science wire

More than 5,000 people headed to Mount Stromlo Observatory to view the Transit of Venus last week. The rare astronomical event, where the planet Venus passes between the Earth and the Sun, will not occur again until 2117.

More than 75 per cent of Australians support a ban on junk food advertising during children's television programs, nearly half of Australians feel that GM foods are safe to eat, and a small but signi

The 21st century's first new state Timor-Leste gained independence from a powerful Indonesian regime by swapping guns for diplomacy, a groundbreaking study from The Australian National University has revealed.

Scientists will soon have a greater understanding of the dramatically spreading, rifting and faulting boundary of the Australian and Pacific tectonic plates, thanks to research from The Australian National University. Professor Richard Arculus from the Research School of Earth Sciences, part of the ANU College of Physical and Mathematical Sciences, led a research team of geologists on a three-week research voyage over May to June.

Construction of a pioneering plasma thruster - an engine that could be used to power satellites to Mars - and a space simulation facility that will aid the development of the first Australian satellites is underway at Mt Stromlo Observatory.

In a world first, oil buried deep in the Amazonian rainforest in Ecuador is set to stay in the ground in exchange for help with the country's economic development, in a project involving researchers from The Australian National University.

ANU Chancellor Professor the Hon. Gareth Evans has been announced as the Chair of The Centre for Nuclear Non-proliferation's newly established International Advisory Board.

The release of Eastern bettongs from Tasmania into the ACT's predator-proof sanctuary at Mulligans Flat Nature Reserve last week, could be the key to help recover endangered Box Gum grassy woodlands, according to research from The Australian National University.

An ANU-run website that aims to provide support for Australian families and children dealing with trauma, loss and grief has been launched.

After a mammoth legal battle, the UK Supreme Court will tonight decide the fate of Julian Assange, a verdict that could have serious ramifications for the Wikileaks founder, according to an international law expert at The Australian National University.

The Australian National Dictionary Centre is a joint venture between Oxford University Press and ANU.

An iPad app developed by ANU researchers is using people's photographs to illustrate complex mathematics.

The Namibian desert is home to some vibrant personalities, as TEGAN DOLSTRA discovered. It's 4am, hours before sunrise, well before the parched earth is baked in a suffocating oven, but Alecia Carter is already hot on the trail of her quarry.

A game-changing Pacific studies camp is turning rugby league stars into leaders, writes JAMES GIGGACHER.

Economic theorist Professor Rohan Pitchford is using game theory to understand the thorny problem of sovereign debt defaults. By STEPHEN GREEN. Two wild animals fight over a piece of meat. On the one hand, the prize; on the other hand, the effort each of them expends in fighting over it. It's winner-takes-all, loser-gains-nothing-but-exhaustion.

What's the secret to a successful academic career? Is it publishing papers? Supervision? Star students? Hanna Kokko has a different answer, writes TEGAN DOLSTRA.

Australia's wood collections are a nation's history told in timber, but how do you preserve them for future generations? MARTYN PEARCE reports. A library is something you would expect to find in a university, but this one will still surprise you. As you walk into the small room you notice shelves of dusty volumes, lined up and packed in.

Who has the right to write history? Is it the video makers of YouTube, the academics, or everyone else in between? Professor Marnie Hughes-Warrington, renowned history theorist and new Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Academic), enjoys the big questions about what, when, why and who to believe.

The death of long-time North Korean dictator Kim Jong-il has seen his son Kim Jong-un rushed into the country's hot seat.

From policy to politics through to personal decisions, thinking 'green' is changing our lives in numerous and profound ways.

The world's poorest people no longer face tragedy in every mouthful, thanks to the efforts of a modest man of science.

World-renowned political theorist and philosopher Professor Philip Pettit has been announced as the newest faculty member of the ANU School of Philosophy.

Koalas, small wallabies, bandicoots and other endangered animals could be 'traded' across Australia to prevent extinction, according to a wildlife expert at ANU.

Australia's relationship with Indonesia has always been defined by our neighbour being poorer and weaker than us.

The Australian National University and the ACT and Region Chamber of Commerce and Industry are working together to ensure a strengthened future for the ANU School of Music and the ACT music community.

The main technical difficulty in building a quantum computer could soon be the thing that makes it possible to build one, according to new research from The Australian National University. André Carvalho, from the ARC Centre for Quantum Computation and Communication Technology and the Research School of Physics and Engineering, part of the ANU College of Physical and Mathematical Sciences, worked with collaborators from Brazil and Spain to come up with a new proposal for quantum computers.

One of Australia's foremost astronomers, Professor Matthew Colless, has today been announced as the new Director of the Research School of Astronomy and Astrophysics at The Australian National University.

After a four month marathon journey, Brad Carron-Arthur will today fulfil his goal of running from Canberra to Cape York to raise money for mental health research.

Both the US and China will have to make big compromises if they are to see one another as equals, Hugh White writes in East Asia Forum .

Should we be worried about running out of oil? Is economic development causing the demise of the environment? Is it vital that we 'reduce, re-use and recycle' so that no waste goes to landfill? These

Burma's commitment to democratic reform will be tested when Aung San Suu Kyi takes her seat in Parliament next week, according to a leading Burma expert from The Australian National University.

How will the unrelenting demand for energy in China be met? And where does Australia fit in the picture? Frank Jotzo answers these questions in East Asia Forum.

Mullets. Singlets. Thongs. Stubby holders. In Inside Story , Frank Bongiorno asks what we talk about when we talk about bogans.