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1 week ago | 
abc.net.au | Belinda Smith |Fiona Pepper
Gout Gout is fast becoming the face of Australian athletics, regularly clocking blisteringly quick times over 100- and 200-metre sprints. And he's only 17. Many think the best is yet to come. So what is it about Gout that makes him such an impressive sprinter at such a young age? Learn more on Lab Notes, the show that brings you the science behind new discoveries and current events.
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2 weeks ago | 
abc.net.au | Belinda Smith |Fiona Pepper
We've been hearing a lot about a certain proposal to get nuclear power up and running in Australia, but little's been said about what happens when plants reach the end of their life. Decommissioning a single nuclear power plant can cost hundreds of millions of dollars and take decades. So what's involved, and why is the process so long and expensive? Learn more on Lab Notes, the show that brings you the science of new discoveries and current events.
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3 weeks ago | 
abc.net.au | Belinda Smith |Fiona Pepper
Hearts, kidneys and now livers — over the past couple of years, surgeons have taken all these from gene-edited pigs and put them in people. But the history of taking bits from animals and putting them in humans — called xenotransplantation — stretches back centuries. So how did we get to the current cluster of pig organs in patients, and what are the ethical considerations as new clinical trials forge ahead?
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1 month ago | 
abc.net.au | Belinda Smith |Fiona Pepper
As far as planets go, they don't get much more iconic than Saturn. A huge golden ball encircled by gigantic rings. But those distinctive rings — the very things that give Saturn its pizzazz — have seemingly disappeared. So what’s going on, and when will they be back? Learn more on Lab Notes, the show that brings you the science of new discoveries and current events. Get in touch with us: [email protected] you or someone you know interested in the 2025 ABC Top 5 Science media residency program?
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1 month ago | 
abc.net.au | Belinda Smith |Fiona Pepper
They might be the epitome of cool, but Formula 1 race car drivers can get hot — really hot. An F1 cockpit can heat up to 60 degrees Celsius, and this affects cognition — the last thing you want when you're fanging around a track at 300kph. This year, a new rule was introduced to give F1 drivers a bit of relief from that heat … which is just one of the risks of F1 racing. Because we often hear about the performance of the cars in the race, but what about the humans behind the wheel?
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1 month ago | 
abc.net.au | Belinda Smith |Fiona Pepper
For women who get bacterial vaginosis or BV, a common condition that can cause a fishy-smelling discharge, many will get it again (and again). Why some people were prone to recurrent BV was a mystery … until now. Australian researchers have shown that BV-related bugs can be sexually transmitted, and treating male partners significantly cuts recurrence rates. Learn more on Lab Notes, the show that brings you the science of new discoveries and current events.
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1 month ago | 
abc.net.au | Belinda Smith |Fiona Pepper
A weekly injection that stops that hankering for hot chips and donuts? Many people on Ozempic and similar medications report this phenomenon, saying they no longer have incessant thoughts about sweets and fried food. So how do these drugs, known as GLP-1 agonists, work in the brain to dial down "food noise" and help people lose weight? Learn more on Lab Notes, the show that brings you the science of new discoveries and current events.
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1 month ago | 
abc.net.au | Belinda Smith |Fiona Pepper
The H5N1 strain of avian influenza is currently ripping through the US, infecting wild animals, livestock and people. One person has died, and around 70 more infections have been confirmed. Meanwhile, the Trump administration has made massive cuts to the nation's leading science and health agencies, and announced plans to withdraw from the World Health Organization. As the risk of another pandemic rises, what does all this mean for us in Australia?
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2 months ago | 
abc.net.au | Belinda Smith |Fiona Pepper
An asteroid dubbed 2024 YR4 is causing a stir among the space community and a frenzy in the media. It currently has a 2.3 per cent chance of crashing into Earth three days before Christmas in 2032. But this is not our first asteroid rodeo. We find out how a different asteroid — one which once posed an even bigger threat than YR4 — can help us understand the situation we’re in now ... and which threats from outer space really keep astronomers awake at night.
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2 months ago | 
abc.net.au | Belinda Smith |Fiona Pepper
Varroa is the parasite responsible for destroying bee colonies all around the world, regarded as "the greatest biological threat to Australia's honey bee population."Until recently Australia was known as the last inhabited continent free of the mite. Then in June 2022, the mite was first detected in New South Wales, then in Victoria and, just last month, in hives five kilometres from the Queensland border. The good news is that some honey bees can fight back.
