If it feels like you’re sliding backwards as the cost of living rises, you’re probably right.

Recent Stats NZ data shows that in the year to June, New Zealand salary and wage rates grew by just 2%, less than half the 4.1% increase in inflation. The trend has been happening since COVID, and it means incomes are effectively reducing.

In Australia the situation is more favourable, with the difference between wage growth and inflation much narrower, according to the Australian Bureau of Statistics: 3.2% wage growth in the year to June versus 3.8% inflation.

While Australian workers are also feeling the pinch, the pain isn’t as accute as it is in New Zealand.

One explanation for this might lie in Australia’s collective bargaining regulations that seem to offer advantages to workers and employers compared with their Kiwi counterparts.

Since 2022, Australian workplaces have had the benefit of rules that differ significantly from – and are more accessible than – the legal avenues available in Aotearoa New Zealand.

Essentially, if wage negotiations become severely deadlocked – known as an “intractable bargaining” situation – the Australian Fair Work Commission can step in to resolve the impasse.

The legal term for this is “compulsory arbitration”, and the provisions were introduced by amendments to the Australian Fair Work Act 2009. Where it applies, the Fair Work Commission can set the terms of the collective employment agreement between the parties.

Breaking a deadlock

New Zealand has a very restricted form of this in section 50J of the Employment Relations Act 2000. But this requires proof of a breach of good faith by at least one party, serious and sustained enough to significantly undermine the bargaining.

It’s also necessary to prove all other reasonable options have been used and compulsory arbitration is the only effective remedy.

In practice, the requirement to establish a breach of good faith has proved so restrictive there have been only two successful cases in the nearly 26 years the Employment Relations Act has been in force.

The intractable bargaining regime in Australia does not require proof of a breach of good faith. An intractable situation may simply result from the parties having such different expectations about the terms of a collective agreement that it is impossible to bridge the gap.

In Australia, the Fair Work Commission can make what is called an “intractable bargaining declaration” (IBD) if:

• collective bargaining has been going on for nine months
• one side has asked the Fair Work Commission to intervene
• no reasonable prospect exists of reaching a final collective agreement
• in the circumstances it is reasonable to make an IBD (taking the views of all of the bargaining representatives into account).

Issuing an IBD then allows the parties a set period to agree on the terms of a collective agreement, during which no strikes can occur. The period can be as long as the commission decides, but is often set at two weeks.

A system that works both ways

If there is still no agreement, the commission must intervene to set the terms of the collective agreement under section 269 of the Fair Work Act. This is a powerful incentive for the parties to adopt reasonable bargaining positions.

The IBD regime ought to work both ways. Recent cases heard by the Fair Work Commission suggest an IBD can be just as useful to an employer faced with a union that has adopted an intractable position.

For example, in a 2024 case involving an employer and the United Workers Union, an IBD was granted because there was a long and unsuccessful bargaining process during which the union failed three times to ratify a proposed agreement.

But it also seems Australian workers have benefited from the IBD regime contributing to relative wage growth. If New Zealand workers and employers knew a regulator might intervene to break a deadlock, they might be more motivated to reach an agreement.

Alan Toy 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.

Original source: https://analysis1.mil-osi.com/2026/08/24/wage-growth-is-higher-in-australia-could-this-regulatory-fix-help-kiwi-workers-catch-up/

AI is quietly reshaping writing. It’s not just that prose is changing — the very structure of written language is genuinely changing too.

It’s not just a new technology.

It’s not a fad.

It’s an undeniable revolution.

Did this article’s introduction seem AI generated? What made you feel that way?

The truth is, it was not AI generated; I wrote it to emulate synthetic prose, the kind you get when a large language model (LLM) organises words into text.

That kind of prose suddenly seems to be everywhere: on low-quality websites built to accumulate advertising clicks, in social media captions chasing engagement, and even book manuscripts. Crime novelist Jerry Falade recently lost a book deal worth more than $2 million after his own literary agents said they could no longer faithfully determine how his manuscript had come together. Hachette pulled the horror novel Shy Girl in March this year under similar suspicion.

Before generative AI, we could generally assume that written text had been composed by a human. This is no longer the case. So how can we spot AI-written text?

There is no single giveaway. Instead, there are patterns: particular words, sentence structure and expressive habits that appear repeatedly in AI-generated prose. LLMs are also updated rapidly and efficiently so what gives away synthetic text today may no longer do a few months from now.

Quiet, quietly and genuinely

The word quietly is a significant giveaway. Search interest in the word has climbed steadily on Google Trends since December 2021, though this measures searches rather than appearances in writing, so it is suggestive rather than proof.

What did change over that period is how many people began writing with the help of LLMs, and these models do seem to reach for quiet and quietly more than the average human writer.

Genuinely is a similar story, and a more anecdotal one. I notice it overused in AI output, Claude included, more than I would expect from a person writing casually. No one has run a rigorous study on that specific word yet.

The documented version of this pattern is vocabulary that has spiked in scientific writing since 2022: delve, meticulous, underscore, boast and intricate all appear far more often in scanned PubMed abstracts than before, in a pattern researchers have tied directly to ChatGPT-style phrasing.

None of these words is proof on its own. But when words like quietly, genuinely, delve and meticulous appear alongside the same polished sentence framing, it starts sounding like a shared house style among LLMs, rather than an individual voice.

A house style of its own

The “not X, but Y” construction is another part of that house style, alongside a fondness for the rule of three.

