Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Kevin Trenberth, Distinguished Scholar, NCAR; Affiliate Faculty, University of Auckland

El Niño is officially here, according to the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, and with it comes a change from the La Niña weather patterns New Zealand has experienced for the past three years.

In particular, a switch from prevailing northeasterlies to southwesterlies means New Zealand is one of the few countries where cooler conditions are felt during El Niño. But what “flavour” will this El Niño be?

Time will tell, but El Niño has been looming for some time. Evidence of its imminent arrival could be seen last year in subsurface ocean temperatures, with a buildup of warm water in the Coral Sea and western tropical Pacific.

Moreover, it was overdue. When La Niña finally gave up the ghost in March this year, global sea surface temperatures were suddenly the highest on record (Figure 1 below), as the tropical Pacific abruptly began to warm.

Meanwhile, record high sea surface temperatures in the extratropical North and South Pacific were partly a signature from La Niña and partly a sign of global warming. The resulting “atmospheric rivers” delivered torrential rains to California in the north and New Zealand in the south.

These sea surface temperature changes can be readily seen by comparing variations from mean temperatures for December 2022 versus May 2023 (Figure 2 below). We can see a startling transformation throughout the central tropical Pacific, with a coastal El Niño off Peru and Ecuador strongly evident.

Modest cooling in the eastern North Pacific is associated with the train of storms that barrelled into the West Coast of the US and in northwest Australia from Cyclone Ilsa.

El Niño and New Zealand

The weather in the tropics is seldom average, however. It tends to fluctuate more like a roller coaster. In the atmosphere, this is referred to as the Southern Oscillation. The combined atmosphere and ocean phenomenon is often referred to as the El Niño-Southern Oscillation (ENSO).

The bottom of the roller coaster is the cold phase: a basin-wide cooling of the tropical Pacific, named La Niña, while the top of the roller coaster is El Niño, which occurs every three to seven years or so. The most intense phase of each event typically lasts half a year.

But El Niños can be very strong, and hence highly anomalous. La Niñas, by comparison, are usually moderate in strength and occur more often.

El Niños tend to peak in December, although their biggest atmospheric impacts may not be until February. The last major El Niño was in 2016-17, while a weak El Niño occurred in 2019-20.

Read more:
El Niño is back – that’s good news or bad news, depending on where you live

Coupled oceans and atmosphere

In the tropical Pacific Ocean, the atmosphere and ocean are strongly coupled. Surface winds drive surface ocean currents, and largely determine the sea surface temperature distribution, the differential sea levels, and the heat content of the upper ocean. In turn, the sea surface temperatures determine the winds.

Cool waters limit atmospheric convection and storm activity, while high sea surface temperatures attract convection, clusters of thunderstorms, and tropical cyclones (off the equator, where Earth’s rotation comes into play).

Heat that was stored up in the tropical western Pacific during La Niña is moved around and into the atmosphere during El Niño, mainly through evaporation. This cools the ocean and moistens the atmosphere.

Read more:
2023 hurricane forecast: Get ready for a busy Pacific storm season, quieter Atlantic than recent years thanks to El Niño

This alters where the main rainfall occurs. In turn, it changes the latent heating of the atmosphere that sets up “teleconnections” (links between weather phenomena in different parts of the globe) and major changes in the jet streams and extratropical storm tracks in both hemispheres – including across New Zealand, especially in winter.

Because most action occurs over the tropical Pacific Ocean, more settled weather and dry spells often occur over land.

The warmest years in terms of global mean surface temperature are the latter stages of El Niño events. 2016 is the world’s warmest year on record, in part because of the very strong El Niño event. But 2023 could beat that record – and odds are that 2024 will beat it by a lot.

So far, there is little evidence that climate change has altered ENSO events themselves. But all impacts of El Niño are exacerbated by global warming, including extremes of the hydrological cycle involving floods and droughts, which are already common with ENSO.

Impacts of El Niño

Of course, major events related to El Niño have serious social and economic impacts, too. Droughts, floods, heatwaves and other changes can severely disrupt agriculture, fisheries, health, energy demand and air quality (mainly from wildfires).

Research shows El Niño “persistently reduces country-level economic growth”, with damage now estimated in the trillions of US dollars.

Globally, El Niño is the largest cause of droughts; they are more intense, set in quicker and increase the risk of wildfires, especially in Australia, Indonesia and Brazil. In the weak 2019-20 El Niño, smoke from fires in eastern Australia affected the southern hemisphere to the extent that it blocked the sun and may have exacerbated the subsequent La Niña conditions.

Meanwhile, torrential rains are heavier, with greater risk of flooding, especially in Peru and Ecuador. Very wet conditions can also (though not always) occur in California and the southeast US.

Read more:
New study helps solve a 30-year-old puzzle: how is climate change affecting El Niño and La Niña?

Another ‘super’ El Niño?

New Zealand had its highest annual mean surface temperature on record in 2022. In the past year the preponderance of northeasterlies due to La Niña has seen an unprecedented number of tropical and subtropical storms bombarding the country.

The record rain event in Auckland on January 27, and Cyclone Gabrielle just three weeks later, were just two among many such events.

By contrast, New Zealand tends to experience stronger and more frequent winds from the southwest in winter and from the west in summer during El Niño. This can encourage dryness in eastern areas and more rain on the West Coast, with generally cooler conditions overall.

But El Niño varies, and there have been three “super” El Niños: 1982-83, 1997-98 and 2015-16. It remains to be seen whether the latest will join them. But together with the augmenting effects of global warming, any El Niño can be very disruptive. We need to be vigilant.

Kevin Trenberth does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

– ref. El Niño combined with global warming means big changes for New Zealand’s weather – https://theconversation.com/el-nino-combined-with-global-warming-means-big-changes-for-new-zealands-weather-207493

Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Evangeline Mantzioris, Program Director of Nutrition and Food Sciences, Accredited Practising Dietitian, University of South Australia

Rice is a staple food for billions of people in Asia and Africa. It’s also a versatile ingredient for many iconic dishes from around the world, including dolmades from Greece, risottos from Italy, paella from Spain and rice puddings from the United Kingdom.

Despite its universal appeal, the question asked in every kitchen, be it a professional one or your own home, is whether you should pre-wash (or rinse) your rice before cooking.

What do chefs and cooks say?

Culinary experts claim pre-washing rice reduces the amount of starch coming from the rice grains. You can see this in the cloudy rinse water, which studies have shown to be the free starch (amylose) on the surface of the rice grain produced by the milling process.

In culinary circles, washing is advocated for some dishes when a separated grain is sought after. Yet for other dishes such as risottos, paella and rice puddings (where you need a sticky, creamy effect), washing is avoided.

Other factors, such as the type of rice, family tradition, local health warnings and even the perceived time and effort required will influence whether people pre-wash their rice.

Is there evidence that washing rice makes it less sticky?

A recent study compared the effect of washing on the stickiness and hardness of three different types of rice from the same supplier. The three types were glutinous rice, medium grain rice and jasmine rice. These different rices were either not washed at all, washed three times with water, or washed ten times with water.

Contrary to what chefs will tell you, this study showed the washing process had no effect on the stickiness (or hardness) of the rice.

Instead, the researchers demonstrated the stickiness was not due to the surface starch (amylose), but rather a different starch called amylopectin that is leached out of the rice grain during the cooking process. The amount leached differed between the types of rice grains.

So, it’s the variety of rice – rather than washing – that’s critical to the stickiness. In this study, glutinous rice was the stickiest, while medium grain rice and jasmine rice were less sticky, and also harder as tested in the laboratory. (Hardness is representative of the textures associated with biting and chewing.)

You may still want to wash your rice, though

Traditionally rice was washed to rinse off dust, insects, little stones and bits of husk left from the rice hulling process. This may still be important for some regions of the world where the processing is not as meticulous, and may provide peace of mind for others.

More recently, with the heavy use of plastics in the food supply chain, microplastics have been found in our foods, including rice. The washing process has been shown to rinse up to 20% of the plastics from uncooked rice.

This same study found that irrespective of the packaging (plastic or paper bags) you buy rice in, it contains the same level of microplastics. The researchers also showed plastics in (pre-cooked) instant rice have been found to be fourfold higher than in uncooked rice. If you pre-rinse instant rice, you could reduce plastics by 40%.

Read more:
You’re eating microplastics in ways you don’t even realise

Rice is also known to contain relatively high levels of arsenic, due to the crop absorbing more arsenic as it grows. Washing rice has been shown to remove about 90% of bio-accessible arsenic, but it also rinses out a large amount of other nutrients important for our health, including copper, iron, zinc and vanadium.

For some people, rice offers a small percentage of their daily intake of these nutrients and hence will have a small impact on their health. But for populations that consume large amounts of heavily washed rice daily, it could impact their overall nutrition.

Another study looked at other heavy metals, lead and cadmium, in addition to arsenic; it found that pre-washing decreased levels of all these from between 7–20%. The World Health Organization has warned of the risk of arsenic exposure from water and food.

Arsenic levels in rice vary depending on where it’s grown, the cultivars of rice and the ways it is cooked. The best advice remains to pre-wash your rice and ensure you consume a variety of grains. The most recent study in 2005 found that the highest level of arsenic was in the United States. However it is important to keep in mind that arsenic is present in other foods including products made from rice (cakes, crackers, biscuits and cereals), seaweed, seafood and vegetables.

Read more:
High levels of cancer-causing arsenic in rice – so why isn’t it regulated in our food?

Can washing rice prevent bacteria?

In short, no. Washing rice will have no effect on the bacterial content of the cooked rice, as high cooking temperatures will kill all bacteria present.

What is more concerning is how long you store cooked rice or washed rice at room temperature. Cooking rice does not kill the bacterial spores from a pathogen called Bacillus cereus.

If wet rice or cooked rice is kept at room temperature, this can activate the bacterial spores and they begin to grow. These bacteria then produce toxins which can not be deactivated by cooking or re-heating; these toxins can cause severe gastrointestinal disease. So, make sure you avoid keeping washed or cooked rice at room temperature for too long.

Evangeline Mantzioris is affiliated with Alliance for Research in Nutrition, Exercise and Activity (ARENA) at the University of South Australia. Evangeline Mantzioris has received funding from the National Health and Medical Research Council, and has been appointed to the National Health and Medical Research Council Dietary Guideline Expert Committee.

– ref. Do you need to wash rice before cooking? Here’s the science – https://theconversation.com/do-you-need-to-wash-rice-before-cooking-heres-the-science-204692

Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Liquan Liu, Senior lecturer, Western Sydney University

None of us is a stranger to the downsides of the pandemic. For families with kids, kindergartens and schools closed during the lockdown, and parents had to manage schooling and working from home.

Yet there is a silver lining: our research shows that, in families where a parent’s mother tongue is not the language spoken in wider society, children learned more about that language during lockdowns.

Let’s call the language these parents speak the “home language” and the language society uses the “societal language”. Take me as an example: at home I speak Shanghainese with my mum, Mandarin with dad, and Telepath with my cat. But in the community and at work, I speak English, the societal language.

To many multilingual families, our kids’ home language often comes second to the societal language, which dominates their language development as they grow up. When parents witness this transition, they fear their children will gradually lose the ability to use the language they speak. They fear that, as a consequence, their children will lose touch with their roots.

Along with my colleagues, Elisabet García González and Elizabeth Lanza, we conducted a survey of around 200 multilingual families in Norway (to be published in the journal Multilingua). Parents expressed their concerns about their children’s development of home and societal languages. For example, one said:

Since our daughter mostly speaks [home language] with her father and [societal language] with me and at kindergarten (although her father and I exclusively speak [home language] to each other), her [home language] is generally less advanced than her [societal language] […]

Multilingual children rarely use all their languages in the same contexts or with the same frequency. This is often perceived as being more or less “advanced” in one language than the other, but in reality multilingual speakers use their languages as best fits their needs.

Despite these concerns, there was a silver lining. Our study found children’s home language literacy improved during the pandemic. The parents who reported the concern above later said:

We’ve clearly noticed that her spoken [home language] has developed during the lockdown.

Another family told us:

With the two-year-old, I noticed an improvement in her [home language] vocabulary while kindergarten was closed.

What is the reason for this improvement in the home language? As one family shared:

My children started to be interested and speak more [home language] during the lockdown. Assume this is a result of (us) working from home for an international company and them hearing mum use this (home) language.

Another said:

My kids have started using more [home language] in their [societal language] speech with parents and each other during the lockdown, because they are watching more YouTube and playing Minecraft, Animal Crossing and Zelda. Words from the games are difficult to translate into [societal language].

Our statistical analyses had something even more interesting to say: the improvement of a child’s home language made their parents feel more positive about their children being multilingual. Parents see it as a source of wellbeing, especially when they notice their child is picking up their mother tongue. Overall, family relationships, resilience, cultural connection and hope are boosted even in the darkest days of the pandemic.

Is this at the expense of the societal language, one may ask? Indeed, some parents were worried about the development of kids’ societal language, especially when it was not spoken at home. Others said the societal language was still being used during the lockdown, such as in online media. One parent said:

My son is a bit behind the level of the class. He really improved his [societal language] reading during the lockdown, since we had more time to individually support him in a positive way. Before, he was much more negative.

Another family told us:

The difference (in language use) was noticeable when the kindergarten reopened. [Societal language] came back for the kids as easily as restarting to ride a bike.

The societal language is often strong in young children – sometimes so strong that it can bully the home language into a corner. The key task for many multilingual families is not so much to find a balance between the two languages, but to make sure the home language is being actively used and not being overshadowed by the societal language.

Unity is important in society. Being able to speak a common language is important, but equity and diversity are important too. The ability to speak one’s mother tongue can become a source of belonging and wellbeing.

In addition, children growing up in a culturally and linguistically diverse environment tend to be more flexible. Their neurocognitive plasticity shines across developmental domains, from language learning to music perception.

So the pandemic lockdowns were bad, but not all bad. Our kids adapt and adjust to the new environment, and can surprise us with stronger skills that make mum and dad proud.

Liquan Liu receives funding from uropean Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under the Marie Skłodowska-Curie grant agreement No. 798658 hosted by Center for Multilingualism across the Lifespan at the University of Oslo, financed by Research Council of Norway through its Centers of Excellence funding scheme grant agreement No. 223265; and from Western Sydney University School of Psychology 20820 83181.

The corresponding academic publication will be published on journal Multilingua. DOI details to be added. Co-authors are Elisabet Garcia Gonzalez and Elizabeth Lanza.

