Dark matter art; from space to the Deep; AI and First Nations; animal sounds and bits; a Poo Palace

Media releases, National Science Week

The national festival that reaches nearly 2 million people through thousands of events is back from 12 to 20 August.

Entertainment, business, environment, food and wine, Indigenous media, the arts, health, technology, farming and agriculture, lifestyle, education, LGBTQI+, and disability media…National Science Week offers stories for every round.

Here are a few early picks:

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What is your favourite animal sound? Cast your vote in our national poll

ABC projects, Media releases, National Science Week

Koo-koo-kaa-kaa, crawk, howl… nationwide project to proclaim Australia’s favourite call of the wild.

Media contacts: Laura Boland, laura@scienceinpublic.com.au or 0408 166 426; or Tanya Ha, tanya@scienceinpublic.com.au or 0404 083 863.

Participate at: www.abc.net.au/sounds from 31 July.

Do you love the summer night sounds of cicadas? Or the outback howl of dingoes? Are you intrigued by the lyrebird’s mimicry or the mating croaks of frisky frogs?

The search is on to find our most-loved Aussie animal sound. This National Science Week, ABC Science wants people to go online to eavesdrop on the animal kingdom, explore the wonder and science of bioacoustics, and vote for their favourite call of the wild.

“Bioacoustics – the study of the sounds of wildlife – is really important for science,” says ecologist and science communicator Dr Jen Martin.

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Media releases from the International Congress of Genetics

International Congress of Genetics

Daily alerts

Media releases

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Paranoid plants, productive sheep, queen bees, wheat, barley, rice, bin chickens, flower and fruit yield

Conferences, International Congress of Genetics

Agricultural genetic stories from the International Congress of Genetics in Melbourne.

Read on for more information about each story.

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Antidepressants, bowel cancer, ancient DNA, liver, heart, short stature, and Indigenous inequity

Conferences, International Congress of Genetics

Friday at the Genetics Congress

Genetic health stories from the International Congress of Genetics in Melbourne. Read on for more information about each story.

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Bin chickens; platypus threat; bilby poo; isolated koalas; sex changing fish

Conferences, International Congress of Genetics, Media releases

Thursday at the Genetics Congress

More on all these stories below.

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A prize for nonsense and quality control

International Congress of Genetics, Media releases

mRNA ‘quality control’ pioneers Allan Jacobson and Lynne Maquat receive US$500,000 Gruber Genetics Prize in Melbourne

Every plant, every animal, every human depends on mRNA to accurately translate the DNA of their genetic code into proteins, the building blocks of life.

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Are bin chickens spreading Japanese encephalitis?

International Congress of Genetics, Media releases

Are bin chickens spreading deadly diseases? Anjana Karawita and his colleagues at CSIRO’s Australian Centre for Disease Preparedness in Geelong are investigating the role of Australian ibis in spreading Japanese encephalitis virus

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$442 billion economic loss by 2100: the economic impact of sea level rise and storm surge on Victoria revealed

DEECA – Water and Coasts, Media releases

By 2100, the impacts of sea level rise and storm surge are predicted to result in a $442 billion economic loss according to a study led by the University of Melbourne and commissioned by the Victorian Marine & Coastal Council and Life Saving Victoria.

  • Impacts on land and property along the Victorian coast are predicted to reach a loss of $337 billion, with a further loss of up to $105 billion for wetlands.
  • More than 80,000 existing residential, commercial, and industrial properties covering 45,000 hectares will be impacted.
  • 144,000 hectares of coastal reserves will be affected as will 288,000 hectares of Victoria’s wetlands.
  • The cumulative impact will be about $40 billion by 2040. Without action, it will grow ten times as 2100 approaches.
  • Appropriate action over the next decade will dramatically reduce the long-term costs.
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Are we ready for gene testing and genetic medicine?

Conferences, International Congress of Genetics, Media releases

71 per cent of Australians believe that gene testing does not necessarily contribute to effective cancer or disease treatment according to a survey by Lonergan on behalf of gene technology company, Illumina.

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