We also learn about a trial that's generated energy from the waves, and unearth two rare photographs of a long-lost bandicoot species.
A huge net, weighed down by heavy chains, swiftly sweeps across the ocean floor, scooping up everything in its path. This type of fishing, called bottom trawling, was illuminated in a new documentary, Ocean with David Attenborough. Bottom trawling is known for indiscriminately gathering all sorts of marine species, as well as damaging the sea floor. But with the practice producing around a quarter of the world’s wild-caught seafood, are there ways to make it more sustainable?
In an electrifying episode of the Science Show, find out how getting struck by a bolt from the heavens can help at least one species of tall tree not only survive, but thrive. Then step back in time to solve a tool-making mystery in Samoa and discover hidden treasures in centuries-old books — including a bubonic plague flea.
In the three years since the James Webb Space Telescope sent back its first images, it's pulled back the veil on a whole bunch of mind-blowing cosmic phenomena. So how has this $13 billion bit of kit shaped what we know about the Universe — and what is yet to come?
We hear from scientists who push the boundaries of creation, whether that's building wild and wacky snack flavours (successfully) or cloning extinct tropical frogs (unsuccessfully … so far). And since President Donald Trump retook office, the state of health and science research in the US has been precarious for many who work in those areas. But there is a silver lining. Other countries such as Australia are implementing programs to recruit US researchers looking to relocate.
Doc Pip Thomas
What gives? Eight mins and then cut off mid sentence. This is the second pod that has been cut off half way.