– ref. A silver lining from the pandemic: how lockdowns helped kids learn the languages their parents speak – https://theconversation.com/a-silver-lining-from-the-pandemic-how-lockdowns-helped-kids-learn-the-languages-their-parents-speak-205012

Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By James Wood, Professor, epidemiological modelling of infectious diseases, UNSW Sydney

Each Omicron wave so far in Australia has had distinguishing features – the sharp rise and fall of BA.1, the widespread transmission among children and families in BA.2, a shift to more infections in older people with BA.5, then the confusing variant mix in the summer wave of 2022-23.

Now Australia is in its fifth Omicron wave, which has been brewing since February. But it has grown so slowly that many people may have not realised it until recent months.

Why has this most recent wave been so drawn out? And what has its real impact been on our health and health systems?

Slower spread, less testing

With most people in Australia now having been vaccinated against COVID, infected or both, we expect the virus to spread more slowly through the population.

This means the overall number of infections in the current wave should be fewer than in previous ones. Infections should also occur over a longer period of time.

But we also know people are mixing and socialising more than in previous waves. So it is easier for viruses such as SARS-CoV-2 (the virus that causes COVID) to be transmitted.

While these two factors counter each other, overall we expect to see reduced health impacts compared with previous waves.

We are already seeing fewer people with confirmed infections and fewer people who are unwell requiring hospitalisation.

We also know from weekly surveys that people are less likely to test for COVID and report their results at this stage of the pandemic. So reported cases are now a smaller fraction of all infections than in previous waves.

Read more:
Flu or COVID? You can now test for both at home with a single swab. Here’s what you need to know

New sub-variants are likely the cause

The slow and drawn out nature of the current wave is most likely due to the sequential emergence and spread of new Omicron sub-variants. The current wave started with XBB.1.5, then shifted to XBB.1.9.1 and XBB.1.9.2, then most recently XBB.1.16.

Each sub-variant has been able to spread where the previous one could not. But the competitive advantage of each has been minor. So we have only seen a progressive increase in infections as new sub-variants emerge, rather than the dramatic surges in infections and health impacts associated with previous variants.

Are we at the peak of the current wave?

There is some debate about whether New South Wales has reached the peak of its wave. However, forecasts for most other jurisdictions suggest declines have begun or are imminent.

But as always, there is uncertainty in how the wave will develop, and we cannot exclude the possibility of sustained epidemic activity over a longer period.

Hospitalisations for those infected with COVID may stay elevated for a while longer. This is due both to the lag between infection and hospitalisation and we are seeing a shift in infections to older people as the wave progresses.

Thankfully, we do not expect the health system to come under the pressure from COVID seen during the BA.5 wave in winter 2022. This is good news.

However, for the first time in Australia, the SARS-CoV-2 wave may coincide almost completely with influenza and RSV (respiratory syncytial virus) waves. This certainly appears likely in NSW. The combined impact of these three viruses may be significant.

Looking ahead, this combined threat will need careful attention. Surveillance systems need to be (re-)designed to detect, anticipate and forecast the combined burden of acute viral respiratory infections.

We expect COVID to contribute to the increased burden of seasonal respiratory diseases over the next few years, and perhaps well beyond.

Read more:
I need a flu shot and a COVID booster. Can I get them at the same time?

How about future waves?

Future COVID waves are likely to become much more predictable, and coincide with winter. While this is somewhat speculative, it is consistent with how other respiratory viruses behave.

What might this look like? In the United Kingdom all COVID indicators have seen a major decline after winter. We see similar patterns in other temperate northern hemisphere countries, such as the United States.

Although there are other contenders, internationally, it is likely that the next wave of COVID will also be caused by a sub-variant of XBB.

Without a clear successor to XBB.1.16 identified at present, a new wave will likely only form as genetic mutations accumulate during the next northern winter.

During that time (our Australian summer) people will travel between Australia and the northern hemisphere, re-importing these newer variants into Australia. As conditions in Australia change (next autumn) and the risk of transmission increases, a new wave may develop, peaking in the winter of 2024.

Alpha, Delta, Omicron waves

Of course, we have seen COVID behave very differently to this over the past three years. The Alpha, Delta and then Omicron variants appeared and spread across the globe causing large and often devastating waves.

But they occurred at a fundamentally different period of the pandemic, where small changes in the virus had dramatic consequences for transmission and our health.

Recent changes to the virus have provided far less advantage, suggesting such transformative events are now far less likely.

Still, we should maintain sufficient surveillance to keep an eye on emerging sub-variants (genomics), case numbers and hospitalisations – all essential if we are to protect our health and wellbeing.

James Wood receives funding from NSW Health and the National Health and Medical Research Council for projects on COVID-19. He has previously received funding from the federal government as part of COVID responses in 2020-21 and from WHO Western Pacific Regional Office in 2020. He is a current member of the Australian Technical Advisory Committee on Immunisation.

Freya Shearer receives funding from the National Health and Medical Research Council, the Australian Government Departments of Health and Foreign Affairs and Trade, and NSW Health.

James McCaw receives funding from the Australian Government Departments of Health and Foreign Affairs and Trade, the Australian Research Council and the National Health and Medical Research Council. He is an invited expert member of the Communicable Disease Network of Australia and between January 2020 and May 2022 was an invited expert member of the Australian Health Protection Principal Committee.

– ref. We’re in another COVID wave. But it’s not like the others – https://theconversation.com/were-in-another-covid-wave-but-its-not-like-the-others-206493

Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Susanne Schmidt, Professor – School of Agriculture and Food Science, The University of Queensland

Most food and garden waste in Australia comes from homes. Australian households waste 3.1 million tonnes of food each year. That’s more than five kilograms each household per week.

Over half of all household waste is food organics and garden organics, also known as “FOGO”. These scraps and clippings take up space in landfill and, when they rot, emit dangerous greenhouse gases.

The federal government’s National Waste Policy Action Plan aims to increase the organic waste recycling rate from 47% to 80% by 2030 and halve the amount sent to landfill. This won’t happen on its own – we need investment and action.

Food and garden waste can be captured and turned into compost. Composting is no longer just the domain of the home gardener or eco-warrior. It’s happening at commercial scale, through services such as council collection from homes.

A federal government fund is building new composting facilities and supporting other food and garden organics recycling projects. The South Australian government has invested in council trials of weekly green bin collection and fortnightly rubbish collection.

But more must be done. Recycling food waste into high-quality compost is a win-win solution, for people and the planet. Here, we explain why.

Read more:
Despite government delays, food waste recycling bins are coming to your kitchen sooner than you think

Compost is a winner for the climate

When food rots in landfill, in the absence of oxygen, the process releases a potent greenhouse gas called methane.

Composting is different because the microbes can breathe. In the presence of oxygen, they transform waste into valuable organic matter without producing methane. They recycle organic carbon and nutrients into compost, which can be used to improve soil health and productivity.

This process also captures and stores carbon in the soil, rather than releasing it as carbon dioxide (CO₂) to the atmosphere.

In Australia, organics recycling (including food and garden organics, biosolids and tree wastes) saves an estimated 3.8 million tonnes of CO₂ from entering the atmosphere each year. That’s equivalent to planting 5.7 million trees or taking 877,000 cars off the road.

Soils can profit from compost because globally an estimated 116 billion tonnes of organic carbon has been lost from agricultural soils. This has contributed to rising CO₂ levels in the atmosphere.

Promisingly, compost can restore soil organic carbon while also boosting health and fertility. Compost improves soil structure and water retention. It’s also a source of essential nutrients that reduces the demand for costly fertilisers.

The opportunity presented by soils to draw down atmospheric CO₂ levels was brought to global awareness in the 2015 global Paris Agreement, via the “4-per-mille” initiative.

Translated from French, it means increasing the organic carbon stored in global soils by 0.04% each year (4 per 1000) would neutralise increases in atmospheric CO₂. In other words, CO₂ would remain constant rather than continue to increase. That would make a substantial contribution to mitigating climate change.

Read more:
Soil carbon is a valuable resource, but all soil carbon is not created equal

Farming with precision

Our research has investigated how compost can benefit global agriculture.

We found that in most cases where compost is applied as a generic product to agricultural land, the benefits are not fully realised. But if suitable composts and application methods were aligned with target crops and growth environments, crop yields can be increased and organic carbon in soils replenished.

We call this a “precision compost strategy”. Using a data-driven approach, we estimate global application of this strategy has potential to increase the production of major cereal crops by 96.3 million tonnes annually. This is 4% of current global production and twice Australia’s annual cereal harvest.

Of great relevance for Australia’s farms, precision compost has the strongest effects in dry and warm climates, boosting yield by up to 40%. We now need to develop this strategy for the specific needs of farms.

Compost has the potential to restore 19.5 billion tonnes carbon in cropland topsoil, equivalent to 26.5% of current topsoil soil organic carbon stocks in the top 20 cm.

Give FOGO a go-go

The rate of food and garden waste in Australia is growing at a rate six times faster than Australia’s population and 2.5 times faster than GDP.

But less than a third of Australian households have access to food waste collection services. A national rollout has been pushed back from 2023 to the end of this decade so there is time to overcome some roadblocks. This includes uptake by community and high quality composting.

This waste stream offers a huge opportunity for landfill diversion and compost production. The cost benefit alone is compelling: councils can save up to A$4.2 million a year on landfill levies by diverting 30,000 tonnes of waste (based on A$74 to 140 per tonne of waste, with levies increasing).

Preventing food in the home from being wasted should be top priority. But for unavoidable food waste, turning it into high-quality compost makes perfect sense.

Read more:
What can go in the compost bin? Tips to help your garden and keep away the pests

us

Susanne Schmidt receives funding from Fight Food Waste CRC.

Nicole Robinson receives funding from Fight Food Waste CRC.

– ref. The case for compost: why recycling food waste is so much better than sending it to landfill – https://theconversation.com/the-case-for-compost-why-recycling-food-waste-is-so-much-better-than-sending-it-to-landfill-205583

Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Russell Tytler, Professor of science education, Deakin University

The case for action on climate change no longer needs to be laid out.

We see, almost daily, disturbing images of bushfires, floods or a mass extinction crisis. But however widespread that sense of urgency may be, we are struggling as a nation to respond in a substantive, coordinated way.

One thing is clear: these responses will need to be sustained and developed by future generations. Education is crucial for the workforce needed now and for young people who will be increasingly faced with the accelerating realities of climate change.

The Academy of the Social Sciences in Australia has done a review of research on climate change education in schools around the world.

Here we outline three areas needing urgent attention: the emotional and psychological effects of learning about climate change, the school curriculum and the education of teachers.

The emotional side of learning about climate

Teaching climate change in schools raises basic and potentially divisive questions about the purpose of education and the nature of childhood. We are supposed to teach children about their world. But what if in doing so, we scare them with facts about climate change?

We also know children are worried about climate change anyway. Many children and teenagers are stressed and anxious due to their growing awareness of climate change.

An increasing body of research is identifying approaches to teaching and learning about climate change that address students’ understanding in this complex area and engages them with positive actions.

This includes making climate change personally relevant, interacting with scientists to experience scientific practices and designing projects to address an aspect of climate change.

Read more:
Ignoring young people’s climate change fears is a recipe for anxiety

Climate change is (almost) missing from the curriculum

In 1975, UNESCO’s Belgrade charter on environmental education bluntly said the “youth of the world” needed a “new kind of education” if we were to avoid politically and economically short-sighted responses to environmental crises.

To date, environmental sustainability has not had a specific home in the Australian curriculum. It has been taught across various different subjects such as geography and science, or art, according to school and teacher priorities.

Our review found schools seem almost perfectly evolved to avoid, let alone prioritise, an educational area that relies on cross-curriculum activity.

The most recent update to the curriculum (agreed) under the former Morrison government in April 2022 included a more substantial focus on climate change at Years 9 and 10 in geography and science. But it ignores other foundational year levels in these subjects, and other potentially powerful parts of the syllabus, such as English and the arts.

Students need to receive a nuanced education, to understand the attitudes, motivations, and technologies that will address climate change. They need knowledge, but also the intent and skill to apply that knowledge faithfully and responsibly.

Student agency in confronting climate change is also becoming a key feature within international education circles. Australia participates in three main international tests, one of which is the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA).

The next PISA test in 2025 will measure

the degree to which 15-year-olds are knowledgeable of, concerned about, and able to act on environmental issues as a result of their science education.

So teacher education is key

So we need teachers to adapt their teaching. And the urgency lies now in developing their confidence, knowledge and supports to do this.

Our review found teachers around the world don’t always have the knowledge and training they need to tackle climate change in their classrooms. For example, one 2016 study found US science teachers had an “insufficient grasp” of climate science. A study of Australian education degree students came to a similar conclusion, despite their favourable attitude to environmental education.

This is understandable. Knowledge about the scale and nature of this complex problem has expanded so rapidly that whatever a new national curriculum may mandate, it is unrealistic to expect teachers (and teacher educators) to have naturally kept up.

Our review argues we need to “turbo charge” teacher education in universities and professional development programs in schools to develop a culture around climate change education. We need a national initiative to support teachers across all year levels in their knowledge of climate change and how to meaningfully engage students.

This needs to cover the interconnected issues of climate change, environmental destruction, social justice and Indigenous knowledges. We also need to be able to counter misinformation.

The scale of government decision-making around climate change mitigation, energy policy, and environmental reconstruction is huge. But as part of this, school education, and teacher education, need to be high on the agenda.

Read more:
Dumbed-down curriculum means primary students will learn less about the world and nothing about climate

Russell Tytler receives funding from the Australian Research Council. He is a Fellow of the Academy of Social Sciences in Australia and a member of the Climate Change Education committee.

Peter Freebody is a Fellow of the Academy of the Social Sciences in Australia. Up to 2013 he received numerous research grants from the ARC to study various aspects of the teaching and learning of literacy.

– ref. How should we teach climate change in schools? It starts with ‘turbo charging’ teacher education – https://theconversation.com/how-should-we-teach-climate-change-in-schools-it-starts-with-turbo-charging-teacher-education-207221

Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Travis Holland, Senior Lecturer in Communication, Charles Sturt University

In June 1993, director Steven Spielberg released a film that unleashed a wave of technological change in film-making and simultaneously helped to revive popular interest in dinosaurs.