It also favours taking a modest claim and then immediately escalating it. For example: “This article presents a useful perspective on language. It fundamentally changes how we think about what it means to write”. Human writers have always used it, but generative AI produces the pattern with remarkable consistency.

Then there’s the em dash, the earliest and most mocked AI tell. It never held up particularly well. One writer ran the same prompt through six chatbots and got eight em dashes from ChatGPT in 573 words, but none from Gemini or Meta AI.

This reaffirms the lesson that, while individual clues are unreliable, their accumulation matters.

Read more:
Slanguage: Why AI’s stylistic negation — ‘it’s not X, it’s Y’ — is both annoying and doesn’t work

Lengthy text

Another clue to generative AI use is text length.

A reporter for The Atlantic describes how, after a driver crashed into her in Johannesburg, his frantic and incoherent behaviour at the scene gave way to a lengthy text written in polished prose only half an hour later. When she later contacted a mechanic whose texts had previously been filled with shorthand, his reply came back in the same distinctive AI voice.

Human language is shaped by the pressures of effort and time. Generative AI removes much of that cost. Realistically, a person might text: “Sorry, running late. Traffic is awful. Be there in 20”.

AI can swiftly turn that into a paragraph explaining the unexpected traffic congestion, expressing sincere regret and thanking the recipient for their patience. Nothing in that longer version is necessarily wrong. It’s simply doing far more linguistic work than the situation generally requires when time is of the essence.

The dangers of AI detection

Some people believe AI detection software can identify AI-generated text. However, these systems are far from perfect and can worsen existing biases.

A 2023 Stanford study found that seven popular AI detectors falsely identified an average of 61% of essays written by non-native English speakers as AI generated, with one tool flagging 97% of them.

AI detection has evolved since then, and more recent research presents a more complicated picture: current detectors can perform better in some settings, yet remain vulnerable to evasion and still produce false positives.

At the same time, the question is shifting beyond detection altogether: the European Union is now demanding that all AI-generated content is labelled or watermarked.

Are LLMs changing the way we write?

A new study in Nature Human Behaviour, analysing more than 880,000 Reddit posts, news articles and academic pieces, found that the spread of LLMs was associated with less variation in writing style.

Knowing who wrote something matters because language lands differently depending on who it comes from. Is the person trustworthy? Knowledgeable? Funny? Younger? Are they real?

The other reason is dexterity. Humans are excellent at problem solving and creativity, and those abilities appear in the peculiarities of individual language: an unexpected word, a unique comparison, a sentence structure that may reappear across writers but not en masse, as is the case with synthetic text.

If the prose across our media begins to sound as though it has been cut from the same automatic, uncreative, underwhelming and repetitive mould, we lose individuality, nuance, and our trust in the authenticity of the written text and its writer.

Celeste Rodriguez Louro receives funding from Google for a project titled Aboriginal English Voices. The project seeks to make voice-operated technology inclusive for First Nations people in Australia.

Original source: https://analysis1.mil-osi.com/2026/08/25/can-you-teach-yourself-to-detect-ai-writing-maybe/

Treating dirty waste water solves one environmental problem but creates another by releasing large amounts of climate emissions. As microorganisms break down sewage, they release carbon dioxide, methane and nitrous oxide – three potent greenhouse gases.

Our new research found a surprisingly simple way to cut greenhouse gas emissions from open wastewater treatment lagoons: growing plants on buoyant rafts.

Water treatment companies have made progress in reducing emissions from their operations, including switching to renewable energy. But the greenhouse gases produced by the biological and chemical processes used to treat wastewater – particularly in open treatment ponds – are harder to tackle.

The first, full-scale trial of its kind worldwide, our project on Phillip Island in Victoria showed reductions in greenhouse gases by nearly a third over two years.

The climate problem hiding in wastewater

During wastewater treatment, organic matter and nutrients are broken down and removed by microorganisms, cleaning the water. But these microbial processes can produce powerful greenhouse gases, including carbon dioxide, methane and nitrous oxide.

Methane and nitrous oxide pack a much greater climate punch than carbon dioxide. Over a 100-year period, methane is about 27 times more powerful at trapping heat than carbon dioxide, while nitrous oxide is about 273 times more powerful.

Globally, wastewater treatment is estimated to account for around 7% of human-caused methane emissions and 10% of nitrous oxide emissions. Wastewater treatment companies currently have relatively few options for reducing these emissions, particularly from open wastewater lagoons.

Putting plants on the water

Floating wetlands are buoyant platforms planted with native wetland species, such as rushes, reeds and sedges. The plant roots hang down into the wastewater, creating a large surface area where roots, microorganisms and water can interact. The plants can absorb nutrients and pollutants, while microbial communities living on the roots can consume organic matter.

Floating wetlands are already being used to improve water quality in wastewater treatment lagoons, storm water ponds and other polluted water bodies around the world. One advantage is they can be installed on existing ponds and lagoons, without additional land or major changes to treatment infrastructure.

To investigate if they could also reduce climate emissions, we installed a floating wetland the size of nearly two tennis courts (330 m2) in an operating wastewater lagoon on Phillip Island, off the Victorian coast.

The lagoon contained two parallel channels. We installed the wetland in one, and planted it with three Australian native plant species: common reed (Phragmites australis), jointed rush (Baumea articulata) and marsh club rush (Bolboschoenus caldwellii). We used the other channel as a control, allowing us to compare them.

