Extreme bushfires and the age of violent pyroconvection Professor Jason Sharples School of Physical, Environmental and Mathematical Sciences UNSW (Canberra) Over the last few decades, Australia and other fire prone parts of the world have seen an apparent increase in the occurrence of large destructive bushfires, such as those experienced during the 2019/20 Black Summer. These fires defy suppression, consistently result in the loss of life and property, and further [...]

Society as an information processing system, and the influence of the media Dr Erik Aslaksen FRSN Physicist, Engineer, and Author We are concerned about our environment, and rightfully so: the air we breathe, the water we drink, the food we eat, and threats to this environment from global warming, loss of biological diversity, and many other concerns. These are all concerns about our physical environment, much as an ice bear [...]

Ideas@theHouse: July 2021 Presented by Her Excellency the Honourable Margaret Beazley AC QC, Governor of NSW “Music as a Superfood: How music can help us live longer, sleep better, calm down, find flow, and feel happier” Greta J. Bradman Writer, broadcaster and psychologist About the talk: Greta Bradman will discuss how music can help us live longer, sleep better, calm down, find flow, and feel happier. The talk will include explorations of the [...]

The Intimate History of Evolution: The Huxleys 1825–1975 Professor Alison Bashford FRSN FAHA FRHistS FBA Laureate Professor of History UNSW (Sydney) For webinar registration and details...read more.  At Life Magazine’s 1947 photoshoot, Julian Huxley self-consciously arranged himself in front of a portrait of his grandfather, Thomas Henry Huxley. In the foreground, a well-known mid-twentieth century science writer, zoologist, conservationist—that generation’s David Attenborough. In the background, a mid-nineteenth century natural scientist – Darwin’s [...]

Our Energy Future: The Unrecognised Opportunity in Glasgow — In Two Acts Part 1: Context and Castles Part 2: Crushed Rocks Dr Saul Griffith FRSN including a conversation with Dr Adi Paterson FRSN This year, from 1–12 November 2021, Glasgow, Scotland will host the 26th session of the Conference of the Parties (COP) to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change. “Glasgow” is the current shorthand for this meeting — which [...]

Did the Aged Care Royal Commission provide a blueprint to fix Australia's aged care system? If not, what else needs to happen? Professor Kathy Eagar Director, Australian Health Services Research Institute University of Wollongong Summary:  We all are aware of the deficiencies that have been exposed by the Royal Commission into Aged Care. Since 1997, aged care has been managed by the Department of Health and it could be argued that it [...]

Taking humour and laughter seriously: Exploring the multi-disciplinary field of humour studies Dr Jessica Milner Davis FRSN Honorary Associate, University of Sydney For registration and details...read more.  From the time of Aristotle and Plato, philosophers have speculated about humour and laughter, proposing that ridere est humanum. But we now know that chimpanzees and rats also laugh. Sociologist Norbert Elias believed that laughter evolved as an antidote to aggression; but humour can [...]

Our Energy Future: The Unrecognised Opportunity in Glasgow — In Two Acts Part 2: Crushed Rocks Dr Saul Griffith FRSN including a conversation with Dr Adi Paterson FRSN See here for webinar registration and further details. This year, from 1–12 November 2021, Glasgow, Scotland will host the 26th session of the Conference of the Parties (COP) to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change. “Glasgow” is the current shorthand for this [...]