Jurassic Park, based on Michael Crichton’s novel, spawned five blockbuster sequels as well as a multitude of spin-off games, toys, novels, and multiple animated television shows. It features a theme park housing de-extincted dinosaurs that break out of their confines and cause havoc.

Underpinning the plot is clever genetic engineering that has allowed the Park’s scientists to assume they could control all aspects of the dinosaurs’ development, including their sex, much to their later horror when it becomes apparent such control was never possible.

The film franchise has taken an average of over $1 billion dollars at the box office, according to Variety.

From puppets to CGI

According to industry legend and multiple documentaries, Spielberg had planned to use only practical effects, including stop-motion Velociraptors and an animatronic Tyrannosaurus Rex. However, well into the filming schedule, he was convinced to also include wholly digital dinosaurs after viewing test footage produced by staff at special effects house Industrial Light & Magic.

In a critical history of Industrial Light & Magic, Julie Turnock observes that the film “relied on a canny mix of large-scale mechanical effects cut together with a few digitally generated shots”. After its success, ILM embraced digital composition technology more fully and integrated it into many later films.

As it stands, Jurassic Park features about 50 shots of digital-only prehistoric creatures, including the first full-body scene of a dinosaur – the sauropod Brachiosaurus – flocking Gallimumus, and the T. rex chasing a Jeep.

Industrial Light & Magic now claims on their website that “Suddenly, directors could imagine making films in which realistic animals, fantasy creatures, even digital people could perform without restraint.”

Nowadays, films and television productions are replete with photoreal computer-generated animals and people and the next revolution in screen production has them projected live behind actors on a series of large screens known as “the volume”.

Palaeontologists aren’t extinct

Shortly after seeing their first dinosaur, on-screen palaeontologist Alan Grant (Sam Neill) suggests to his palaeobotanist partner Ellie Sattler (Laura Dern) that the de-extinction success of Jurassic Park might make their profession redundant. Their colleague Ian Malcolm (Jeff Goldblum) responds, “Don’t you mean extinct?”

But far from extinction, palaeontology and associated sciences have seen an extensive rebound in public interest in the thirty years since Jurassic Park was released.

In 1975, palaeontologist Robert Bakker popularised the term “dinosaur renaissance” to describe a spate of developing research findings which argued the creatures were endothermic (warm-blooded), active, and related to the birds rather than cold-blooded, slow and wholly extinct as had been the public perception for much of the previous century. This renaissance lasted from about the 1960s into the 1980s and Jurassic Park reflected many of these new orthodoxies.

Bakker himself consulted for the film and was referenced by the character Tim Murphy. A Bakker lookalike also appeared in the sequel The Lost World, further reinforcing its role in reflecting these new perspectives.

But the film also arrived at the dawn of yet another new age of dinosaur discoveries which Steve Brusatte, in his 2018 book The Rise and Fall of the Dinosaurs, described as “the golden age of discovery”. Brusatte referred to the cohort of scientists making these newer discoveries as “men and women from many backgrounds who came of age in the era of Jurassic Park.” Among their findings are new understandings that many dinosaurs were feathered like their modern avian cousins.

Elizabeth Jones recently chronicled the history of the field of “ancient DNA” science, noting the “Jurassic Park effect” playing out on this fascinating area of research:

Even as scientists rejected the conclusions or the implications of the Jurassic Park narrative, they drew on the popularity of the book and movie to emphasise the importance of the technical enterprise in which they were engaged.

And a recent review of the last 60 years of dinosaur research by celebrated palaeontologist Philip J. Currie suggested “public interest continues to be stimulated by a multibillion-dollar movie, media, and toy industry founded on our interest in dinosaurs.”

The Jurassic Park legacy

Dinosaurs have long featured in popular media such as films and television. The first animated dinosaur, Gertie, debuted as part of a vaudeville performance in 1914. Dinosaurs, including a fearsome Tyrannosaurus featured in Disney’s groundbreaking and famed 1940 film Fantasia. But it was Jurassic Park which truly presented them as believable living creatures for the first time.

Though the science of the film has been widely criticised since its release, Jurassic Park succeeded in revolutionising film-making and reigniting a public fascination with dinosaurs even as palaeontology itself underwent a boom in new research efforts. In his recent memoir, actor Sam Neill described the film’s visuals as “a perfect collision of coming-of-age computer generated imagery… with state of the art puppetry”.

The sequels sequels and spin-offs have continued to adapt to changing social expectations, featuring strong female and queer characters, and even feathered dinosaurs in response to changing scientific understandings.

Perhaps the next Jurassic film will feature a full-lipped Tyrannosaurus?

Travis Holland does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

– ref. How Jurassic Park changed film-making and our view of dinosaurs – https://theconversation.com/how-jurassic-park-changed-film-making-and-our-view-of-dinosaurs-203147

Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michelle Grattan, Professorial Fellow, University of Canberra

The Brittany Higgins saga has damaged almost everyone it has touched, or who’s touched it.

It will forever haunt Higgins, who alleged she was raped in 2019 in a minister’s office, and Bruce Lehrmann, who denied committing the alleged assault. An aborted trial has meant there is no legal judgement.

It helped destroy Scott Morrison. It deeply scarred Linda Reynolds, the minister in question, and had an impact on Fiona Brown, Reynolds’ staffer at the time who dealt with the matter.

In fresh rounds of this story that never goes away, more people are being dragged down, to greater or lesser degrees: the ACT Director of Public Prosecutions, police, some in the media. Now, Finance Minister Katy Gallagher is in the political frame.

After The Australian’s recent publication of texts between Higgins and her partner David Sharaz, exchanged in the run-up to the airing of Higgins’ 2021 interview with Ten’s Lisa Wilkinson, Gallagher faces allegations of misleading parliament.

In a testy exchange with Reynolds at a Senate estimates committee in 2021, Gallagher insisted she’d had no knowledge before the story broke.

Reynolds had claimed she’d been told by a Labor senator (who was the late Kimberley Kitching) “two weeks before about what you were intending to do with the story in my office”.

At the hearing Labor’s Senate leader Penny Wong immediately declared she’d had no knowledge, while Gallagher said categorically, “No one had any knowledge,” adding angrily, “how dare you!”

Reynolds subsequently said Gallagher and Wong later that day told her they’d had some prior indication but had nothing to do with the matter going public.

In the text exchange Sharaz, anxious to ensure the story would become an issue politically, flagged he’d shared information with Gallagher, whom he knew. He believed she would be useful in pursuing the matter when the Wilkinson interview was broadcast.

Gallagher at the weekend admitted she was told “there was going to be some public reporting that a young woman [was] making serious allegations about events that had occurred in a minister’s office”. Wong also qualified her position, saying she didn’t know “full details of the allegations before the story became public”.

The opposition is calling for Gallagher’s resignation or sacking, but that won’t be happening.

While her statement to the committee was misleading, Gallagher was not a minister. Indeed, even ministers do not fall on their sword these days for what was once considered the serious sin of misleading parliament. (In the 1980s, Hawke government minister John Brown did so, in the wake of an answer he gave to an opposition question.)

Precisely what Labor knew before the story broke remains unclear, as does precisely who in Labor knew about it. The Kitching leak indicated the senior Labor women in the Senate were aware – did they pass anything on?

But there was nothing improper about Gallagher receiving information – oppositions get alerts all the time. The issue was her denial at the Senate committee.

Labor will stare down the opposition’s attacks. It can counter by saying returning to the issue brings fresh trauma for Higgins, and the private text messages should never have been leaked (where they came from is unknown).

If it chooses, Labor can raise Brown’s weekend claims that, when the heat was on her over her handling of the Higgins matter, she received little support from Scott Morrison and his office (to which she’d returned by the time the story broke). Her weekend interview with The Australian carried the implication Morrison may have misled parliament when he told the House of Representatives he’d spoken with her about the matter (Brown said he hadn’t).

There’s unlikely to be much mileage for the opposition in the pursuit of Gallagher – although that’s not to say she doesn’t have questions to answer.

As Anthony Albanese has pointed out, the issue was about the former government, not the then opposition. For the Liberals to revisit it is to hark back to the Morrison days – bad territory for the Coalition.

Moreover, people have entrenched views about the Higgins matter and few opinions will shift.

Anyway, the public are now preoccupied with a range of bread-and-butter issues. They’re unlikely to focus on, or care about, the ins-and-outs of who in Labor knew what when.

But Reynolds cares a lot. All along she felt wrongly targeted, believing she behaved properly. Most recently, she was angered when not allowed into the mediation that saw Higgins receive a large sum of Commonwealth money. She wanted to mount her defence against the claims made about her and her office.

Reynolds intends to refer this payout to the National Anti-Corruption Commission, which commences operating on July 1.

Regardless of that, in the name of transparency, the government should provide the details of the payment.

Meanwhile, there’s a lot still to come in this story, even apart from what happens in defamation actions Lehrmann has launched. On the basis of the evidence we heard, the ACT inquiry into the conduct of criminal justice agencies in the case could be set to deliver a hefty load of brickbats in its report, due at the end of next month.

Michelle Grattan does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

– ref. View from The Hill: Brittany Higgins story continues its damaging trail, with no end in sight – https://theconversation.com/view-from-the-hill-brittany-higgins-story-continues-its-damaging-trail-with-no-end-in-sight-207500

Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Jared Mondschein, Director of Research, US Studies Centre, University of Sydney

Since Donald Trump announced his presidential candidacy eight years ago this week, few words have been more overused than “unprecedented”. It was unprecedented for a previously unelected politician who had never served a day in the US military or government to become president. It was also unprecedented for a US president to twice be impeached.

Yet again, there is no historical precedent for the fact that a former US president has been indicted by the federal government. Specifically, for 37 counts and seven separate charges concerning his handling of classified documents after he left the White House.

Compounding this challenge is the unmistakable political reality that the former president, who is currently the leading candidate to win back his old job, is facing the prospect that the US government, which is currently led by his chief political adversary, could imprison him.

From the allegations that the former president colluded with Russia, to Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg’s charges over falsifying business records, even many critics of the former president would admit Trump has been unfairly targeted by political opponents.

The norm-shattering former president, they posit, led Trump’s political opponents to engage in reckless behaviour that also shattered norms.

But few, if any, critics of the former president have stepped forward to say that Special Counsel Jack Smith’s indictment is political in nature.

What are the charges?

As detailed in a 49-page indictment released late last week, the charges allege that the former president was fully aware of the laws about classified documents, as well as the fact that the documents he maintained at his residence were not declassified.

The prosecution’s evidence for this include his statements in the 2016 presidential campaign against Hillary Clinton, as well as a recording of a conversation he had at his residence that indicated that he knew some documents in his possession remained classified.

These documents, the indictment alleges, were not merely informal papers that were perhaps over-classified. Instead, they

included information regarding defense and weapons capabilities of both the United States and foreign countries; United States nuclear programs; potential vulnerabilities of the United States and its allies to military attack; and plans for a possible retaliation in response to a foreign attack.

According to former Trump administration Attorney-General Bill Barr, the accusation that these charges are evidence the Department of Justice has been weaponised for political purposes is “ridiculous”. On the contrary, Barr told Fox News that if even half of the “very detailed” and “very damning” indictment is true, then Trump “is toast”.

Mixing the political with the legal

Since becoming a public figure in the 1980’s, Trump has been unmatched in his ability to successfully navigate countless investigations and lawsuits, seemingly without ever paying significant political or legal costs.

While few legal scholars are as confident the former president will escape unscathed in this instance, that has not changed Trump’s political strategy. Indeed, the former president’s hiring of a new legal team may be indicative of a change in legal tact. Despite this, his political approach has remained remarkably consistent.

Within hours of being informed he was being indicted, the president and his staff had already broken the news on his Truth Social page. They had also started a fundraising campaign, and put key talking points out to his political supporters and proxies.

This strategy is straightforward: highlight the political nature of a special counsel appointed by Biden administration officials charging the former president; reiterate the lack of a prosecution for the mishandling of classified documents by Hillary Clinton and Joe Biden; and question why these charges were brought the same week that Republicans publicised their reported findings about misdeeds by Biden and his family.

Trump can now enjoy dominating the news for the next week or more. This will leave fellow Republican candidates such as Florida Governor Ron DeSantis and former Vice President Mike Pence stuck in a news cycle about the former president instead of about their own campaigns.

Furthermore, the solid level of support Trump continues to enjoy in the Republican Party has left little alternative but for the majority of the Republican candidates to pledge their support for Trump’s innocence – regardless of what they may say privately about the man.

In the court of public opinion, one recent poll found that 48% of Americans think the former president should have been indicted, 35% think he should not have been indicted, and 17% were unsure.

While Jack Smith will only work in the court of law, he and the Department of Justice will undoubtedly remain conscious of the public’s perception of their case against the former president.

What happens now?

It should be noted that as novel as it may be for a former US president to face a federal indictment, it is by no means unprecedented in the democratic world. As much as the former president and many of his supporters continue to call his indictment “third world country stuff”, the experience of a number of developed democracies such as France and South Korea indicate that political leaders facing prosecution did not fundamentally undermine their democracies.

Nonetheless, Smith appears highly conscious of the global ramifications arising from his indictment of a former president of the world’s oldest and most powerful democracy, saying “our nation’s commitment to the rule of law sets an example for the world”.

No global debate has dominated the past decade of politics more than that about the populist moment that both led to and was fuelled by Americans electing Donald Trump in 2016. Defined by an appeal to ordinary people who feel their concerns are disregarded by elites, one could perceive the charging of the apex of US elites – a former US president – as something that would quell populist sentiment. Speaking to that sentiment, Smith told the public:

We have one set of laws in this country, and they apply to everyone.

Yet, the image that will dominate news this week – that of a former president entering a federal courthouse on Tuesday for arraignment for the first time – is just as likely to reinforce Trump’s political power in the Republican Party.

Such a political grasp, which he famously said would outlast even him shooting someone on 5th Avenue in New York City, remains unprecedented.

Jared Mondschein does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

– ref. Yes, federal charges against a former president are unprecedented – but so is Trump’s political power – https://theconversation.com/yes-federal-charges-against-a-former-president-are-unprecedented-but-so-is-trumps-political-power-207408

Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Nathan Brownlowe, Senior Lecturer in the School of Mathematics and Statistics, University of Sydney

Two weeks ago, a modest-looking paper was uploaded to the arXiv preprint server with the unassuming title “On the invariant subspace problem in Hilbert spaces”. The paper is just 13 pages long and its list of references contains only a single entry.