For two years, we continuously measured carbon dioxide, methane and nitrous oxide emissions at the start and the end of each channel. We also measured water quality and nutrient concentrations each month.

A drop in emissions

The results were striking. Overall, greenhouse gas emissions from the channel containing the floating wetland were 22-31% lower than emissions from the control channel. Methane emissions fell by 32-66%, while carbon dioxide and nitrous oxide emissions were reduced by 24-36% and 18%, respectively.

Importantly, the reduction in emissions occurred within four to seven months of installing the floating wetland. We expected this drop in emissions to be linked to the plants removing nutrients from the wastewater, because nutrient removal can reduce the microbial processes that produce greenhouse gases.

However, we could not detect substantial reductions in nutrient concentrations until about 12 months into the study. This suggests that nutrient removal alone cannot fully explain why greenhouse gas emissions began to fall so early. There is still much we don’t know about exactly how floating wetlands reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

What does this mean for wastewater emissions?

Floating wetlands may be a promising way to decrease wastewater emissions. But there are still important questions.

Our experiment was confined to two channels within a large wastewater lagoon, rather than measuring emissions across the entire lagoon. Accordingly, the emission reduction potential across the entire lagoon remains to be tested.

We also conducted our study at a single site. Further studies are needed to test whether these results hold across different wastewater systems and lagoon settings.

There are practical questions too. The floating wetland used in our trial relied in part on plastic-based materials. Other floating wetland designs using natural or biodegradable materials may offer a reduced environmental footprint.

Nevertheless, our results provide encouraging evidence that a relatively simple intervention can reduce greenhouse gas emissions from open wastewater lagoons.

We would like to thank Dr Kavindra Paranage, Dr John Award, Dr Divina Navarro, Dr Chris Walker, Meg Humphrys, Mark Dishon, Zoe Geyer, Ilse Hall, Tamika Johnston, Melinda Glew and Johanna Randall for their contributions to and support of the project.

Martino Malerba received funding from the Australian Research Council (DE220100752) and Westernport Water.

Professor Peter Macreadie receives funding from the Australian Research Council (FT250100371).

Lukas Schuster 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.

Original source: https://analysis1.mil-osi.com/2026/08/24/floating-wetlands-a-promising-way-to-decrease-wastewater-emissions-new-research/

By Johnny Blades of RNZ Pacific

Original source: https://analysis1.mil-osi.com/2026/08/24/pngs-tinder-dry-central-province-and-ncd-struggle-under-el-nino/

Scientists have long known suicide can be “contagious” in young people. This means knowing someone who has attempted suicide makes teens and young adults more likely to develop suicidal thoughts and behaviours themselves.

But despite decades of research, it has not been clear precisely how this works.

A new study of more than 2,000 young people, done by a US research group and published today, offers some new insights.

What we already knew

Suicidal thoughts and behaviours typically first emerge during adolescence and young adulthood. This is also when peer relationships take on increasing importance in young people’s lives.

And we know the risk of suicide is strongly linked to this peer influence during adolescence. Research shows the suicidal behaviours of individuals within a close network can lead to their peers also developing suicidal thoughts and behaviours.

This risk of suicide contagion is higher for teenagers and young adults, compared with later in life.

Read more:
What’s the difference between intrusive thoughts and suicidal thoughts?

However, it has not been clear how suicidal behaviour spreads through young people’s social networks. For example, researchers have suggested it could be linked to copycat effects, group conformity or belonging, or because peers share other factors linked to higher suicide risk, such as financial instability or living remotely.

The researchers noted that previous research about suicide contagion in young people was mostly done before digital networks took on such a central role in their social lives. And most research has only looked at suicide exposure at a single point in time. So it hasn’t been clear how much it may shape risk over time.

Read more:
What to say and how to help if someone close to you has attempted suicide

What the study did and what it found

The new study wanted to see whether being exposed to peers’ suicidal behaviours increased young people’s risk of suicidal thoughts, suicide attempts and depression. It looked at social networks of close friends both online and in-person.

The researchers drew on data from 2,098 young people aged 13–22 years and followed up with them after one year and two years.

They only included participants who had no known history of suicide attempts when the study began. But of these, 35% knew someone who had attempted suicide in the previous year.

The study found those exposed to a suicide attempt were significantly more likely to attempt suicide themselves in the two years following exposure. They were also more likely to develop more severe symptoms of depression. Both these findings confirmed existing research.

When researchers controlled for depressive symptoms, participants’ still had a higher risk of attempting suicide. This confirms and adds to past research which has being exposed to suicide increases suicide risk, independently of mental health factors.

Interestingly, having larger sized in-person networks appeared to protect young people against developing severe depression after being exposed to a suicide attempt. But larger online social networks had the opposite effect.

How significant are these results?

The findings largely support what the science already shows: being exposed to suicide attempts directly shapes young people’s risk, beyond underlying mental health.

This means suicide is a social problem, not just an individual one.

And it means we need to offer support to the wider social network when a young person attempts suicide.

The longer-term link between someone’s exposure and their own attempt suggests young people in the wider social circle should be monitored for risk in the months and years after the exposure – not just in the immediate aftermath.

We should also carefully consider the finding that supportive in-person relationships may build resilience after a suicide attempt – and that online networks may elevate risk. This suggests that the type and quality of the connection matters, not just whether someone is socially connected.

There were also limitations

This study relied on participants self-reporting both their exposure to a suicide attempt and their own risk. This raises the possibility of recall bias.

And as an observational study, it can show a link between exposure and suicide risk, but not determine whether one causes the other.

