news

« BACK

Australian National University


Results 481 - 500 of 669.


Environment - Life Sciences - 30.05.2016
Warm springs, early laying don’t harm bird flocks »
We found that the number of fledglings increased when birds laid their eggs earlier, but that this had no effect on their population sizes. So we think that there is something else coming into it. A new study has found that many bird species lay their eggs earlier when spring is warmer, but that the timing has no damaging impact on their overall numbers.

Environment - 24.05.2016
Northern invaders threaten Antarctic marine life »
An international study led by The Australian National University (ANU) has found evidence that marine life can easily invade Antarctic waters from the north, and could be poised to colonise the rapidly-warming Antarctic marine ecosystems. The Antarctic Polar Front, a strong ocean front formed where cold Antarctic water meets warmer waters to the north, has historically been seen as a barrier preventing movement of marine life.

Earth Sciences - Astronomy & Space - 16.05.2016
Clues to ancient giant asteroid found in Western Australia »
Scientists have found evidence of a huge asteroid that struck the Earth early in its life with an impact larger than anything humans have experienced. Tiny glass beads called spherules, found in north-western Australia were formed from vaporised material from the asteroid impact, said Dr Andrew Glikson from The Australian National University (ANU).

Life Sciences - 13.05.2016
Possums in NZ prefer leaves high in available protein »
By identifying the forests, or tree species, that have high digestible protein concentrations, strategies can be put in place to protect those forests. Researchers at The Australian National University (ANU) have found possums in New Zealand prefer to eat leaves high in available protein, giving authorities new evidence to help them limit possum damage to New Zealand's forests.

Social Sciences - 12.05.2016
ANU report finds low income families hit hard by Budget »
A new report from The Australian National University (ANU) has found proposed measures in the 2016-17 Budget would impact low income families with children more significantly than other families. The report, written by Associate Professor Ben Phillips from the ANU Centre for Social Research and Methods, models a range of Budget measures that directly impact households, such as changes to family payments, childcare, taxation, tobacco excise and superannuation.

Life Sciences - 11.05.2016
Genital size doesn’t matter - for fish »
Big isn't always better when it comes to the size of male genitals. Researchers at The Australian National University (ANU) have been looking at the breeding habits of fish, to test the theory that bigger genitals make males more attractive or successful in fathering offspring. They found when it comes to fish, females don't find males with big genitals any more attractive than those with normal or smaller genitals.

History & Archeology - 11.05.2016
Archaeologists find world’s oldest ground-edge axe in Australia »
This is the earliest evidence of hafted axes in the world. Nowhere else in the world do you get axes at this date. Archaeologists from The Australian National University (ANU) have unearthed fragments from the edge of the world's oldest-known ground-edge axe, found in the Kimberley region of Western Australia.

History & Archeology - 11.05.2016
Archaeologists find world’s oldest axe in Australia »
This is the earliest evidence of hafted axes in the world. Nowhere else in the world do you get axes at this date. Archaeologists from The Australian National University (ANU) have unearthed fragments from the edge of the world's oldest-known axe, found in the Kimberley region of Western Australia. Lead archeologist Professor Sue O'Connor said the axe dates back between 46,000 and 49,000 years, around the time people first arrived on the continent.

Health - Life Sciences - 06.05.2016
Starving cancer the key to new treatments »
ANU researchers have found a vital supply route that cancer cells use to obtain their nutrients, in a discovery that could lead to new treatments to stop the growth of tumours. The research team blocked gateways through which the cancer cell was obtaining the amino acid glutamine and found the cells almost completely stopped growing.

History & Archeology - Life Sciences - 20.04.2016
The history of orangutans in human culture »
Orangutan's are so similar to humans that there is now a strong movement to give them qualified human rights. Image: Travis Isaacs, Flickr. They've been known to show compassion, there's a video of an orangutan rescuing a duckling that was in difficulty. That's something pretty special. The similarities between orangutans and humans, and the argument that primates should be given their own form of human rights, will be put under the microscope in a presentation at The Australian National University (ANU).