The paper purports to contain the final piece of a jigsaw puzzle that mathematicians have been picking away at for more than half a century: the invariant subspace problem.

Famous open problems often attract ambitious attempts at solutions by interesting characters out to make their name. But such efforts are usually quickly shot down by experts.

However, the author of this short note, Swedish mathematician Per Enflo, is no ambitious up-and-comer. He is almost 80, has made a name for himself solving open problems, and has quite a history with the problem at hand.

Per Enflo: mathematics, music, and a live goose

Born in 1944 and now an emeritus professor at Kent State University, Ohio, Enflo has had a remarkable career, not only in mathematics but also in music.

He is a renowned concert pianist who has performed and recorded numerous piano concertos, and has performed solo and with orchestras across the world.

Enflo is also one of the great problem-solvers in a field called functional analysis. Aside from his work on the invariant subspace problem, Enflo solved two other major problems – the basis problem and the approximation problem – both of which had remained open for more than 40 years.

By solving the approximation problem, Enflo cracked an equivalent puzzle called Mazur’s goose problem. Polish mathematician Stanisław Mazur had in 1936 promised a live goose to anyone who solved his problem – and in 1972 he kept his word, presenting the goose to Enflo.

What’s an invariant subspace?

Now we know the main character. But what about the invariant subspace problem itself?

If you’ve ever taken a first-year university course in linear algebra, you will have come across things called vectors, matrices and eigenvectors. If you haven’t, we can think of a vector as an arrow with a length and a direction, living in a particular vector space. (There are lots of different vector spaces with different numbers of dimensions and various rules.)

Read more:
Explainer: the point of pure mathematics

A matrix is something that can transform a vector, by changing the direction and/or length of the line. If a particular matrix only transforms the length of a particular vector (meaning the direction is either the same or flipped in the opposite direction), we call the vector an eigenvector of the matrix.

Another way to think about this is to say that the matrix transforms the eigenvectors (and any lines parallel to them) back onto themselves: these lines are invariant for this matrix. Taken together, we call these lines invariant subspaces of the matrix.

Eigenvectors and invariant subspaces are also of interest beyond just mathematics – to take one example, it has been said that Google owes its success to “the $25 billion eigenvector”.

What about spaces with an infinite number of dimensions?

So that’s an invariant subspace. The invariant subspace problem is a little more complicated: it is about spaces with an infinite number of dimensions, and it asks whether every linear operator (the equivalent of a matrix) in those spaces must have an invariant subspace.

More precisely (hold onto your hat): the invariant subspace problem asks whether every bounded linear operator T on a complex Banach space X admits a non-trivial invariant subspace M of X, in the sense that there is a subspace M ≠ {0}, X of X such that T(M) is contained back in M.

Stated in this way, the invariant subspace problem was posed during the middle of last century, and eluded all attempts at a solution.

Read more:
Pythagoras’ revenge: humans didn’t invent mathematics, it’s what the world is made of

But as is often the case when mathematicians can’t solve a problem, we move the goalposts. Mathematicians working on this problem narrowed their focus by restricting the problem to particular classes of spaces and operators.

The first breakthrough was made by Enflo in the 1970s (although his result was not published until 1987). He answered the problem in the negative, by constructing an operator on a Banach space without a non-trivial invariant subspace.

What’s new about this new proposed solution?

So what is the current status of the invariant subspace problem? If Enflo solved it in 1987, why has he solved it again?

Well, Enflo settled the problem for Banach spaces in general. However, there is a particularly important kind of Banach space called a Hilbert space, which has a strong sense of geometry and is widely used in physics, economics and applied mathematics.

Resolving the invariant subspace problem for operators on Hilbert spaces has been stubbornly difficult, and it is this which Enflo claims to have achieved.

This time Enflo answers in the affirmative: his paper argues that every bounded linear operator on a Hilbert space does have an invariant subspace.

Expert review is still to come

I have not worked through Enflo’s preprint line by line. Enflo himself is reportedly cautious about the solution, as it has not yet been reviewed by experts.

Peer review of Enflo’s earlier proof, for Banach spaces in general, took several years. However, that paper ran to more than 100 pages, so a review of the 13 pages of the new paper should be much speedier.

If correct, it will be a remarkable achievement, especially for someone who has already produced so many remarkable achievements over such a large span of time. Enflo’s many contributions to mathematics, and his answers to many open problems, have made a big impact on the field, generating new techniques and ideas.

I’m looking forward to finding out whether Enflo’s work now closes the book on the invariant subspace problem, and to seeing the new mathematics that may emerge out of its conclusion.

Nathan Brownlowe does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

– ref. Has a mathematician solved the ‘invariant subspace problem’? And what does that even mean? – https://theconversation.com/has-a-mathematician-solved-the-invariant-subspace-problem-and-what-does-that-even-mean-206859

Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By John Powers, Lecturer In Buddhism Studies, The University of Melbourne

In China, a group of atheists (the Chinese Communist Party) has long dictated how the country’s religious groups should practice their faiths.

Chinese Christians are told to reject salvation by faith and the Resurrection; their core beliefs should be patriotism and love of the party. The party has also published several pamphlets detailing appropriate beliefs and practices for Buddhists and ordered them to adjust their thoughts accordingly.

Communist officials are particularly concerned with one politically sensitive element of Buddhism: the succession of the current Dalai Lama, Tenzin Gyatso, whose reincarnation lineage began in the 16th century. He will be 88 years old in July and has reportedly experienced health problems, though he claims he is in good health.

In official news outlets like the Global Times, the party maintains the Chinese government is the sole legitimate arbiter for all reincarnations of Buddhist lamas, regardless of where they are born or their traditional regions of influence.

The Chinese state is deeply suspicious of religious believers and the potentially persuasive power of rival ideologies, which is why it insists on appointing and educating all prominent religious figures. They learn the propaganda of Chinese patriotism and become adept at parroting the party line, but they generally have little knowledge of their purported religion. True believers recognise this.

The Dalai Lama highlighted the absurdity of the party’s stance earlier this year when he recognised an eight-year-old Mongolian boy as the tenth Jetsun Dampa, the most influential reincarnation lineage in Mongolia.

Read more:
Dalai Lama identifies the reincarnation of Mongolia’s spiritual leader – a preview of tensions around finding his own replacement

The move angered Chinese officials because it demonstrated the Dalai Lama’s continuing authority among Buddhists in the region. It also showed that despite decades of persistent claims the Communist Party exercises sole authority in these matters, it is merely an official fabrication.

In 1995, the Dalai Lama issued a proclamation that a Tibetan boy named Gendün Chökyi Nyima was the Panchen Lama, the second-most prominent reincarnate lama in his order, the Geluk. The party responded by arresting the boy, then six years old, along with his family. They have not been seen since.

The Golden Urn

Tibetan Buddhists believe that after death a person’s consciousness transmigrates to a new body. For most people, this happens involuntarily, but advanced masters can choose their life situations. These are referred to as “tulkus” (“emanation bodies”). Traditionally, tulkus have exercised ultimate authority over their own successions. Many lamas issue predictions regarding the circumstances of their rebirths, including place and timing.

The Dalai Lama, hoping to counter Communist Party plans to name his successor, has declared he will not take rebirth in any region under Chinese control. He argues the main task of a new tulku is to carry on the unfinished work of their predecessor, and this would be impossible in occupied Tibet.

The party cites precedents, mostly invented or exaggerated, that it claims give it a historically determined right to adjudicate all matters of tulku succession.

Many of these hinge on the “Golden Urn”, which was sent to Tibet in 1792 by the Qianlong Emperor, along with instructions on its use. The names of prospective tulkus were to be inscribed on lots and placed in the urn. The officiating lama would then choose one at random as the successor tulku.

Despite claims by party officials that the urn has been used in all tulku selections since it was delivered to Tibet, historical sources indicate it was only used sporadically.

Moreover, I have not seen any Tibetan document that presents the urn as the sole factor for determining tulku succession. In every case I’ve examined, traditional tests were administered first.

For instance, a prospective child was presented with two sets of items – one belonged to the predecessor, the other did not but appeared similar. The real successor should be able to correctly identify the ones owned by his predecessor.

Lots were then drawn from the Golden Urn as one of a series of measures to ensure the correct candidate was selected – or to placate Chinese officials.

The Dalai Lama has indicated he is open to a process that includes lots drawn from the urn, but also insists on the standard succession methods developed under Tibetan Buddhism.

Clashes over philosophy

Most public discussions of succession focus on historically based claims and counterclaims, but the underlying logic of both sides is seldom mentioned.

Tibetan Buddhism holds that as death approaches, the coarser levels of consciousness drop away. At the moment of death, the most subtle one, the “mind of clear light,” manifests. After this, one enters the “intermediate state” (bardo) and is reborn in another body.

The main basis for rebirth is consciousness, which is compared to a river. It flows from moment to moment, with each moment conditioned by those that preceded it. It is not like a soul or self because it is impermanent and changing.

Most Buddhists believe that rebirth is determined by their past karma, but tulkus can consciously choose their next life situations.

One of the core absurdities of the Communist Party’s claims to authority over this process is its members adhere to a Marxist philosophy of dialectical materialism, which rejects the idea of rebirth or consciousness being transferred between bodies.

So, when the party designates someone as “Dalai Lama,” it is similar to naming a postmaster: it is a position overseen by the government, and it can be conferred on anyone.

Tibetan Buddhists, however, believe that the recognition of a Dalai Lama is much more than this. It is the end result of a series of rigorous tests designed to determine one unique person, whose consciousness is the continuation of his predecessor’s.

What’s at stake for Tibetan Buddhism?

After the disappearance of Gendün Chökyi Nyima in 1995, the government held a ceremony to anoint another boy as Panchen Lama. Panchen Lamas have often played key roles in the recognition of Dalai Lamas, and the party has declared it plans to use its Panchen Lama to choose a Dalai Lama who will be under its control.

The Dalai Lama has declared on a number of occasions the Tibetan people will reject China’s choice. And Tibetan exiles plan to employ traditional methods to identify Tenzin Gyatso’s successor.

Inevitably, other countries will be drawn into this arcane conflict, based on centuries-old religious precedents, which few will understand.

Read more:
There’s a religious revival going on in China — under the constant watch of the Communist Party

So, after both sides have announced their respective Dalai Lamas, what effect will this have on Tibetan Buddhists in Tibet and their religious practices?

Probably very little. The party’s Panchen Lama is viewed by Tibetans as a high-ranking government official and is treated with the appropriate respect. But he has no authority as a religious teacher.

And despite government attempts to promote him as one, he lacks the training, knowledge and charisma that would be required for him to function as a tulku. He rarely visits Tibet, and has shown no aptitude for the religious aspects of his role.

The future Dalai Lama born in exile will receive traditional training from the most esteemed figures in Tibetan Buddhism, while his or her Communist Party rival will be trained in a government-run school and become a mouthpiece of the party.

The former will probably follow in the footsteps of Tenzin Gyatso and become an internationally prominent Buddhist spokesperson. The latter will emulate the party’s Panchen Lama and repeat whatever messages his overlords command him to deliver to Tibetan Buddhists.

The question of Tibetan Buddhism’s future survival is by no means assured. Tibetans overwhelmingly identify as Buddhists, and most deeply revere the Dalai Lama despite decades of propaganda demonising him.

The government is increasingly imposing restrictions on religious practice. There are also economic disincentives for those who want to retain their traditional religious commitments. This struggle between tradition and Communist Party control is likely to play out over the course of the next few decades, and the future looks increasingly grim for those who want to resist.

John Powers does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

– ref. Succession on the Tibetan plateau: what’s at stake in the battle over the Dalai Lama’s reincarnation? – https://theconversation.com/succession-on-the-tibetan-plateau-whats-at-stake-in-the-battle-over-the-dalai-lamas-reincarnation-202353

Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Mike Armour, Associate Professor at NICM Health Research Institute, Western Sydney University

If you’ve been on social media recently you might have noticed sponsored posts and ads for a variety of small, portable electrical devices. These claim to manage period or endometriosis pain safely and without drugs.

Most devices have a small box that generates an electrical pulse, and wires connected to sticky pads, which go on your tummy.

So how are these devices supposed to stop your pain? Are they safe? Do they actually work?

Read more:
Health Check: are painful periods normal?

They’re mini TENS machines

These devices use “transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation”, better known as TENS. In other words, they apply small electrical pulses across the skin to stimulate certain types of nerves.

TENS machines are not new. They’ve been around since the 1970s and have been used for a variety of painful conditions, from muscular injuries to pain relief in labour.

However, these latest devices are compact and easy to wear discretely compared to the older models. They’re fairly simple to use, portable, you can use them at home, and they cost around A$50-200.

It’s easy to see why devices like these might be popular. Half of people with period pain say over-the-counter medication such as ibuprofen doesn’t get rid of their period pain. Most people with endometriosis report major issues with getting adequate pain relief.

Read more:
From sharp butt pains to period poos: 5 lesser-known menstrual cycle symptoms

How might TENS work?

All TENS-based devices generate small electrical pulses that feel a little like mild electrical shocks. These pulses are transmitted through the surface of the skin via the sticky pads.

You generally place these pads where the pain is. So for period pain that’s usually at or below the level of the belly button but above the pubic region. You can also place the pads on your lower back or even on your tailbone (sacrum). This is because some nerves near your tailbone also affect the pelvic area.

Here’s what we know so far

The exact mechanisms of how TENS works to reduce pain is still unclear. There are likely many different pathways.

First, we need to first talk about different types of nerves. Nociceptors are nerves that send “danger” impulses about actual or potential tissue damage. Sensory nerves in your skin transmit information about things such as touch and pressure.

The gate control theory of pain says the spinal cord has “gates” that can be open or closed. When these gates are open, nerves can transmit these danger impulses up the spinal cord to the brain where they may be interpreted as “pain”. If these gates are closed, these impulses can’t reach the brain as easily.

TENS machines, especially at high frequency (greater than 50 pulses per second), tend to stimulate sensory nerves (the ones in your skin). These sensory nerves also send signals to your brain, but faster than the danger ones.

These sensory signals can close the “gates” at certain parts of the spinal cord. So if the TENS machine can stimulate enough of these sensory nerves in your skin, it will block at least some of these danger impulses from reaching the brain. The fewer danger impulses that reach the brain, the less pain you are likely to feel.

Then there’s the concept of endogenous opioids as pain relief. These are pain relieving chemicals the body makes itself.