There were other important limitations.

Exposure to a suicide attempt was not limited to the social network – it could be anyone known to the participant.

The researchers did not collect any information about the nature of relationships between people in the social networks, only their size and whether they were online or in-person. This limits the conclusions we can make about how social networks influence suicide risk, and who is most at risk within them.

For example, the data cannot tell us whether risk is higher if the person who attempted suicide was a close friend, compared to an acquaintance. And it can’t say whether directly witnessing the suicide attempt carries a greater risk than learning about it in other ways.

What this means for you

Most young people exposed to suicide will never attempt it themselves.

But schools and families should respond proactively.

A first step for parents, carers or other trusted adults is simply to acknowledge what has happened. Have open discussions about how it may have affected the young person and any concerns they may have about others in their network.

Young people often just want you be there and to listen without judgement, rather than problem-solving.

Importantly, if you’re worried a young person is thinking about or planning suicide, you should ask them directly. Research shows this does not increase suicide risk, and may reduce it.

Speaking to your GP or visiting a trusted source such as ReachOut is a useful first step.

If you’re worried your teen is in immediate danger – for example, if they have a plan and intend to act on it – call 000 and ask for an ambulance or take them to your nearest emergency department.

If this article has raised issues for you, or if you’re concerned about someone you know, call Lifeline on 13 11 14 or Kids Helpline on 1800 55 1800. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people can also call 13YARN on 13 92 76.

The Suicide Call Back Service is a free nationwide service providing 24/7 phone and online counselling to people affected by suicide. Call or visit their website.

Michelle Tye receives funding from the National Health and Medical Research Council.

Original source: https://analysis1.mil-osi.com/2026/08/24/knowing-someone-who-attempted-suicide-raises-young-peoples-own-risk-new-study/

You’ve probably heard eating fish and other seafood is good for your health. One of the main reasons is that seafood is an excellent source of two important omega-3 fats called EPA and DHA.

EPA and DHA are critical for the development and function of brains, eyes and healthy hearts. They also reduce chronic inflammation, which is linked to many chronic diseases. They can also reduce the risk of premature births and perhaps even some types of cancer.

While humans can produce EPA and DHA from ALA (an omega-3 fat found in plants) and it’s possible to get them from foods such as linseed and walnuts, seafood is the main source for most people.

However, our new study shows many fish and other seafood will become less rich in omega-3s over time, due to rising ocean temperatures as the climate changes. In fact, we found omega-3 could drop by 50% under very high warming scenarios.

This is very bad news for human health but also for the health of other animals in the food web.

What is the food web?

Marine algae are among the only forms of life that produce EPA and DHA omega-3s. Examples of marine algae include seaweeds and diatoms (a type of phytoplankton).

Marine algae form the base of marine food webs – a term that means the feeding relationships of different species within an ecosystem. This means marine algae are crucial sources of micronutrients to all animals.

When animals, such as invertebrates like crabs and starfish, eat marine algae, they obtain EPA and DHA.

This is passed up the food chain as fish or other larger animals eat those invertebrates. Eventually, the EPA and DHA reaches humans through the seafood we eat.

However, if EPA and DHA levels get disrupted along the food chain, less of those crucial fatty acids are available for animals higher up – including humans.

What we did and what we found

Our systematic review aimed to understand how climate change may affect these essential fats.

We collected and analysed data from 489 separate experiments involving 132 marine species. These included algae, invertebrates and fish. Bringing together findings like this from many studies shows how marine life is changing globally.

We looked at two aspects of climate change – ocean warming and acidification. Since 1980, ocean temperatures have risen by 0.6°C and the number of heatwaves has doubled. By 2100, ocean temperatures could rise by 4.1°C.

The burning of fossil fuels is driving up CO₂ in the atmosphere, which causes ocean acidification. These environmental changes can have diverse effects on marine life.

We looked at what the research shows could happen in response to three levels of warming: low (0– 6°C hotter), medium (6–10°C hotter) and high (more than  10°C hotter).

Our systematic review found that warming of 0–6°C (which can already happen during marine heatwaves) led to 19% lower omega-3 fatty acids in fish in experiments lasting between 24 hours and six months.

That does not include the additional warming impact on the nutritional quality of food fish eat, which our study suggests would happen in the wild.

Under high warming scenarios (more than  10°C hotter), omega-3 reduced by 50% in fish, 34% in algae, and 51% in invertebrates.

Levels of saturated fats – which are less beneficial and abundant in many meats and dairy products – increased by up to 22%.

These disruptions along the food chain have the potential to reduce nutritional value throughout the entire marine ecosystem. This is a significant ecological and public health concern.

We found ocean acidification had less impact on fatty acids than warming, suggesting rising temperature is the dominant driver of this problem.

Why is this happening?

To survive, all living things need to maintain cell function under different environmental conditions.

Under warmer environments, cell membranes (which contain fats) become more flexible and fluid.

To counteract this, individual organisms can replace omega-3s with more rigid structural saturated fats.

These keep the membranes more stable – a process called homeoviscous adaptation.

Why is this a problem?

This is a problem globally. People in tropical regions often have poorer-quality diets and don’t consume enough of these omega-3 fats. And people in developed countries are also not eating enough omega-3 fats.

This problem will be harder to solve if climate change reduces the omega-3 in seafood.

This is especially relevant considering fish stocks are already under pressure from overfishing and other human impacts.

