The Conversation - Australia

Aotearoa New Zealand has a long history of international leadership in improving health security, from nuclear disarmament to pandemic control. But recent decisions – including the outgoing coalition government’s apparent retreat from supporting global pandemic prevention, preparedness and response strategies – threaten that reputation, and potentially the population’s safety. In March this year, citing concerns about national sovereignty, the government formally rejected the latest revision of

GettyImages Two contrasting polls were released last week giving very different indications of what might happen at this Saturday’s election. The Verian poll for 1News showed right-wing parties (National, ACT and NZ First) further ahead of the left-wing parties (Labour, the Greens and Te Pāti Māori). That gave the right a lead of 9.1 points, enough to win a majority of seats even if the centrist Opportunity Party’s 6.3% was added to the left’s total. The right had led by 7.3 points in the previo

Every day, we publish a selection of your emails in our newsletter. We’d love to hear from you, you can email us at yoursay@theconversation.edu.au. Monday November 2 “Your article ‘Friday essay: forget Big Brother, propaganda is now a form of hybrid warfare’ was sobering. It describes the erosion of democracy, as shared public spaces are replaced by the isolated virtual villages we now inhabit, increasingly filled with propaganda. Yet the author concludes by advocating 'common sense and a commit

Daniiielc/Getty A breath of fresh air does wonders for the body and mind. In some areas, however, the air may not be as clean as it seems. This may be due to pollution or natural hazards such as bushfires and dust storms. If you’re worried about air quality in your local area, there’s no shortage of apps and websites promising to help. But which should you choose? And can you trust the information they offer? Where to start In Australia, the most reliable place to start is your state or territor

An artist's impression of the little brown bandicoot. Nellie Piese / WA Museum A ten-year scientific investigation of museum specimens has uncovered two previously unrecognised bandicoot species, expanded the known range of the iconic quenda (or southeastern brown bandicoot), and reshaped understanding of one of Australia’s native mammal groups. Our new study examined hundreds of historical and modern specimens from museum collections around the world. The findings have led to the recognition of

Will the gnomes kill everyone in the rural Australian town of Nompton? Will Carrie get her revenge on her classmates? Will the traitors be identified? This month, our expert watchers are recommending everything from an Australian stop motion film about a snail, to a new adaptation of John Steinbeck’s East of Eden, to a couple of feminist dramas and a documentary about the manosphere. If you’re looking for a Sunday film, or your new binge-worthy series, here’s what to watch in November. Memoir of

Phynart Studio/Getty Images As a high school or uni student, you might sometimes find yourself putting off study to do other tasks even when an important assessment deadline or exam is looming over you. This can look like doom-scrolling, texting friends, or checking emails for the seventh time. You might even turn to tasks you usually avoid, such as cleaning, to put off study. After procrastinating, you may feel more negative, guilty, or stressed because you know the task you put off is importan

Ana Klipper/Unsplash, CC BY-NC About 757,000 Australian children aged under 15 lived in poverty in 2022-23 – more than all the people living in cities of Geelong, Newcastle and Wollongong combined. That’s about one in six Australian children, according to the latest estimates from the Australian Council of Social Service (ACOSS) and UNSW Sydney. But what happens to these children as they grow older? Do the disadvantages of growing up below the poverty line disappear as they finish school, find j

Have you ever gone to your GP to find out why you’re always tired, only to be told to lose weight? Or perhaps you’ve joined a gym hoping to move more, only to be bombarded with messages about “burning fat” and achieving the “ideal body”. These experiences reflect a common approach to health promotion that treats weight loss as the primary pathway to better health. But decades of research shows that focusing on weight worsens weight stigma. Weight stigma refers to negative attitudes or behaviours

In a politically polarised American electorate, it can be hard to find bipartisan consensus on many issues. Ahead of the US midterm elections, however, there is one thing almost everyone can agree on: concern about government corruption. A record 89% of Americans recently said in a Gallup poll that government corruption is widespread, with Republicans, Democrats and independents all in agreement (ranging between 83-91%). This marks a significant increase from 73% in Gallup’s polling from 2024. O