TENS machines stimulate the release of these chemicals, with different types of endogenous opioids released depending on the frequency of stimulation.

Read more:
Explainer: what is pain and what is happening when we feel it?

So does TENS work?

For period pain

A systematic review in 2022 found four studies looking at TENS to manage primary dysmenorrhea (period pain that occurs without any physical changes in the pelvis).

There was a significant reduction in period pain when high-frequency TENS (more than 50 pulses per second) was compared to sham TENS (where the machine looks the same but doesn’t deliver a pulse).

This is in line with an older Cochrane review that found similar benefits.

Pain relieving effects only tend to last while the device is active.

For endometriosis

Endometriosis is where tissue similar to the lining of the uterus is found outside the uterus, commonly in the pelvis. There is only one study of TENS for pelvic pain due to endometriosis.

This study compared two types of TENS – one using a higher frequency for 20 minutes twice a day, and one using a lower frequency for 30 minutes once per week. Both types used pads placed on the tailbone, and women were told to make the pulses “strong, but comfortable”.

Both types improved pelvic pain, pain after sex, and quality of life, but not period pain. This was a very small study (11 women in each group) and there was no control or placebo group. So we need larger studies with a proper control group before we can be sure if TENS works for endometriosis pain.

Read more:
I have painful periods, could it be endometriosis?

Is it safe?

Most studies report no side effects when the pads are used on the abdomen or lower spine.

However, if you turn up the intensity too high it can be uncomfortable. You could also get a rash from the adhesive on the pads.

Read more:
First periods can come as a shock. 5 ways to support your kid when they get theirs

Which one to buy?

All TENS machines should allow you to change the intensity (how strong the pulse feels). Some also allow you to change the frequency (how often the pulses happen).

If you are going to use the device occasionally (less than 4-5 days per month) you may just need a device that allows you to change the intensity.

To get the best relief, the machine should be turned up high enough so it delivers noticeable pulses, but is not painful. So you need to find your own comfort level.

For period pain, high frequency (more than 50 pulses per second) shows better results than low frequency (usually 2-5 pulses per second). So make sure the device you’re thinking of buying is either set to a high frequency or you can change the frequency.

For people with endometriosis, it’s a little more tricky. You’ll probably going to want to use the device more often than a few days a month.

Unfortunately, like with taking regular opioid painkillers, with regular TENS use people can become tolerant to its pain-relieving effect, which means it doesn’t work as well as it did when you first started using it.

One possible solution to tolerance is to use mixed-frequency TENS where both high and low frequencies are alternated. You can also slowly increase the intensity level over time.

TENS also doesn’t work well when people are regular opioid users. This is important as people with endometriosis are often using opioid medications to manage their pain. If you are using opioids regularly, high-frequency TENS is likely to be a better choice.

Mike Armour does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

– ref. What’s a TENS machine? Can it help my period pain or endometriosis? – https://theconversation.com/whats-a-tens-machine-can-it-help-my-period-pain-or-endometriosis-201389

Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Flavia Marcello, Professor of Design History, Swinburne University of Technology

In 1985 photographer Rennie Ellis defined graffiti as “the result of someone’s urge to say something – to comment, inform, entertain, persuade, offend or simply to confirm his or her own existence here on earth”. Since the mid-1980s, graffiti has crossed from vandalism to an accepted form of art practice through large murals or “pieces” and stencil art aimed at informing, entertaining and persuading us.

But these are outnumbered by the tags you see everywhere. These stylised icon-type signatures define a hand style and confirm their author’s existence on Earth. These, for many of us, remain an eyesore. If you walk through an urban environment filled with tags, you may feel less safe. Heavily tagged areas can suggest the area is not cared for or surveilled.

So why are Australian cities so full of tags? The problem is, the main solution proven to work is expensive. When tags go up, paint over them – and keep doing it. While anti-graffiti paint exists, it’s not widely used at present.

Why do people tag?

Graffiti in urban centres is often tied to the world-wide proliferation of hip-hop culture. Along with DJing, rapping and breakdancing, “Graf” or “writing” is considered one of its four pillars.

Posturing (or showing off) is a big part of tagging. When you see a tag on a freeway overpass or seemingly inaccessible building parapet, it’s not only confirming the tagger’s existence, it’s bragging. See how high I climbed! See what crazy risks I took!

As one tagger in Sydney’s outer south-western suburb of Campbelltown told researchers in the 1980s:

If you get on a train and see your name and know you’ve been here before that’s real good. Like, I was here. Or you see your mate’s name and you can say, hey, I know him […] It’s really good if you can get your name up in a difficult place where nobody else has. Other kids look at that and think, great!

So why do people tag?

• it boosts self-esteem and a sense of belonging to a social network, particularly for teens experiencing alienation at school

• it demonstrates bravado. Risky places have the added advantages of being both highly visible and harder to remove

• it gives graf artists practice for bigger pieces. You have to work quickly and accurately, especially in precarious positions where you could get caught at any moment.

While cities like Melbourne have embraced larger murals and pieces as street art – even making them a tourist attraction – tagging isn’t regarded the same way.

So why do non-taggers hate it? On a broader level, tagging can signify a sense of social degradation which makes people feel less safe.

There’s no clear link between more graffiti and more crime. Even so, the public perception is that tagging is a sign warning of the presence of disaffected and potentially violent people in gangs.

Asked to picture a tagger and you will most likely come up with a stock photo stereotype: a male teenager in a hoodie from a seedy area. But you would not be completely right. It is true just under half (46%) of graffiti damage and related offences are committed by 14 to 16 year old males, but the largest percentage of offenders actually come from middle- to high-income families.

So what tools do we have to manage it?

Punishment

It’s perfectly legal to commission a graf artist to paint a wall of a building you own. Many people do this to avoid a street-facing wall being tagged. For it to be illegal, tagging or graffiti has to be done without the owner’s permission.

Since the majority of taggers are under 18, if they’re caught, punishment will usually include a caution, fines (presumably paid by bemused but cashed up parents) and cleaning off tags.

But punitive measures only go so far because the appeal of graffiti is the transgression. Other measures include keeping spray paint locked away or not for sale to under 18s as well as zero-tolerance rapid removal. This can work for a while, but taggers know their tags are temporary. It’s a constant game of cat and mouse a committed tagger will eventually win.

Technical solutions

If you’ve walked past workers scrubbing or pressure washing tags off walls, you may have wondered why there are no coatings which don’t let paint stick.

These actually do exist, and can work well. When in place, you can remove graffiti with a solvent rather than having to repaint. But they’re not widely used.

Unless paints such as Deletum 3000 are used everywhere this approach is unlikely to be effective.

Prevention

The problem with punitive and technical measures is the limited reach. The vast majority of unwanted graffiti goes unreported. That’s why prevention is becoming more popular.

How do you prevent tagging? By making it easier to report. By setting aside areas for taggers and graf artists. By commissioning pieces to deter graffers from illegal modes. And by talking directly to taggers about strategies. But these behaviour change efforts take time.

People who hate tagging often believe taggers are motivated by negative emotions such as boredom and rebelliousness. For them it’s vandalism, a criminal act associated with gangs, petty crime, broken windows and a less attractive environment to live in.

But the truth is, taggers are often motivated by positive emotions. Tagging, for them, brings pride, pleasure, enjoyment and community. That’s why behaviour change approaches can be hard.

So what’s the best way forward?

In the 1990s, many cities declared war on skateboarders, using punishment and installing metal stoppers on well-skated urban areas. But the real solution was simpler: create skate parks.

For taggers, the answer may be similar. Give them spaces such as little-used alleyways to practise their art. And for the rest of us, the solution may be to look at tags with different eyes. Not as a sign of crime and the collapse of civilisation, but as a need for validation, for transgression, for community and all the other things you probably wanted when you were a teenager.

Flavia Marcello does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

– ref. Transgress to impress: why do people tag buildings – and are there any solutions? – https://theconversation.com/transgress-to-impress-why-do-people-tag-buildings-and-are-there-any-solutions-205492

Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Lena Wang, Associate Professor in Management, RMIT University

There are days when it’s hard to face work, even when you aren’t physically sick. Should you take a day off for your mental health? If you do, should you be honest about it when informing your manager?

If you work for an organisation or in a team where you feel safe to discuss mental health challenges, you are fortunate.

Despite all the progress made in understanding and talking about mental health, stigma and prejudices are still prevalent enough to prevent many of us from willingly letting bosses and coworkers know when we are struggling.

Mental health challenges come in different forms. For some it will be a severe lifelong struggle. For many others the challenge will be periods of feeling overwhelmed by stress and needing a break.

Globally, the World Health Organisation estimates about 970 million people – about one in eight people – is suffering a mental disorder at any time, with anxiety-related disorders affecting about 380 million and depression about 360 million.

These numbers have jumped about 25% since 2019, a rise credited to the social isolation, economic hardship, health concerns and relationship strains associated with the pandemic.

But declining mental health is a longer-term trend, and it’s likely work demands have also played a role. Research identifies three main workplace contributors to mental ill-health: imbalanced job design when people have high job demand yet low job control, occupational uncertainty, and lack of value and respect.

This at least partly explains why depression and anxiety appear to be more prevalent in wealthy industrialised nations. In the United States, for example, it is estimated more than half of the population will experience a diagnosable mental disorder at some point during their lifetime.

Read more:
Should you tell your boss about your mental illness? Here’s what to weigh up

Managerial attitudes changing slowly

For the modern workplace, therefore, mental health is increasingly part of the landscape. But preconceptions and prejudices are hard to shift. People with these challenges are still seen as weak, unstable or lacking competence.

These attitudes make it even harder for those with diagnosed mental health disorders to find meaningful work and progress in their careers.

Business executives and managers, like the rest of the population, have limited knowledge of mental health issues, or skills to manage it in the workplace.

This blind spot is reflected in the management research literature. The best most recent study of managerial understanding of mental health issues dates from 2014. It found only about one in ten human resource professionals and managers felt very confident in supporting employees with mental health challenges.

Even when managers understand there are implicit biases against employees with mental health challenges, they may still not know what to do about it.

So it is hardly surprising many employees remain reluctant to disclose their mental challenges to colleagues and managers, fearing a lack of understanding and potential negative consequences to their careers. But keeping it secret and “soldiering on” can make mental health even worse.

Framing the conversation

So what to do about it? Our research shows leadership is key.

For all organisations, cultural change can start with leaders and managers speaking more openly about their own mental health challenges. This empowers others to follow suit.

Language choices are important too. How we talk about mental health can change how we think about it. Australia’s National Mental Health Commission, for example, refers to “mental health challenges” instead of “mental illness”. Such framing can help others to regard a mental health day as something that may be needed by anybody, not something for some who is “sick”.

Read more:
‘It’s actually a human person, undergoing real emotions’: how podcasts can impact attitudes around mental health

For larger organisations, one innovative idea is to have “mental health advocates” – employees with personal experience of severe mental health challenges.

Energy Queensland, a government-owned utility with about 7,600 staff who are responsible for maintaining the state’s electricity distribution infrastructure, did this in 2017. Two of its workers, James Hill and Aaron McCann, now work as full-time “mental health lived experience advocates”. Hill previously worked for the corporation as an electrician and McCann as a lineworker. Both have lived through deep depression and suicidal thoughts.

Our research – which involved surveying more than 300 psychologists, psychiatrists and others employed in mental health services – suggests “lived experience” advocates encourage more open organisational cultures, helping to break down the stigma stopping others from admitting their own mental health challenges.

Read more:
Employers need to prioritize employee mental health if they want to attract new talent

And a small number of organisations globally have introduced “wellness/wellbeing days” – an allotment of “no certificate required” days off, which can be used at any time, no questions asked.

As the challenge of squeezing greater productivity out of service sectors intensifies and competition for skills and talent escalates, those workplaces that acknowledge and accommodate the mental health stresses of modern life will be the ones with the competitive advantage.

Lena Wang previously received funding from National Mental Health Commission and Queensland Mental Health Commission.

Louise Byrne has previously received funding from the National Mental Health Commission and the Queensland Mental Health Commission.

Timothy Bartram does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

– ref. Need a mental health day but worried about admitting it? You’re not alone – https://theconversation.com/need-a-mental-health-day-but-worried-about-admitting-it-youre-not-alone-203150

Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Catherine Gay, PhD Candidate in History, The University of Melbourne

In the digital age our lives are constantly being recorded. Yet, the deliberate act of recording – what we want to remember and how we want to remember – remains popular. Diaries allow us to journal our thoughts and feelings, to work through the challenges we face every day.

This practice is older than you may think. As I write in my recent journal article, some British and Irish girls and young women who migrated to Australia in the mid-1800s used diaries to record their day-to-day lives, document their travel experiences and navigate their emotions.

In the 19th century, around 1.5 million people migrated to Australia, including large numbers of girls who were defined as under the age of 15, and young women in their late teens and early 20s.

Unless she was married, a girl had little other option than to accompany her family to the colonies.

Though few diaries from this demographic survive (I examine only 13 extant sources of about 850 known to survive), they divulge the intricate emotions of migration.

Today, a 24-hour flight from Britain to Australia feels like an eternity, but in the 19th century it took around three months to sail to the continent. Removed from the demands of everyday life, passengers had a lot of time on their hands. Some wrote journals to while away the long days.

Read more:
Young women’s memoirs of migration, dispossession and Australian ‘unbelonging’ demand to be heard

A difficult experience

Migration could be a difficult experience. Passengers endured months at sea in cramped conditions, often fearing for their safety and health, missed those left behind and worried about their futures in a new land.

It is such thoughts and emotions that can be found in surviving migrant girls’ diaries.

Aboard the Great Victoria in 1864, 22-year-old Isabella Adcock had to share cramped cabins with strangers and complained about it in her journal. She had “feelings repugnance to the sleeping accommodations and indeed almost everything in the ship”.

Diaries were sometimes a mechanism to cope with boredom and frustration. Jane Swan, 13, was impatient to reach Australia in 1853. She was sick of the “very long voyage” and felt “to see the same things, and the same faces, becomes very tiresome”.

Working-class girls were subject to strict conditions. On her voyage to Brisbane in 1863, 14-year-old Welsh girl Maria Steley noted in her diary the “young women are put Down every night at six O clock” and “are not Allowed to speak to the young men”.

As a working-class teenager, Maria was separated from her family and housed with the single women. Wealthier girls would stay with their families in private cabins.