The ecological consequences are also far-reaching, as omega-3s are important for growth, reproduction and immune function in marine organisms themselves.

What do we need to do?

To limit the worst of climate change, experts have called for urgent cuts to greenhouse gas emissions.

Our research highlights the importance of managing food security. It is crucial to make sure essential nutrients can still be provided to human populations in their traditional foods in the future, even as the climate changes.

There is a huge amount of food waste, with up to 80% of fish parts discarded during food processing. Given the projected declines in nutrition into the future, these wasted fish parts could be better utilised.

This might, for instance, include making fish oil products rich in omega-3 and other nutrients, or using these fish parts as nutritional aquaculture feed.

Camille Mellin receives funding from the Australian Research Council. She is affiliated with the South Australian Research and Development Institute (Aquatic Sciences).

Evangeline Mantzioris has received funding from the National Health and Medical Research Council. She has been appointed to the National Health and Medical Research Council Dietary Guideline Expert Committee.

Bethany Rose Dawson 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.

Original source: https://analysis1.mil-osi.com/2026/08/24/climate-change-may-halve-omega-3-fatty-acids-in-fish-and-the-organisms-they-eat/

For much of the 20th century, the most admired wife in Marathi-speaking India was not a woman at all.

Bal Gandharva (1888–1967), a celebrated impersonator of Marathi sangeet natak (musical theatre), played devoted heroines with such conviction that film actresses well into the 1970s were trained to reproduce his mannerisms.

How did a man come to define middle-class femininity with such authority?

My recently published research traces Gandharva’s enactment of womanhood from the stage to the marketplace.

It reveals how his star persona became a site where respectable Hindu femininity was produced and commodified – a project that the theatre industry, emerging consumer culture and Hindu nationalist politics each exploited for their own ends.

Staging respectability

India’s pervasive caste system divides Hindus into distinct groups based on which caste they are born into, with certain castes regarded as “higher” than others.

Some of these “lower” castes are made up of hereditary performers: families with a lineage of performing arts. Historically, women from these communities were allowed – and sometimes expected – to perform and entertain.

But Marathi sangeet natak, which emerged in the mid-19th century, was a predominantly upper-caste and middle-class practice.

Its proponents viewed women from hereditary performing castes as unfit to appear before upper-caste audiences, and refused to engage them – or any women – on stage, even while relying on their uncredited labour behind the scenes. Instead, female stage roles were performed exclusively by upper-caste men.

Hindu nationalists condemned any trace of effeminacy in men as a sign of a weakened spirit. However, they made concessions for sangeet natak as the sector developed close ties with the influential nationalist leader Bal Gangadhar Tilak (1856–1920).

Sangeet natak was a vehicle for Hindu nationalist politics, and Tilak was the leader of this political ideology – so they fulfilled each other’s agendas.

Tilak’s newspaper, Kesari, ran favourable reviews of performances and lent a respectable air to the enterprise, helping to quieten suspicion about men dressing up in saris to play women’s roles.

Across his career, Gandharva played 27 female roles drawn from Hindu mythology, reformist writing and classical drama. His heroines were bound by unwavering adherence to stridharma: a concept in Hindu scriptures that positions wifely devotion as a woman’s sole destiny.

Stridharma was also heavily pushed at the turn of the 20th century, during the nationalist movement, by upper-caste men and women reformers writing in novels, women’s journals and newspaper columns. These writers gave advice on hygiene, housework and raising children, to help shape the reader into the perfect housewife, or sugrahini.

Playing the perfect wife

Stridharma found its most immersive expression on stage, where Gandharva turned it into a visually and emotionally legible experience.

His heroines such as Shakuntala, Sindhu and Rukmini became emblems of reticence, forbearance and self-effacement. Yet these pathos-ridden performances were always delivered in exquisite saris and jewellery, turning the stage into something close to a fashion runway.

Women left the theatre and went directly to sari shops to replicate “Gandharva fashion”. Although women who longed for material things had long been seen as morally dangerous, Gandharva fashion made feminine objects both desirable and respectable.

In one 1917 play called Ekach Pyala, Gandharva played Sindhu, a devoted wife who is brutalised and killed by her alcoholic husband. The audience hail Sindhu as Sati, the Hindu goddess of self-sacrifice.

A promotional portrait (pictured in the header image of this article) shows Sindhu/Gandharva in fine jewellery and a golden-border sari. It’s as though her suffering earned her the right to such finery. The underlying message? Only through stridharma can a woman earn redemption and recognition.

The same image was later used in the product packaging for “Gandharva toilet powder” (face powder).

Sugrahini in the consumer market

Gandharva’s dutiful wife image fit naturally into ads for family products. He endorsed Zenith Drakshasava, an Ayurvedic tonic made from raisins and barley and sold as a cure for tiredness and weakness.

Such tonics were once prepared locally by Ayurvedic physicians. Slowly, pharmaceutical companies began manufacturing and selling these “homemade” cures commercially.

Gandharva’s sugrahini image lent these products a sense of homely authenticity. They reinforced the idea that protecting family wellbeing was a devoted wife’s central duty – a duty that could now be conveniently purchased.

The domestic life of the sugrahini became a way to assert Hindu identity and push back against Western influence brought by colonial rule. She offered a controlled alternative to the seductive “modern girl” figure that arose globally in popular media between the first and second world wars.

In Indian context, the “modern girl” was embodied onscreen by stars such as Sulochana. She could be seen speeding along in motorcars, in a split-sleeve blouse, with a flapper hairstyle. But by the end of the narrative, she was either “tamed” or punished.