Astronomy & Space - Physics - 05.04.2016
Supernovae showered earth with radioactive debris »
An international team of scientists has found evidence of a series of massive supernova explosions near our solar system, which showered the Earth with radioactive debris. The scientists found radioactive iron-60 in sediment and crust samples taken from the Pacific, Atlantic and Indian Oceans. The iron-60 was concentrated in a period between 3.2 and 1.7 million years ago, which is relatively recent in astronomical terms, said research leader Dr Anton Wallner a nuclear physicist in the ANU Research School of Physics and Engineering.

History & Archeology - Administration - 04.04.2016
Ancient burial ground discovery adds to jar mystery »
One theory is that they were used to decompose the bodies. Later, after the flesh was removed the remains may have been buried around the jars. Archaeologists from The Australian National University (ANU) have unearthed an ancient burial ground at one of Asia's most mysterious sites - the Plain of Jars in Laos.

Computer Science - 24.03.2016
Aussie slang increases likeability »
"If she used slang in her Australian English accent, they liked her more. However, if she used slang in a foreign accent it didn't change the amount they liked her. A new study on Australian slang has found that using Australian slang words like 'ambo', 'uggies' or 'mobes' increases your likability among fellow Australians.

Life Sciences - Environment - 23.03.2016
Species at risk from prescribed burns »
Researchers at The Australian National University (ANU) have found current approaches to controlled hazard-reduction burns could have adverse effects on the genetic diversity of animal and plant populations. Dr Annabel Smith, who led the research at the ANU Fenner School of Environment and Society, said fire can fragment habitat in a similar way to vegetation clearing, limiting species' access to potential breeding partners.

Health - 15.03.2016
How the world stopped Ebola »
New research has found the successful end to the spread of the Ebola Virus Disease (EVD) in West Africa was due to a coordinated response and the accepted traditional measures of control used in past outbreaks. Researcher Dr Kamalini Lokuge from The Australian National University (ANU) was part of an international team on the ground during the Ebola outbreak that ended in Sierra Leone in November 2015.

Physics - Astronomy & Space - 07.03.2016
Hundred million degree fluid key to fusion »
Scientists developing fusion energy experiments have solved a puzzle of why their million-degree heating beams sometimes fail, and instead destabilise the fusion experiments before energy is generated. The solution used a new theory based on fluid flow and will help scientists in the quest to create gases with temperatures over a hundred million degrees and harness them to create clean, endless, carbon-free energy with nuclear fusion.

Life Sciences - 16.02.2016
Cockatoos win, swallows lose when roos come to town »
Kangaroo grazing has a huge impact on grasslands and bird populations, potentially leading to population explosions of some species while others decline, a new study from The Australian National University (ANU) has found. A study of 127 sites in ACT, NSW and Victoria found that large birds such as cockatoos and galahs prefer areas where there are large populations of kangaroos.

Astronomy & Space - Physics - 11.02.2016
ANU plays a key role in discovery of gravitational waves »
ANU scientists are part of a global scientificcollaboration which has proven the existence of gravitational waves for the first time, 100 years after their existence was predicted by Albert Einstein's General Theory of Relativity. The confirmed observation of a gravitational wave, ripples in space caused by the collision of two black holes, is a major discovery and opens up new fields in physics and astrophysics.

Life Sciences - 28.01.2016
How queen bees control the princesses »
"It brings us one step closer to understanding how these animals evolved their amazing cooperative behaviour, which in many ways is a step beyond human evolution Queen bees and ants emit a chemical that alters the DNA of their daughters and keeps them as sterile and industrious workers, scientists have found.

History & Archeology - Earth Sciences - 21.01.2016
Oldest battlefield discovered in Kenya »
Scientists have uncovered human fossils from a horrific slaughter on the shores of a lake, which they believe may be one of the oldest known examples of warfare. The 10,000 year-old find, at Nataruk near Lake Turkana in Kenya, included five skeletons with crushed skulls and five with seemingly fatal arrow injuries.