Among such shared conditions, girls could also make friends. Maria wrote she and her new pals “have many bits of fun more than i thought we would” by “singing and Dancing and playing eney thing we like untill 10 O clock then we go to bed we Play four howrs after we are Loch Down”.

But shipboard travel generated loneliness for many girls. Working-class Scottish woman Mary Maclean, who was 22 when she voyaged to Sydney in 1865, experienced homesickness, often “Sheding a tear and often Wonder if thay miss one at Home”.

Joy and sadness

Girls also used diaries to record their fears. Illness could tear through the close confines of a ship.

Sarah Raws, 15 when she sailed to Melbourne in 1854, was preoccupied with the proximity of death, including that of two infant boys and the “very sudden” death of a lady in Sarah’s own cabin.

Emily Braine, ten years old when she embarked in 1854, was “frightened” by large waves and rough seas. The risk of shipwreck was low, but the possibility played on Emily’s mind.

Towards the end of their journey, some girls were excited to disembark. Sarah Raws rejoiced “”when we first saw land” from the ship’s deck. But others experienced a resurgence of homesickness and doubt.

Nearing Melbourne in 1874, 19-year-old Ally Heathcote had feelings “of a mingled character, joy and sadness”. She felt torn between her old life in England and her new life in Victoria.

Ally’s writings helped her deal with these “mingled” feelings. Her diary, she wrote,

has helped to keep me employed during the passage and many times I have turned to it when my thoughts would stray over the sea, and have written the account of the day’s proceedings when otherwise I should have begun to mope.

Most girls concluded their diaries at the end of their voyage before they started on a new life. Some made copies and sent the account “home” to Britain for family and friends to peruse.

The diary became a record and a keepsake of a life-changing journey.

Girls’ shipboard diaries reveal the complex and varied emotions of people from the past and provide insight into the human experience of migration. These sources centre girls in the migration narrative, giving a voice to an often-overlooked group.

It is a shame so few survive.

Read more:
Handwritten diaries may feel old fashioned, but they offer insights that digital diaries just can’t match

Catherine Gay does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

– ref. ‘When my thoughts would stray over the sea’: reading the 19th century diaries of girls migrating to Australia – https://theconversation.com/when-my-thoughts-would-stray-over-the-sea-reading-the-19th-century-diaries-of-girls-migrating-to-australia-205297

Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Martie-Louise Verreynne, Professor in Innovation and Associate Dean (Research), The University of Queensland

Apple’s new Vision Pro mixed reality headset has generated a significant amount of buzz. Announcing it at this year’s Worldwide Developers Conference, chief executive Tim Cook said the virtual and augmented reality headset will allow users to “see, hear and interact with digital content just like it’s in your physical space […] seamlessly blending the real and virtual worlds”.

The Vision Pro is the first new product category Apple has introduced since the Apple Watch in 2014. It marks the company’s foray into spatial computing. Analysts, markets and consumers have been quick to react – and not all positively.

On one hand, the headset has been lauded for its technical features. It’s less clunky than competitors’ offerings and has a range of advanced capabilities, including hand and eye tracking, and the seamless combination of virtual and augmented reality.

However, others can’t help but point out the hefty price tag of US$3,500 – and the fact that the general public has simply not embraced mixed reality headsets.

Globally, the demand for these headsets has been slowing. Fewer than nine million units were shipped in 2022 (mostly by Meta, Apple’s biggest competitor in this category).

Meta sees spatial computing as a big part of the tech future, despite market analysts and critics calling for the metaverse to be abandoned. Last week it released the Quest 3 at a relatively low cost of US$499. With continued heavy spending on the metaverse, developers of Quest 3 Reality Labs recorded an operating loss of US$3.99 billion in the first quarter of 2023.

So if there is no demand, who is Apple targeting?

While Meta’s recent history might seem like a cautionary tale, timing and strategy are critical when it comes to technological innovation. And compared to Meta, Apple’s strategy seems prudent.

Apple is likely betting the app developer community will provide it with the use cases it needs to turn the Vision Pro (and subsequent iterations) into its next big income generator – and perhaps change how we interact with this technology forever.

Getting developers to build exciting complementary offerings, such as apps and device add-ons, would give Apple a springboard to convince users of the Vision Pro’s value. But this won’t work without developers’ buy-in, which leads us to believe the Vision Pro is (at least for now) aimed at Apple’s 34 million registered app developers, rather than the broader user market.

It’s expected many of the apps on the App Store will work on Vision OS, the Vision Pro’s operating system, by the time the product is launched. Apple is already supporting developers with programs and tools to redesign apps for compatibility with the Vision Pro, and create new ones.

Users are attracted to a product that provides more app variety, and their migration to it further piques developers’ interest. Typically, this becomes a self-reinforcing cycle. Such a multiplication of value for consumers, coupled with Apple’s manufacturing capabilities, could allow the Vision Pro to rise to dominance.

And this isn’t just speculation; Apple has used this approach before.

Leveraging an app-driven ecosystem

Apple has a history of leveraging its app-driven ecosystem business model to give its products the upper hand. One early example of this was the iPod and iTunes, wherein the Apple Music store, cloud connectivity and massive storage capacity (at the time) created an environment that locked users in.

More importantly, with the sophistication of the hardware and software, the ease of use and the novelty of the experience, users were happy to be locked in.

This approach has been repeated time and again with other Apple products, such as the Apple Watch. Once more, Apple drove innovation by linking the hardware to other devices and systems, introducing unique features and providing high-quality apps to generate interest.

Read more:
The iPhone turns 15: a look at the past (and future) of one of the 21st century’s most influential devices

Competition heats up

Ultimately, users will judge the value of the Vision Pro through a combination of objective and subjective information. According to initial reviews, the Vision Pro operates well, and Apple is using branding and marketing tactics to further create a perception of value.

All things considered, Apple’s entry into the mixed reality market represents a big threat to competitors. It has a track record of building hardware at scale and with progressively affordable prices. And let’s not forget its base of some two billion active devices to which the Vision Pro can link.

Apple’s massive ecosystem – built on devices, apps, developers and manufacturing partners – won’t be running dry anytime soon. And by the very fact of its existence, the Vision Pro has a shot at success.

Read more:
The new iPhone SE is the cheapest yet: smart move, or a premium tech brand losing its way?

Martie-Louise Verreynne receives funding from the ARC and NHMRC.

Margarietha de Villiers Scheepers has received funding from State and Local Governments for specific research projects.

– ref. The Apple Vision Pro hasn’t really impressed consumers, but that isn’t the goal – for now – https://theconversation.com/the-apple-vision-pro-hasnt-really-impressed-consumers-but-that-isnt-the-goal-for-now-207307

Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Damien Kingsbury, Emeritus Professor, School of Humanities and Social Sciences, Deakin University

New Zealand pilot Phillip Mehrtens has now been held hostage in West Papua for four months. Stalled attempts to negotiate his release, and an unsuccessful Indonesian military rescue attempt, suggest a confused picture behind the scenes.

Members of the West Papua National Independence Army (TPNPB) kidnapped Mehrtens on February 7, demanding Indonesia recognise West Papua’s independence. The Nduga regency, where Mehrtens was taken and his plane burnt, is known for separatist violence and military reprisals.

New Zealand’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade has said: “We’re doing everything we can to secure a peaceful resolution and Mr Mehrtens’ safe release, including working closely with the Indonesian authorities and deploying New Zealand consular staff.”

Meanwhile, the Indonesian military (TNI) has continued its military operation to hunt down the TPNPB – including by bombing from aircraft, according to Mehrtens in one of several “proof of life” videos released by the TPNPB.

Early negotiations

From late February, I was authorised by the TPNPB to act as an intermediary with the New Zealand government. This was based on having previously worked with pro-independence West Papuan groups and was confirmed in a video from the TPNPB to the New Zealand government.

In this capacity, I communicated regularly with a New Zealand Police hostage negotiator, including when the TPNPB changed its demands.

The TPNPB had initially said it would kill Mehrtens unless Indonesia recognised West Papua’s independence. But, after agreeing to negotiate, the TPNPB said it would save Mehrtens’ life while seeking to extract concessions from the New Zealand government.

Its current position is that New Zealand stop its citizens from working in or travelling to West Papua, and also cease military support for Indonesia. In late May, however, frustrated by the lack of response, the TPNPB again said it would kill Mehrtens if talks were not forthcoming.

My involvement with the New Zealand government ended when I was told the government had decided to use another channel of communication with the group. As events have unfolded, my understanding is that the TPNPB did not accept this change of communication channels.

Latest in a long struggle

The TPNPB is led by Egianus Kogeya, son of Daniel Yudas Kogeya, who was killed by Indonesian soldiers in an operation to rescue hostages taken in 1996. The TPNPB is one of a small number of armed separatist groups in West Papua, each aligned with a faction of the pro-independence movement.

The West Papua independence movement grew out of Dutch plans to give West Papua independence. Indonesia argued that Indonesia should be the successor to the Dutch East Indies in its entirety, and in 1963 assumed administration of West Papua with US backing. It formally incorporated West Papua in 1969, after 1,035 village leaders were forced at gunpoint to vote for inclusion in Indonesia.

As a result of Indonesians moving to this “frontier”, more than 40% of West Papua’s population is now non-Melanesian. West Papuans, meanwhile, are second-class citizens in their own land. Despite the territory having Indonesia’s richest economic output, West Papuans have among the worst infant mortality, average life expectancy, nutrition, literacy and income in Indonesia.

Read more:
The NZ pilot held hostage in West Papua is the pawn in a conflict only real international engagement can resolve

Critically, freedom of speech is also limited, human rights violations continue unabated, and the political process is riven by corruption, vote buying and violence. As a consequence, West Papua’s independence movement continues.

There have been a number of mostly small military actions and kidnappings highlighting West Papua’s claim for independence. “Flag-raising” ceremonies and street protests have been used to encourage a sense of unity around the independence struggle.

These have resulted in attacks by the Indonesian military (TNI) and police, leading to killings, disappearances, torture and imprisonment. Human rights advocates suggest hundreds of thousands have died as a result of West Papua’s incorporation into Indonesia.

Illustrating the escalating conflict, in 2018 the TPNPB kidnapped and killed more than 20 Indonesian workers building a road through the Nduga regency. It has also killed a number of Indonesian soldiers, including some of those hunting for Mehrtens.

Read more:
How the world failed West Papua in its campaign for independence

Negotiations stalled

TPNPB spokesperson Sebby Sambom has said foreigners were legitimate targets because their governments support Indonesia. Despite Kogeya’s initial claim that Mehrtens would be killed if demands were not met, Sambom and TPNPB diplomatic officer Akouboo Amadus Douw had responded positively to the idea of negotiation for his release.

Since talks broke down, however, the TPNPB has said there would be no further proof-of-life videos of Mehrtens. With the TPNPB’s late May statement that Mehrtens would be killed if New Zealand did not negotiate, his kidnapping seems to have reached a stalemate.

Read more:
Fight for freedom: new research to map violence in the forgotten conflict in West Papua

The TPNPB has told me it is concerned that New Zealand may be prioritising its relationship with Indonesia over Mehrtens and has been stalling while the TNI resolves the situation militarily.

At this stage, however, Mehrtens can still be safely released. But it will likely require the New Zealand government to make some concessions in response to the TPNPB’s demands.

Meanwhile, the drivers of the conflict remain. Indonesia continues to use military force to try to crush what is essentially a political problem. And, while the TPNPB and other separatist groups have little hope of removing Indonesia from West Papua, they feel they have run out of options other than to fight and to take hostages.

Damien Kingsbury has advised a number of separatist organisations on negotiations to end conflict, most notably in Aceh in 2005.

– ref. I was involved in talks to free a kidnapped Kiwi pilot in West Papua. With negotiations stalled, what happens now? – https://theconversation.com/i-was-involved-in-talks-to-free-a-kidnapped-kiwi-pilot-in-west-papua-with-negotiations-stalled-what-happens-now-206933

Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By BJ Newton, Senior Research Fellow in Social Policy and Social Work, UNSW Sydney

Reducing the number of First Nations children in out-of-home care is a priority of the national Closing the Gap targets.

However, child protection authorities have been removing First Nations children from their parents at increasing rates over the past decade. This is due to a range of factors, including over-surveillance of First Nations families and systemic racism leading to social disadvantage, service and structural inequalities, and mandatory reporting.

For all children, the preferred outcome is for them to return to their birth parents as soon as they are safe and able to do so. This is called reunification or restoration.

Our research, to be published later this year, suggests reuniting children with their parents can reduce the number of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children in care, instead of moving them out of the system through guardianship or adoption by non-Indigenous parents.

However, reunification of First Nations children with their parents is largely overlooked in child and family welfare practice.

Read more:
Our child protection system is clearly broken. Is it time to abolish it for a better model?

The numbers show we’re not closing this particular gap

Under the Closing the Gap targets, the government aims to reduce the rate of over-representation of First Nations children in out-of-home care by 45% by 2031.

Government efforts to achieve this have mostly focused on preventing children entering out-of-home care through early intervention and preservation work. This means working to keep families together when concerns have been raised about the safety of children. However, there are still high numbers of First Nations children in out-of-home care, despite these efforts.

The recent release of the annual Australian Institute of Health and Welfare Child protection Australia 2021-22 report reveals the number of First Nations children living in out-of-home care on June 30 2022 was 19,432 nationwide.

This represents 43% of all children in out-of-home care on that date, and an increase of nearly 12% over the past five years.

In NSW, the number of First Nations children living in out-of-home care has increased by 48% over the past decade. Meanwhile, the numbers of First Nations children being reunified with birth parents has decreased by 41% over the same period.

Our new research found a reunification rate of just 15.2% for over 1,000 Aboriginal children in out-of-home care in NSW over the last decade who were part of a longitudinal study.

It is clear to see there is a serious problem: First Nations children are coming into care and not going home.

Legislation and child protection services in Australia create barriers to reuniting First Nations families.

In New South Wales, for example, parents are given about two years to make the changes required so their children can return home, or they transition to long-term care. These expectations put considerable pressure on families who do not have access to support systems or have difficulty addressing structural challenges such as housing.

If reunification is not possible, the next best alternative for First Nations children is to live with other family members, or a First Nations family in their same community. If this is not possible, the next option is foster care, preferably with a First Nations person or family.

But many First Nations children are placed with non-Indigenous foster carers. These children are at a high risk of growing up disconnected from their family and culture. This undermines connections of First Nations children to family and kin, community, Country and the crucial role of culture and lifelong wellbeing.