Gandharva’s sugrahini needed no taming.

Govindrao Tembe, a contemporary of Gandharva, once observed that upper-caste families “saw a reflection of their own daughters in him”, and even sought a daughter-in-law like him. Thus the sugrahini archetype outlived the stage and entered the marriage market.

From sugrahini to tradwives

In post-independence India, the sugrahini archetype appeared in all manner of ads, from pressure cookers, to laundry powder and kitchen appliances. She was economically savvy and efficient. And even as she shopped, she remained fundamentally tied to the domestic realm.

Today, we see echoes of sugrahini in the broader global tradwife culture, where women perform traditional forms of domesticity online. They cook, clean and care for children. In many cases they monetise this performance.

Gandharva’s career reminds us that domesticated and commodified femininity is not new. It is deliberately constructed and marketed – ironically, in many cases, by men.

Radhika Raghav 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.

Original source: https://analysis1.mil-osi.com/2026/08/24/in-20th-century-india-the-perfect-hindu-wife-was-a-man/

In 2023, the James Webb Space Telescope revealed something strange: the distant reaches of the universe are filled with “little red dots” that astronomers still can’t quite explain.

But a new paper I coauthored, published today in Nature Astronomy, might have found the key to understanding their nature.

It turns out these little red dots might actually be evidence of the earliest supermassive black holes. And they could hold clues to how stars and galaxies formed in the earliest years of the universe.

Discovering the unexpected

The James Webb Space Telescope is the most powerful telescope ever made and has enabled the discovery of things we had never imagined.

This is the case for little red dots. Their name is a simple derivation of their appearance: they appear as very small compact dots that are “red” in colour (noting the James Webb Space Telescope sees in the infrared).

These objects are extremely distant, and are seen at an epoch when the universe is only around one billion years old (based on the time it takes the light to reach us).

Their compact size and extreme distance mean that most of their light comes from an area smaller than 2% of the size of our Milky Way galaxy.

Deciphering the dots

Despite finding many of these distant objects, astronomers are still unclear what they might be. The current favoured theory is that most little red dots are young supermassive black holes, with some consuming matter at such a feverish rate that their “surface” acts like the surface of a star (termed “black hole stars”).

Another theory is that some are regions of extreme star formation that form the most massive galaxies in the universe.

To help unravel the mystery of little red dots, astronomers have been looking to the host galaxies they reside in for answers, aiming to understand how galaxies and supermassive black holes grow in tandem with each other.

Our new paper, led by Yiyang Zhang from Wuhan University in China, provides key insights astronomers have been looking for.

Analysing more than 200 little red dots

We used high-definition James Webb Space Telescope imaging of the distant universe over a region of space about three times the size of the Moon, known as the COSMOS-Web region (which you can view online).

More than 400 little red dots are found in this region, a large enough number that astronomers can now unveil the secrets of the galaxies they reside in.

Measuring the size of little red dot host galaxies is not a simple task.

Imagine trying to see the colour details in a painting with a flashlight at its centre that shines bright, red light directly into your eyes. This work uses precise modelling of the optics of the James Webb Space Telescope to remove the bright central light in each image.

The technique is essentially like blocking this flashlight to see the painting clearly. The team combined 217 of these images to see the light from the faint host galaxy hiding within.

The results indicate that at the red wavelengths measured by the telescope, the host galaxies only account for about 10% of the total light of little red dots, suggesting the central region is far outshining the galaxy itself.

The host galaxies are also very small, only 40% of the size of typical galaxies at this early stage in the universe (or about 4% of the size of our Milky Way today). This suggests that little red dots can only form under very specific conditions that are atypical for most galaxies.

Measuring the number of stars

The most abundant stars that form are smaller in mass and size than our Sun and have a cooler surface temperature.

Cooler objects emit redder light than hotter objects, just as a red flame is cooler than a blue flame.

As a result, the most abundant stars emit most of their light in red optical and near-infrared wavelengths. Using this, astronomers can determine the total number of stars in a galaxy by measuring the amount of red optical and near-infrared light they emit.

This is a challenge for little red dots because the supermassive black holes in their centres also emit a lot of light at these wavelengths.

By removing this central light, this study found that the host galaxies of dots contain around 1 billion stars (just 4% as many stars as our Milky Way).

There is still considerable uncertainty about what is the mass of the supermassive black holes in little red dots, but studies suggest they may range between 10 million and 1 billion times the mass of our Sun. This implies these supermassive black holes grow most of their mass before the galaxy forms most of its stars.

This could be a key to understanding how supermassive black holes and galaxies co-evolve.

While this research has begun to unveil the nature of little red dots and their host galaxies, the exact manner by which they form and evolve remains a mystery.

Andrew Battisti receives funding from the Australian Research Council.

Original source: https://analysis1.mil-osi.com/2026/08/24/the-universe-is-full-of-strange-little-red-dots-a-new-study-shines-light-on-their-real-nature/

The secret world of political lobbying has been thrown into the spotlight by ABC Four Corners this week. The program examined the loopholes in lobbying regulations in the context of the Albanese government’s recent gambling reforms.

Today, new research from the Australian Democracy Network uncovers core flaws in Australia’s lobbying rules.

The current system allows powerful people, organisations and corporations to attempt to influence government decision-making covertly. It makes it almost impossible for the public to know who is shaping important policy and why.