In a politically polarised American electorate, it can be hard to find bipartisan consensus on many issues. Ahead of the US midterm elections, however, there is one thing almost everyone can agree on: concern about government corruption. A record 89% of Americans recently said in a Gallup poll that government corruption is widespread, with Republicans, Democrats and independents all in agreement (ranging between 83-91%). This marks a significant increase from 73% in Gallup’s polling from 2024. O

As each new environmental assessment shows, the impacts on New Zealand’s natural and urban areas are only compounding. The government’s most recent national snapshot describes polluted rivers and coastal waters, declining biodiversity, poor air quality in some communities and greenhouse gas emissions that remain high by international standards. Increasingly extreme weather is exposing the consequences of how we manage our land. Flooding and landslides have devastated communities, while damage ca

Pauline Hanson has accused Anthony Albanese of “grubby dealings” after he offered an extra staffer to One Nation’s David Farley, and the government allegedly held out the prospect of grant money for water, a central issue with the MP. But the government and some in One Nation itself quickly pointed out the offer to Farley is in line with what was provided to Barnaby Joyce after he defected from the Nationals to One Nation. Farley has been left in an awkward position. He has rejected the offer bu

What’s that chirping sound coming through the detector? Did you feel something whiz past? Those are just some ways people react when they encounter microbats for the first time. Microbats are small, mostly nocturnal mammals that use ultrasonic sounds to navigate and hunt at night. They do this through echolocation, producing calls and listening to the echoes that bounce back from objects and prey. Their nocturnal habits, small size and fast flight can make them uniquely difficult to find and stu

Yuting Gao/ Pexels For most of the year, parents teach children not to talk to strangers, not to accept things from people they don’t know, and to take care when crossing the road. Then Halloween arrives, and suddenly we’re knocking on strangers’ doors, accepting handfuls of lollies from them and wandering the streets after dark. How can you help your children have a safe Halloween? Are there more injuries at Halloween? US data suggests children experience more injuries around Halloween. This in

Deshakalyan Chowdhury/Getty Images The inspector-general of the Australian Defence Force has released the executive summary of an inquiry into the culture and command of Australian special forces in Afghanistan. This inquiry followed the 2020 release of the landmark Brereton report, which investigated the conduct of Australian special forces personnel in Afghanistan between 2005 and 2016. The summary of the new inquiry focuses again on the Special Forces Task Group, in particular the responsibil

At the end of Star Trek: Generations (1994), surveying the wreckage of the crashed USS Enterprise he captained for nearly a decade, Jean-Luc Picard (Patrick Stewart) muses to his first officer, William Riker (Jonathan Frakes): … time is a companion that goes with us on the journey, reminds us to cherish every moment, because it will never come again. What we leave behind is not as important as how we’ve lived. Smiling, he quips to Riker, “After all, Number One, we’re only mortal.” Passing away t

Erin Patterson has lost her appeal against her 2025 convictions on three counts of murder and one count of attempted murder. She will now spend the rest of her life in prison, after the Victorian Court of Appeal also upheld a prosecution appeal and removed the 33-year non-parole period set by the trial judge. Known as the “mushroom murderer”, Patterson has attracted global attention. She was found to have mixed death cap mushrooms into the beef wellington she served the relatives of her estrange

A Grateful Son, the first book by Josh Frydenberg – former federal treasurer, former deputy leader of the Liberal Party, and former member for Kooyong – might be regarded as one of the longest job applications in history. He makes it clear that he has an alternative vision to the current Liberal leadership for how to return the party to power. This is most explicit in the concluding chapter, titled “a better way”. But it is also evident from comments scattered throughout. Review: A Grateful Son

S&G/PA Images via Getty Images, Wikimedia Commons, Canva, The Conversation Sports fans can be a superstitious lot. Some believe sitting in the same seat every game helps their team win. Many wear so-called “lucky” jocks. Some grow “playoff beards”. Others go as far as believing their team is cursed. After a long championship drought or numerous heartbreaking losses, it can seem like the most logical explanation. Here are some of the weirdest and most surprising curses in world sport. Guttmann’s