Read more:
First Nations children are still being removed at disproportionate rates. Cultural assumptions about parenting need to change

Bring Them Home, Keep Them Home

Bring them home, keep them home is a collaborative research project involving a team of First Nations and non-Indigenous researchers working alongside Aboriginal community-controlled organisations delivering out-of-home care services and AbSec, the NSW child and family peak body.

This project is focused on understanding the best practices to bring First Nations children back to their families. It explores the experiences of First Nations parents who have had their children placed in out-of-home care, and have either been reunited or are still navigating the system to get them back.

Our research identified two key groups, each with specific needs.

The first group consisted of (mostly young) children recently removed from their parents on short-term or interim orders. These parents are required by child protection authorities to demonstrate they have made swift and significant changes to address the causes of removal. They are unable to address many of these issues without support, such as housing insecurity and family violence.

The second group was a larger group of children and adolescents who have been living in out-of-home care on long-term guardianship and custody orders. These children may have the opportunity to return home to their families. Many want to return home and demonstrate this by running away and going back to their families.

In all states and territories, there are laws that give parental responsibility back to parents if they make an application to the Children’s Court to overturn the guardianship or custody orders.

However, many parents are unaware this is an option for them. Unless the child can no longer live with their out-of-home carer, or a parent pursues legal options, children often remain in out-of-home care until they are 18.

Where to from here

For reunification to be successful, greater investment needs to be provided to culturally safe services to support families. As of 2020-21, only 17% of funding for child protection services went to First Nations-led organisations. The remaining funds went to child protection interventions and out-of-home care services.

Resourcing for caseworkers and child protection services needs to be focused on reuniting potentially thousands of First Nations families who have been failed by child protection systems.

Child protection systems also need to recognise that First Nations children’s cultural and family connections are vital to their wellbeing. First Nations families need better support to stay together, prevent child protection entries and bring their children home.

We acknowledge and thank our research partners, AbSec, Waminda, South Coast Medical Service Aboriginal Corporation, and Illawarra Aboriginal Medical Service, for their continued leadership and commitment to this research.

BJ Newton receives funding from the Australian Research Council. Please she her UNSW page for further project details.

Ilan Katz receives funding from Australian Research Council and NSW Department of Communities and Justice

Kathleen Falster receives funding from the Australian National Health and Medical Research Council, the Australian Research Council, the Medical Research Future Fund, NSW Health and the NSW Department of Communities and Justice.

Kyllie Cripps receives funding from the Australian Research Council.

Paul Gray receives funding from the Australian Research Council, the Medical Research Future Fund, and AIATSIS, as well as undertaking research commissioned through various government bodies. He serves in various community roles, including co-chair of the Family Matters campaign, a Company Member of the Aboriginal Legal Service (NSW/ACT), and as an independent member of the Early Childhood Care and Development Policy Partnership under the National Agreement on Closing the Gap, and is a member of the Safe and Supported Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Leadership Group (convened by SNAICC – National Voice for our Children. He has previously held roles with AbSec – NSW Child, Family and Community Peak Aboriginal Corporation, who he continues to support, and the NSW Department of Community Services.

– ref. Why are First Nations children still not coming home from out-of-home care? – https://theconversation.com/why-are-first-nations-children-still-not-coming-home-from-out-of-home-care-196379

Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Shane Rogers, Lecturer in Psychology, Edith Cowan University

In any household with children there is an inevitable accumulation of possessions. Birthdays, Christmas, the celebration events like sporting victories and random impulse buys bring in a stream of toys, clothes and other stuff.

But getting rid of these possessions is another story. While some children can be convinced to send their old toys to the op shop, or give clothes that are too small to younger friends to wear, other kids really struggle.

Here’s why it’s so difficult and how parents and guardians can help.

Read more:
Time for a Kondo clean-out? Here’s what clutter does to your brain and body

Why help your kids learn to let go of possessions?

The obvious reason is to avoid clutter. For people who value their home being tidy, research shows clutter can negatively impact their mood and wellbeing. However, the definition of what constitutes a cluttered space varies dramatically across people.

In extreme cases, children can develop a hoarding disorder if they consistently struggle letting go of items, and having to do so causes them a lot of distress.

The psychological act of letting go of possessions has similarities with getting over other things, such as thwarted expectations (such as an event being cancelled), or getting over a relationship breakdown. Cultivating an ability to let go of possessions in childhood may have positive implications well beyond simply avoiding clutter.

When and why do kids become attached to possessions?

Attachment to objects begins in a child’s first year of life. Infants can become distressed when blankets and teddy bears are removed. Researchers view this early attachment behaviour as the objects acting as a comforting parental substitute in between parental contact.

As children get older, through early childhood into early teens, a sense of comfort remains as one of the primary reasons behind attachment to possessions. However, the type of comfort can become more complex as the child ages.

Read more:
When should you worry about your child’s attachment to comfort items?

Over time, children may come to treat a toy as a unique individual. In one clever study, children were presented with a “duplicating machine” based on a simple conjuring trick. They could either choose to have a copy of their toy, or have their original toy returned. Children were more likely to request their original toy be returned instead of the new copy, indicating a level of attachment to the original toy.

Some toys take on a kind of “friend” status. Interacting with toys in this way is believed to have benefits for psychological and social development. It’s easy to imagine how parting with something viewed in such a manner might be a challenge.

Possessions can also act as memory cues. That old, now ill-fitting and faded t-shirt they are reluctant to throw out might be serving as a reminder of how special and loved they felt at their birthday party.

Just like adults, children can fall into the “I might need this later” trap. For example, a child that used to love colouring but has since moved onto different hobbies might still be reluctant to throw out the old crayons just in case.

So what can you do?

First, try to model the behaviour you would like your child to perform. If you have trouble letting go of your own possessions, they will be less likely to see the need to throw away their stuff.

Next, talk with the child about their underlying motivations behind their resistance to let go – and help them deal with their mental blocks.

Read more:
How to get your kids to talk about their feelings

For a possession that feels like a friend, you might encourage them to concentrate on their other toys that are also special. Help them understand relationships can end, and that’s OK. There are new relationships they can have. Take a gradual approach and encourage them to donate their toy when they are ready. This can help them feel they are not disposing of their toy altogether. The toy continues to exist, just with someone else.

For a possession that is helping them remember good times with sentimental value, remind them those good times will still have happened. There are other ways to keep memories alive, such as photos, or reminiscing with loved ones.

For “I might need this later”, one strategy is to take away the concern that underpins the resistance. Tell them “you can get another one if need be in the future”. Chances are it won’t happen.

There are going to be other reasons and motivations beyond those above, so take a targeted approach. Do this by communicating with your child to understand their point of view. Then tailor your strategy to best alleviate the specific concerns they have.

Try to avoid only lamenting about the mess, which might backfire if the child starts harbouring feelings of guilt and resentment about letting go of their possessions.

Instead, finding out the underlying reasons for their reluctance will allow you to work with them to deal with those thoughts and emotions.

The authors do not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

– ref. ‘No, I still want that!’ How to help kids let go of old toys and stuff they no longer need – https://theconversation.com/no-i-still-want-that-how-to-help-kids-let-go-of-old-toys-and-stuff-they-no-longer-need-206178

Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Tanya Latty, Associate professor, University of Sydney

Have you spotted a swarm of flying insects emerging from a wall? Or noticed a buzzing noise coming from inside the house?

If this sounds familiar, a colony of European honeybees (Apis mellifera) may be making their home in your walls.

Why does this happen, and what should you do?

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Are they honeybees?

First, work out who these house guests really are. Honeybees are often the culprits, but European wasps (Vespula germanica) also occasionally build their nests inside human-made structures. Their nests have a papery appearance and are made from chewed-up plant fibres.

European wasps are a more dramatic yellow and black, and have narrower waists. Honeybees have less slender waists, appear furrier, and are a duller orange-brown colour.

If they are inside homes or high-traffic areas, both honeybees and European wasps will usually need to be removed by a professional.

Depending on where you live, other social bees such as stingless bees and bumblebees may occasionally build colonies in human-built structures, but they rarely cause any serious problems.

Solitary native bees such as carpenter bees, blue banded bees and teddy bear bees do not live in colonies. However, they sometimes build their individual nests close to one another. These insects are rarely aggressive and can often be left alone.

How did they get there?

When a honeybee colony outgrows its current dwelling, the bees embark on a quest to find a new home.

In preparation, the queen bee lays eggs in special cells known as “queen cells”. The larvae in these cells are fed with royal jelly, which helps them develop into new queens.

Once the new queens emerge, the old queen leaves the hive accompanied by a substantial number of worker bees.

Now homeless, the house-hunting bees gather together in a tight cluster called a “swarm ball” on a nearby object. From this temporary base of operations, the bees send out scouts to find potential nesting sites.

When a scout discovers a suitable location, she returns to the swarm ball and performs an extraordinary routine known as a “waggle dance”.

Astonishingly, this dance communicates the location of the potential new home to other scouts, who then venture out to inspect the advertised site. If they agree with its suitability, they return to the hive and do their own waggle dance.

Once enough scouts agree on the suitability of the new home, the entire swarm soars through the air to their new home.

Unfortunately, the bees occasionally choose to settle in human-made structures. Once inside, they produce wax to build the hexagonal cells that make up the nest. Some cells are used as nurseries for larvae, while others are used to store pollen and honey.

The most obvious sign is usually a steady stream of bees flying in and out of the hive, usually from a small hole or gap in the wall.

You might also hear a buzzing sound.

What will the honeybees do to my house?

The honey and wax produced by bees can melt when the colony dies or during hot weather. This leads to stains and damage to walls, while the lingering honey may draw in rodents. The growing weight of a colony can also cause structural damage over time.

While honeybees are generally not aggressive, they will sting in self-defence, particularly near their colony.

Moving slowly and avoiding swatting can lower the chance of getting stung.

Dealing with honeybees in the home

If honeybees have taken up residence in your home, ask a professional, such as a beekeeper, to remove them.

Do not attempt to remove the bees yourself; this could be dangerous. Spraying insecticides or repellents into your walls may not kill all the bees and could trigger aggression.

Even if the insecticide does kill the colony, the dead bees, wax and honey will decay and melt, creating a bigger mess and attracting pests.

Not all beekeepers are equipped to remove bees from homes. Look for beekeepers who advertise “bee removal” or “bee rescue” services.

You can also try contacting amateur beekeeping associations, which may maintain a list of experienced bee removers. If there are no appropriate beekeepers in your area, or the colony is not easy to access, you may need to contact a pest controller.

Sometimes, colonies can be removed alive and relocated but this is not always possible. Your options will depend on the size of the colony, whether or not the beekeeper can access the colony, their level of experience and how long the colony has been there.

If you live in certain regions of New South Wales, it’s very important you report honeybee swarms or wild colonies to the Department of Primary Industries.

Wild colonies may harbour invasive Varroa mites, which are a deadly honeybee parasite. Varroa mites are currently subject to an eradication program. Varroa mite is only in NSW at the moment.

Prevention is key

Try to prevent bees getting in your house in the first place. Seal cracks or holes in exterior walls and put fly screen mesh over outdoor vents.

Beekeepers can prevent swarms happening in the first place by making sure they manage their hives appropriately. Joining a local beekeeping club is an excellent way to learn about bee care.

While honeybees are important pollinators and honey producers, they can also be a nuisance in your home.

Read more:
Don’t kill the curl grubs in your garden – they could be native beetle babies

Tanya Latty receives funding from the Australian Research Council, The Branco Weiss Foundation and AgriFutures Australia. She co-founded and works with Invertebrates Australia, a conservation organisation dedicated to the conservation of insects and other invertebrates. She is President of the Australasian Society for the Study of Animal Behaviour, and sits on the Education Committee for the Australian Entomological Society.

Nadine Chapman receives funding from AgriFutures Australia and the Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry. She is a member of the NSW Apiarist Association and the Amateur Beekeepers Association.

– ref. Help, bees have colonised the walls of my house! Why are they there and what should I do? – https://theconversation.com/help-bees-have-colonised-the-walls-of-my-house-why-are-they-there-and-what-should-i-do-203334

Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Robbie Fordyce, Lecturer, Communications and Media Studies, Monash University

“Splinternet” refers to the way the internet is being splintered – broken up, divided, separated, locked down, boxed up, or otherwise segmented.

Whether for nation states or corporations, there’s money and control to be had by influencing what information people can access and share, as well as the costs that are paid for this access.

The idea of a splinternet isn’t new, nor is the problem. But recent developments are likely to enhance segmentation, and have brought it back into new light.

Read more:
Meta just copped a A$1.9bn fine for keeping EU data in the US. But why should users care where data are stored?

The internet as a whole

The core question is whether we have just one single internet for everyone, or whether we have many.

Think of how we refer to things like the sky, the sea, or the economy. Despite these conceptually being singular things, we’re often only seeing a perspective: a part of the whole that isn’t complete, but we still experience directly. This applies to the internet, too.

A large portion of the internet is what’s known as the “deep web”. These are the parts search engines and web crawlers generally don’t go to. Estimates vary, but a rule of thumb is that approximately 70% of the web is “deep”.

Despite the name and the anxious news reporting in some sectors, the deep web is mostly benign. It refers to the parts of the web to which access is restricted in some ways.

Your personal email is a part of the deep web – no matter how bad your password might be, it requires authorisation to access. So do your Dropbox, OneDrive, or Google Drive accounts. If your work or school has its own servers, these are part of the deep web – they’re connected, but not publicly accessible by default (we hope).

Read more:
Searching deep and dark: Building a Google for the less visible parts of the web

We can expand this to things like the experience of multiplayer videogames, most social media platforms, and much more. Yes, there are parts that live up to the ominous name, but most of the deep web is just the stuff that needs password access.

The internet changes, too – connections go live, cables get broken or satellites fail, people bring their new Internet of Things devices (like “smart” fridges and doorbells) online, or accidentally open their computer ports to the net.

But because such a huge portion of the web is shaped by our individual access, we all have our own perspectives on what it’s like to use the internet. Just like standing under “the sky”, our local experience is different to other people. No one can see the full picture.

A fractured internet poised to fracture even more

Was there ever a single “Internet”? Certainly the US research computer network called ARPANET in the 1960s was clear, discrete, and unfractured.