Lobbying in Australia

Lobbying is any activity carried out to influence a government or institution’s policies and decisions in favour of a specific cause or outcome.

In Australia, anyone can lobby governments and has a right to represent their views. This is crucial to a healthy democracy.

But Australians also have a right to know who is trying to influence their government.

Not everyone has the same opportunities to access and influence government. Former ministers and senior advisors that become lobbyists can offer government experience and the professional networks that accompany it.

Under the current system, commercial interests can pay for that political access and influence in ways ordinary people cannot. Because there are no records of lobbyists’ meetings with ministers and members of parliament, we have no way of knowing the purpose or outcomes of these meetings, what was discussed, or what tactics might be being used to persuade government ministers to act in line with a lobbyists’s vested interest.

Without safeguards, vested interests can influence government without the public knowing about it.

To protect against undue influence, Australia has a lobbying code of conduct to regulate lobbyists. But this is not a law: it’s not legally binding.

Yet under Australian rules, only one type of lobbyist is regulated: third-party lobbyists. This means a person or company conducting lobbying activities on behalf of a third-party client.

This only covers consultants who provide lobbying as a fee-for-service arrangement. It does not cover “in-house” lobbyists — such as “government relations” staff employed directly by major companies, industry associations and not-for-profits.

The code also prohibits certain former government representatives from lobbying for set periods after leaving office. This applies to:

• ministers

• assistant ministers

• ministerial advisers

• senior public servants

• high-ranking members of the Australian Defence Force.

Only these categories must be identified as former government representatives on the lobbyist register.

Integrity experts estimate that because of these narrow definitions, as many as 80% of lobbyists may fall outside the current rules.

Research published last year by Transparency International Australia found the federal rules are weaker than every state jurisdiction.

This gap is set to widen as four states and territories have reviews underway to further strengthen their own lobbying rules.

What our research found

My research explores how business interests influence public health policies. I helped advise and review the new report from the Australian Democracy Network that reveals major shortcomings in the design and implementation of our federal lobbyist register.

The network’s research found more than half (58%) of ASX100 companies were not listed as clients on the federal lobbying register. This includes some of Australia’s largest companies, such as the Commonwealth Bank, Santos and Qantas. All these companies have substantial commercial interests in policy outcomes.

One explanation is that these companies may not lobby the government.

But a more likely explanation is these companies have their own in-house lobbyists (such as a “government relations” team). The lobbying code of conduct does not recognise these teams as lobbyists.

There are 714 registered lobbyists at the federal level, compared to only 295 members of parliament. Using publicly available records and a broader definition of former government representative — any prior role in state or federal government — the Australian Democracy Network’s analysis found almost two thirds of these lobbyists have prior government experience.

While 295 disclosed this, a further 164 had government experience they either did not disclose or were not required to disclose (such as previously being a member of parliament, or experience in state politics).

4 key reforms

These findings matter because they show how loopholes in our lobbying regulations can camouflage political access and influence.

Compared to international lobbying registers, of which many require companies to disclose their total lobbying spending and have broader definitions of “lobbyist”, Australia’s federal register provides limited information.

Australians deserve to know who is shaping the government decisions that ultimately influence their lives. Right now, it is exceptionally time-consuming (and sometimes impossible) to find out who is trying to influence government policy.

To fix these loopholes, Australia needs a federal lobbying act with universal rules applied to all lobbyists. The act should include:

1. an expanded definition of lobbyist to capture in-house “government relations” staff working for companies and industry organisations

2. a five-year ban on former ministers and advisers becoming lobbyists to protect public interest decision-making from undue influence

3. a requirement for the meeting diaries for ministers, MPs, senior advisers and lobbyists to be published so the public can see who is meeting with decision-makers

4. and the creation of an independent regulatory body with the power to enforce the rules and penalise non-compliance.

Earlier this year, the Speaker of the House and President of the Senate moved to tighten parliamentary access rules for lobbyists. Among other changes, lobbyists with privileged access passes (passes that allow them to wander Parliament House without an escort) will now be listed on a public register.

It’s a welcome first step, but the rest of Australia’s lobbying rules urgently need to catch up.

The author would like to acknowledge Christian Slattery from the Australian Democracy Network for his work on the report that underpins this article.

Jennifer Lacy-Nichols receives funding from the National Health and Medical Research Council and the Australian Research Council. She has previously received funding from the Victorian Health Promotion Foundation. She is a member of Transparency International Australia, Healthy Food Systems Australia and the Global Commercial Determinants of Health Action Network.

Original source: https://analysis1.mil-osi.com/2026/08/24/australias-lobbying-rules-ignore-most-lobbyists-its-time-for-an-overhaul/

There have been multiple high-profile alleged incidents of sexual violence against women and girls in news headlines this month. Some of them involve teenage boys.

Families might find themselves having – or thinking they need to have – discussions with their children about consent and sexual violence.

We know parents have an important role to play in teaching their children about respectful sex and healthy relationships – and countering harmful messages they may see online.

But it can be hard to know where to start.

Before initiating the discussion

There are a few ways adults can prepare ahead of time.

Research suggests it’s important for parents to feel confident when talking about consent and sexual violence so they can be clear about information and answer questions. Confidence also leads to better emotional regulation during these conversations. Ensuring you have a good level of knowledge yourself can support your level of confidence.

Use accurate words instead of euphemisms and, particularly with teenagers, don’t try to soften the discussion by hiding from the realities of violence.

