Industry has increased its efficiency from what it was in the past, to the point where its current ecological footprint is a fraction of what it used to be.
Now imagine an industry sector that produces zero waste, is carbon neutral and husbands the earth’s resource endowment for future generations.
Since 1998, a public-private partnership between L’Oréal and UNESCO has promoted women in science. The L’Oréal-UNESCO Awards For Women in Science recognises outstanding women researchers who have contributed to scientific progress.
Continue reading The world needs science – science needs women
Rail CRC is releasing research outcomes from more than 45 research projects that span six universities and six years.
It is the first time this research has been publicly showcased, with many projects only just completed.
Embryonic stem cells from cattle can now be stored in mass in the laboratory, paving the way for advanced breeding developments in dairy cattle and other livestock.
These new ways of efficiently isolating and maintaining cells provide scientists from Australia’s Dairy Cooperative Research Centre with the raw materials to investigate a range of stem cell applications.
Sugarcane is one of nature’s most efficient natural converters of sunlight, carbon dioxide and water into fuel or biomass – and as such, it is perhaps the world’s fastest growing and largest biomass agricultural crop.
Continue reading Turning sugarcane into a clean green energy source
The strategic planning of open pit mining projects that span several decades is critical to achieving maximum project value.
To address this issue, BHP Billiton Global Technology has developed a mine planning optimisation software tool called Blasor™. By using optimal mine planning software, strategic planners can now determine ultimate pit sizes and pit development plans that deliver maximum value over the life of the mine.
Continue reading BHP Billiton leading the way in mine optimisation tools
VESKI – Victorian Endowment for Science, Knowledge and Innovation – has awarded its latest Innovative Fellowships to two outstanding woman scientists.
VESKI was established with a $10 million endowment from the Victorian Government to entice talented expatriates home.
Continue reading Women at scientific forefront awarded new VESKI Innovation Fellowships
In Australia we call them bushfires. In other parts of the world they are called forest fires, and global climate change and increasing human populations mean they are increasing in frequency and ferocity.
When Australian and Indonesian scientists revealed their “Hobbit” discovery in 2004, it created a sensation. Homo floresiensis was a previously undiscovered branch of the human family tree, raising images of a lost world of “little people” living on a remote island in eastern Indonesia.
What really excited scientists about the discovery of the one-metre tall adult skeleton in a cave on Flores was the realisation this species had co-existed with Homo sapiens until just 12,000 years ago.
Macquarie University laser physicists are part of a consortium developing a micro-processing platform that will revolutionise photonic chip fabrication. This technology has implications for a diverse range of applications such as fibre-to-thehome (FTTH), smart sensor arrays for aircraft, biosensing and astronomy.
Continue reading Making light work of photonic chip fabrication