Alongside this, in the ‘60s and ’70s, governments in the Soviet Union and Chile also each worked on similar network projects called OGAS and CyberSyn, respectively. These systems were proto-internets that could have expanded significantly, and had themes that resonate today – OGAS was heavily surveilled by the KGB, and CyberSyn was a social experiment destroyed during a far-right coup.

Each was very clearly separate, each was a fractured computer network that relied on government support to succeed, and ARPANET was the only one to succeed due to its significant government funding. It was the kernel that would become the basis of the internet, and it was Tim Berners-Lee’s work on HTML at CERN that became the basis of the web we have today, and something he seeks to protect.

Today, we can see the unified “Internet” has given way to a fractured internet – one poised to fracture even more.

Many nations effectively have their own internets already. These are still technically connected to the rest of the internet, but are subject to such distinct policies, regulations and costs that they are distinctly different for the users.

For example, Russia maintains a Soviet-era-style surveillance of the internet, and is far from alone in doing so – thanks to Xi Jinping, there is now “the great firewall of China”.

Surveillance isn’t the only barrier to internet use, with harassment, abuse, censorship, taxation and pricing of access, and similar internet controls being a major issue across many countries.

Content controls aren’t bad in themselves – it’s easy to think of content that most people would prefer didn’t exist. Nonetheless, these national regulations lead to a splintering of internet experience depending on which country you’re in.

Indeed, every single country has local factors that shape the internet experience, from language to law, from culture to censorship.

While this can be overcome by tools such as VPNs (virtual private networks) or shifting to blockchain networks, in practice these are individual solutions that only a small percentage of people use, and don’t represent a stable solution.

We’re already on the splinternet

In short, it doesn’t fix it for those who aren’t technically savvy and it doesn’t fix the issues with commercial services. Even without censorious governments, the problems remain. In 2021, Facebook shut down Australian news content as a protest against the News Media Bargaining Code, leading to potential change in the industry.

Before that, organisations such as Wikipedia and Google protested the winding back of network neutrality provisions in the US in 2017 following earlier campaigns.

Read more:
Facebook’s news blockade in Australia shows how tech giants are swallowing the web

Facebook (now known as Meta) attempted to create a walled garden internet in India called Free Basics – this led to a massive outcry about corporate control in late 2015 and early 2016. Today, Meta’s breaches of EU law are placing its business model at risk in the territory.

This broad shift has been described in the past by my colleague Mark Andrejevic in 2007 as digital enclosure – where states and commercial interests increasingly segment, separate and restrict what is accessible on the internet.

The uneven overlapping of national regulations and economies will interact oddly with digital services that cut across multiple borders. Further reductions in network neutrality will open the doors to restrictive internet service provider deals, price-based discrimination, and lock-in contracts with content providers.

The existing diversity of experience on the internet will see users’ experiences and access continue to diverge. As internet-based companies increasingly rely on exclusive access to users for tracking and advertising, as services and ISPs overcome falling revenue with lock-in agreements, and as government policies change, we’ll see the splintering continue.

The splinternet isn’t that different from what we already have. But it does represent an internet that’s even less global, less deliberative, less fair and less unified than we have today.

Read more:
Tim Berners-Lee’s plan to save the internet: give us back control of our data

Robbie Fordyce is affiliated with the Australian Communications Consumer Action Network.

– ref. What is the ‘splinternet’? Here’s why the internet is less whole than you might think – https://theconversation.com/what-is-the-splinternet-heres-why-the-internet-is-less-whole-than-you-might-think-207033

Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Amanda Nettelbeck, Professor of History, Australian Catholic University

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander readers are advised this article contains names and/or images of deceased people.

For many non-Indigenous Australians, it might seem the Voice to Parliament – the first step in the Uluru Statement’s process of “voice, treaty, truth” – is a recent idea. Conservative voices have framed it as a dangerously untested prospect.

But as First Nations have always known, voice, treaty and truth carry long histories. They’ve long been at the centre of Indigenous rights campaigns in Australia. They’ve also existed in other settler nations like New Zealand and Canada where treaties were forged at the point of colonisation.

These histories remind us how long First Nations people have waited for political recognition in this country – and that, compared to other former colonial sites, Australia is the exception, not the rule.

The Larrakia petition

Calls for voice as political representation have been part of First Nations activism in Australia for at least a century.

In the 1970s, Australian Aboriginal civil and lands rights movements harnessed long-running campaigns by Aboriginal activists calling for rights to treaty, land and political representation.

One famous example is the Larrakia petition to the queen, organised in 1972 to coincide with Princess Margaret’s royal visit. It carried more than 1,000 signatures.

It drew the queen’s attention to the failure of the British Crown to sign treaties with Indigenous peoples in Australia, unlike in New Zealand and North America, and called for her assistance in achieving

land rights and political representation, now.

The Larrikia organisers waited patiently outside Government House in Darwin to hand the petition directly to Princess Margaret. When a police barricade prevented them and tore the petition, they taped it together and sent it directly to Buckingham Palace.

William Cooper’s petition

Decades earlier, Yorta Yorta civil rights activist and co-founder of the Australian Aborigines’ League, William Cooper, spent the mid-1930s collecting more than 1,800 signatures from Indigenous communities across Australia for a petition to the king.

It urged the Crown to safeguard the interests of Aboriginal people as the original heirs and successors of the land and called for Indigenous political representation in the federal parliament.

As with the Larrakia petition, Australian government officials prevented the delivery of Cooper’s petition.

Even so, it remains a powerful reminder of the longevity of First Nations campaigns for a parliamentary voice. It also reminds us how long Australia has resisted activating one.

In other countries, it has been different

In Canada and New Zealand, the British Crown did make treaties with Indigenous peoples at the point of formal colonisation. In these countries, the right of political representation has not been contested in the same way.

That’s not to say these nations provide a direct model for Australia. Each country has its own history and political relationship between Indigenous peoples and government. And nobody’s suggesting treaties in other places fixed sovereignty disputes or guaranteed Indigenous rights.

But treaty rights dating back to the 1800s gave First Nations peoples in other settler colonial sites political leverage in a way Australia’s First Nations have been denied.

In Canada, First Nations treaty rights and rights of self-determination are enshrined in the Constitution. An elected Assembly of First Nations liaises with the federal government as the representative body.

In New Zealand, Māori have had dedicated parliamentary seats since the 1860s. Political representation is enshrined in the Māori Representation Act 1867, which gave all Māori men the right to vote.

Colonial officials originally conceived the Māori Representation Act 1867 as a way to bring Māori into the colonial political system rather than as a vehicle for an independent political voice.

Despite its colonial underpinnings, it shows how a formal avenue of Indigenous political representation existed almost from the beginning of the colonial relationship in a setting where treaty existed.

This raises the longer history of treaty discussions in colonial Australia.

Australia’s missed opportunities for treaty

Australia was exceptional in Britain’s settler empire for having no formal history of treaty between Indigenous peoples and the Crown.

The doctrine of terra nullius, or land belonging to no one, was how Britain claimed possession in 1788.

But that doctrine did not necessarily hold true in perpetuity, and the continuing absence of treaties in Australia was not inevitable.

By the 1800s, the mood of the Colonial Office (the British government department that managed colonies) had shifted.

In the early 1830s, Tasmania was coming through its devastating land wars. This experience motivated Tasmania’s Governor George Arthur to write to the Colonial Office in London. He suggested treaty arrangements should be made with Indigenous peoples in the territories of western and southern Australia to avoid a similar risk.

Arthur’s intervention dovetailed with a larger agenda for colonial reform after the abolition of slavery, and the British imperial government was receptive to his advice.

In 1835, the Colonial Office told South Australia’s colonisation commissioners that the Crown would not sanction British settlement there unless they could show they would protect Aboriginal people’s

earlier and preferable title.

The colonisation commissioners committed to purchase Aboriginal lands on those conditions. But because colonial authorities decided “earlier and preferable title” did not exist according to the law of possession, these purchases didn’t happen.

The year 1835, then, was a turning point. Treaties might have been forged with Indigenous peoples in the new colony of South Australia, but they were not.

Instead, the Crown tried to mitigate problems of frontier warfare by claiming Aboriginal people as British subjects who would receive equal protection under the law.

This became settled colonial policy across Australia, although it was almost never realised in practice.

Read more:
In the 1800s, colonisers attempted to listen to First Nations people. It didn’t stop the massacres

Truth: resetting the relationship, not just the record

This brings us to the question of truth. When we speak about remembering past injustices – especially the history of colonial land wars – it’s often presented as uncovering a hidden or secret history.

But in 19th century Australia, the frontier wars were far from secret. Colonial authorities constantly debated the problem. Until the end of the 19th century (and later in northern Australia), it was one of the most persistent topics in official correspondence and the colonial press.

What’s missing from the colonial records are the voices and perspectives of the Indigenous communities who experienced the frontier wars.

These histories, however, have always had a strong presence in Indigenous intergenerational knowledge, as well as the intergenerational knowledge of settler-descended communities where these events occurred.

Legal scholars Gabrielle Appleby and Megan Davis have emphasised that the value of truth is not just in resetting the historical record but in constructively resetting the relationship between First Nations and the rest of the nation.

The longer histories of voice, treaty and truth tell us the time for politically constructive reform is well overdue.

Read more:
The Voice isn’t apartheid or a veto over parliament – this misinformation is undermining democratic debate

Amanda Nettelbeck receives funding from the Australian Research Council.

– ref. Voice, treaty, truth: compared to other settler nations, Australia is the exception, not the rule – https://theconversation.com/voice-treaty-truth-compared-to-other-settler-nations-australia-is-the-exception-not-the-rule-206092

Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Stephen Kent, Professor and Laboratory Head, The University of Melbourne

While most people survive and recover from COVID, for some people symptoms can persist for months or years. When symptoms last longer than 12 weeks, the condition is known as long COVID.

Long COVID encompasses up to 200 different symptoms. To determine evidence-based treatments for these symptoms, we need to understand the causes. One factor that may be associated with long COVID is that the virus hasn’t fully cleared from the body after the initial infection.

We know from other viruses that viral fragments can remain in different tissues for months or even years. This could be the case with SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID. Here’s what the science says so far.

Other viruses lurk in the body

Herpesviruses (such as Epstein-Barr virus, the cause of glandular fever), as well as HIV (human immunodeficiency virus) can exist in a “latency state” for life. This means the virus conceals itself within cells and remains dormant.

HIV, in particular, can remain dormant in infected cells throughout the body. Even though it’s inactive, it can still promote immune activation and inflammation.

Read more:
HIV latency: a high-stakes game of hide and seek

Other viruses such as Zika, measles and Ebola have been found in tissues of infected people months or years after initial infection. This viral persistence can cause chronic illness.

Several studies have shown COVID can also reactivate the Epstein-Barr virus, which has remained in the body in a latent state. Research shows this has been linked to fatigue and problems with thinking and reasoning in people with long COVID.

How do we know COVID stays in the body?

Several studies have identified the genetic sequences of SARS-CoV-2 (RNA) as well as SARS-CoV-2 proteins in tissues and stool (poo) samples months following infection.

These studies include multiple autopsy reports that found viral RNA and protein in a variety of tissues from people who died up to seven months after infection. SARS-CoV-2 RNA was detected in at least half the samples of heart, lymph glands, eye, nerve, brain and lung tissue tested.

Read more:
Long COVID puts some people at higher risk of heart disease — they need better long-term monitoring

In people who survived, viral RNA was found four months after infection within intestinal tissues obtained through colonoscopy, when a thin tube is used to take tissue from the large intestine. These patients had asymptomatic COVID and were PCR-negative from swabs of the nose and throat at four months.

A 2022 study found SARS-CoV-2 in the stool of about half of the participants in the first week after infection. At four months, there was no virus present in the respiratory tract but 12.7% of stool samples were RNA positive. A further 3.8% of faecal samples remained positive for RNA at seven months.

Initial studies did not always suggest a strong relationship between the long-term detection of SARS-CoV-2 and long COVID symptoms.

But more recently, the presence of SARS-CoV-2 RNA (or protein translated from RNA) in the blood and gut tissue was found to increase the likelihood of developing long COVID symptoms.

How might the delay in clearing the virus impact people with long COVID?

Delayed clearance of SARS-CoV-2 particles in different parts of the body could drive illness through several potential processes:

1) Inflammation. The continued immune stimulation by viral proteins causes inflammation, makes our immune system tired, and alters how our immune cells work as time goes on.

We have previously shown immune dysfunction and inflammation persist up to eight months in people with long COVID that initially had mild to moderate disease.

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2) Activation of other dormant viruses. The continued immune response to persistent SARS-CoV-2 can cause reactivation of latent viruses.

Antibodies reactive to Epstein-Barr virus are elevated in people with long COVID suggesting Epstein-Barr virus reactivation, likely through activating the immune system.

Other latent viruses, such as human endogenous retroviruses (HERVs; ancient viruses that have become a part of our DNA, like a genetic fossil) have recently been shown to become reactivated after infection. HERV proteins were detected in blood cells and tissues of COVID patients.

These proteins could potentially drive inflammatory processes in long COVID.

3) Antibodies made by combating SARS-CoV-2 could become “self” reactive. These autoantibodies (antibodies produced by our immune system that mistakenly target and attack our own body’s tissues or organs) might cross-react with host receptors or proteins and drive autoimmune disease.

Importantly, recent studies have shown new onset of autoimmune diseases (such as type 1 diabetes, inflammatory bowel disease and psoriasis) are significantly associated with SARS-CoV-2 infection and a link between autoimmunity and long COVID is plausible.

This suggests COVID not only has immediate health impacts but could also potentially trigger long-term changes in the immune system.

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While the studies mentioned above provide initial evidence of persistence of SARS-CoV-2 long after initial infection, more studies are needed to show a convincing link between lingering virus and long COVID. This should include examination of viral RNA and protein in both blood and tissues in people with long COVID independent of disease severity. And it must involve well-developed cohort studies that track large groups of people internationally.

Several trials are underway to assess whether treating long COVID with antivirals such as Paxlovid may reduce viral antigens and improve symptoms, although this remains experimental.

Stephen Kent receives funding from the NHMRC, the MRFF, the ARC and the NIH.

Chan Phetsouphanh receives funding from NHMRC and MRFF.

– ref. Long COVID could be caused by the virus lingering in the body. Here’s what the science says – https://theconversation.com/long-covid-could-be-caused-by-the-virus-lingering-in-the-body-heres-what-the-science-says-205025