_Homo floresiensis_ skull. Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SAAbout 50,000 years ago, humanity lost one of its last surviving hominin cousins, Homo floresiensis (also known as “the hobbit” thanks to its small stature). The cause of its disappearance, after more than a million years living on the isolated volcanic island of Flores,
There are two glaring lessons for politicians from the Anika Wells’ entitlements affair. First, don’t grab greedily at every generous entitlement MPs and especially ministers can get, even if “the rules” allow you to do so. Second, if you do get into trouble, show some humility and apologise
The Greens have suffered a year of significant setbacks. The election saw their numbers go backwards, losing three of their four lower house seats, then one of their senators, Dorinda Cox, defected to Labor. But the year ended on a positive note, with the Greens doing the deal with the
Reforms to Australia’s nature laws have passed federal parliament. A longstanding exemption that meant federal environment laws did not apply to native logging has finally been removed from the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act. Native forest logging will now be subject to national environmental standards – legally binding rules
Installation view of Westwood | Kawakubo on display from December 7 2025 to April 19 2026, at NGV International, Melbourne. Photo: Sean FennessyVivienne Westwood and Rei Kawakubo are two fashion designers who redefined “the look” of fashion on the street from the 1970s onwards. They were born a year
In October, Australia signed an A$13 billion rare earths and critical minerals agreement with the United States. This is designed to boost supply of minerals vital to everything from military technology to clean energy. Australia has large reserves of many of these minerals, while the US is trying to
Pauline Hanson/XBarnaby Joyce has finally made the jump to One Nation and will lead its New South Wales Senate ticket for the 2028 federal election. Pauline Hanson said on social media: “It’s official! We have made our announcement on 88.9FM in Tamworth.” “Welcome on board.” In a statement Hanson
Kindel Media/PexelsA federal government green energy program is subsidising unnecessarily large home batteries and blowing out in cost. The Labor government launched its A$2.3 billion Cheaper Home Batteries Program in July, with the aim of bringing down household power bills and reducing people’s reliance on the energy grid. The
Scott Webb/UnsplashWhen people think of gym goers using steroids, the picture that comes to mind is often of a man pumping iron, like Arnold Schwarzenegger, or modern day shirtless masculinity influencers like “the Liver King”. But the image is changing. Women now represent a growing share of people who
Merlinda Bobis’ In the Name of the Trees beguiles with its intricate prose and compressed poetics. In less than 150 pages, it tells the story of four generations of Bikol women, all of whom must, in various ways, resist and adapt to the colonisation and violent regimes of the Philippines.
National Cancer Institute/UnsplashThe terms tumour and cancer can refer to different types of lumps and bumps. But the terms are often confused and misused – by the general public and even health professionals. For instance, doctors can use euphemisms such as tumour, mass, lesion or spot when they really mean
Team New Zealand at the opening ceremony of the Special Olympics World Games in Berlin, 2023. Alexander Hassenstein/Getty ImagesOne of New Zealand’s biggest sporting events of this year, at least in terms of the number of participants, may not be one you expected. From December 10 to 14, the Special
_Homo floresiensis_ skull. Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SAAbout 50,000 years ago, humanity lost one of its last surviving hominin cousins, Homo floresiensis (also known as “the hobbit” thanks to its small stature). The cause of its disappearance, after more than a million years living on the isolated volcanic island of Flores,
There are two glaring lessons for politicians from the Anika Wells’ entitlements affair. First, don’t grab greedily at every generous entitlement MPs and especially ministers can get, even if “the rules” allow you to do so. Second, if you do get into trouble, show some humility and apologise
The Greens have suffered a year of significant setbacks. The election saw their numbers go backwards, losing three of their four lower house seats, then one of their senators, Dorinda Cox, defected to Labor. But the year ended on a positive note, with the Greens doing the deal with the
Reforms to Australia’s nature laws have passed federal parliament. A longstanding exemption that meant federal environment laws did not apply to native logging has finally been removed from the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act. Native forest logging will now be subject to national environmental standards – legally binding rules
Installation view of Westwood | Kawakubo on display from December 7 2025 to April 19 2026, at NGV International, Melbourne. Photo: Sean FennessyVivienne Westwood and Rei Kawakubo are two fashion designers who redefined “the look” of fashion on the street from the 1970s onwards. They were born a year
In October, Australia signed an A$13 billion rare earths and critical minerals agreement with the United States. This is designed to boost supply of minerals vital to everything from military technology to clean energy. Australia has large reserves of many of these minerals, while the US is trying to
Pauline Hanson/XBarnaby Joyce has finally made the jump to One Nation and will lead its New South Wales Senate ticket for the 2028 federal election. Pauline Hanson said on social media: “It’s official! We have made our announcement on 88.9FM in Tamworth.” “Welcome on board.” In a statement Hanson
Kindel Media/PexelsA federal government green energy program is subsidising unnecessarily large home batteries and blowing out in cost. The Labor government launched its A$2.3 billion Cheaper Home Batteries Program in July, with the aim of bringing down household power bills and reducing people’s reliance on the energy grid. The
Scott Webb/UnsplashWhen people think of gym goers using steroids, the picture that comes to mind is often of a man pumping iron, like Arnold Schwarzenegger, or modern day shirtless masculinity influencers like “the Liver King”. But the image is changing. Women now represent a growing share of people who
Merlinda Bobis’ In the Name of the Trees beguiles with its intricate prose and compressed poetics. In less than 150 pages, it tells the story of four generations of Bikol women, all of whom must, in various ways, resist and adapt to the colonisation and violent regimes of the Philippines.
National Cancer Institute/UnsplashThe terms tumour and cancer can refer to different types of lumps and bumps. But the terms are often confused and misused – by the general public and even health professionals. For instance, doctors can use euphemisms such as tumour, mass, lesion or spot when they really mean
Team New Zealand at the opening ceremony of the Special Olympics World Games in Berlin, 2023. Alexander Hassenstein/Getty ImagesOne of New Zealand’s biggest sporting events of this year, at least in terms of the number of participants, may not be one you expected. From December 10 to 14, the Special