According to the latest Australian Bureau of Statistics data, nearly 30% of all sexual assaults reported to police in 2024 were against girls between 10–17 years old. The number of sexual assaults recorded nationally in 2024 also increased by 10% from 2023.

Children and teens need to know the facts and risks, and to be in no doubt that their parents will support them through any experience.

How to begin the discussion

Families need to have open conversations when it comes to talking to children and young people about misogyny, rape and sexual violence. This means all family members should feel safe to raise concerns, ask questions and cover topics without fear of shutdown or reprimand.

A good starting point is to ask children what they have read about in recent media reports, what they think about the issues and what their friends have said. This provides an opening to important conversations that are not just about young people’s own personal experiences.

A possible way to do this might be to ask:

There’s been so much in the news this week about [incident]. Have you seen it?

Setting is important

It’s important children and teens don’t feel as if they’re being confronted when adults initiate conversations.

Instead of a more formal, sit-down discussion, you might choose to start a conversation in a more casual setting such as in the car or while doing chores.

Keep the conversation open and don’t instruct

While parents should be clear about their values (for example, violence against women is never OK), asking questions and helping young people reach their own conclusions can be more effective than giving instructions. These questions might include:

• what have you heard about (a particular incident)?
• how does it make you feel?
• do you have any questions you’d like to ask?

Tone is important too. Try to keep the conversation calm, nonjudgmental and open. Encourage your child to talk to you about concerning experiences and topics.

Don’t play into harmful stereotypes

Avoid reinforcing harmful messages and gender stereotypes such as “boys will be boys” or myths about rape (“women often lie about rape”, “men need sex from women”).

It’s crucial your child hears you reject these myths, even if they appear to agree with them. They might simply be testing your reactions.

Discomfort is normal

Sex, violence and pornography can be confronting and uncomfortable topics, particularly between parents and children. Recognise the discomfort is normal but don’t let it become an excuse to avoid the topic.

If you find it’s truly impossible to have these discussions with your children, find another responsible adult among your family or friends who is more able to be your deputy.

Provide ongoing support

Research suggests feminist approaches from parents (such as those that centre the safety of women and girls) as well as parental support for school education initiatives on healthy relationships and consent help support violence prevention work.

Outside the news cycle, adults can regularly support children to recognise sexism and misogyny in everyday situations, which in turn, helps them recognise it in their own lives.

For example, harmful “jokes” about women can normalise the misogyny that underpins violence. What one person thinks is just a silly line might sound like tacit permission to someone else. Adults should explicitly name and explain these harms when they arise.

Help young people to think critically

Research shows exposure to misogynistic content on social media can lead to young people supporting misogynistic ideas.

It’s essential parents and carers discuss the role social media companies play in spreading this content. Helping young people think critically about what they are seeing in their feeds can reduce the potential for harm.

When should parents start discussions?

While we tend to focus on building adolescents’ knowledge, starting conversations about consent as early as possible, and having them as often as possible, is the best approach.

Read more:
Wondering how to teach your kids about consent? Here’s an age-based guide to get you started

Research suggests younger children benefit from age-appropriate conversations about consent starting as soon as they are able to talk. This includes discussions about learning to trust their feelings and using correct anatomical words for body parts. It also includes teaching kids to respect other people’s boundaries and allowing them to make decisions about their own bodies, such as declining physical affection. Consent for little children is not about sex, it’s about physical affection such as hugs, and sharing toys and food.

Remember, misogyny, sexual violence against women and consent are complex topics. You don’t have to cover every detail in every conversation. Ongoing and open communication is far more effective than one perfectly crafted conversation.

Stephanie Wescott receives funding from the Australian Research Council and Australia’s National Research Organisation for Women’s Safety (ANROWS)

Jane Gilmore receives an Australian government Research Training Program (RTP) scholarship.

Original source: https://analysis1.mil-osi.com/2026/08/24/talking-to-your-children-about-consent-and-sexual-violence-can-be-hard-heres-how-to-start-the-conversation/

It’s now easier than ever to sell your unwanted clothes or household items online in Australia. Many popular sites, from eBay, Depop and Facebook Marketplace to newly arrived competitors like Vinted, have either scrapped or limited their seller’s fees, depending on the location, value and number of items sold.

So when do you need to declare your online sales income to the Australian Taxation Office and pay tax on it?

The answer can be as messy as your wardrobe. Be aware there is no minimum value of sales that triggers taxation obligations in Australia.

Digging into the law reveals key questions to consider whether you’re spring cleaning your wardrobe to get some cash for the latest fashion, selling a more valuable asset, or starting to run a business.

Tracking 600 million transactions a year

Two of the biggest online sales sites, eBay and Amazon, are required to provide lots of transaction data to the tax office.

What about selling goods on other platforms? The tax office may be tracking that too. Its tentacles are vast, with more than 600 million transactions reported and matched to taxpayers every year from a wide variety of private and public sources.

Even if a platform is not required to report, the transactions may still be captured through credit and debit card payment systems, such as Stripe or Square.

The tax office can also request information from the banks. It may even gather information via insurers on unexplained wealth based on “lifestyle assets” – such as cars, boats or art – you may own. There are also examples of taxpayers being caught out with unexplained deposits leading to hefty tax bills.

Is it just a hobby?

Let’s say you found a dress in your wardrobe that you bought for A$250, wore once, but don’t like. So you decide to sell it on eBay or Amazon, rather than giving it away.

You list it and sell it for $100. While you’ve now got $100 more than before, you have really lost $150 overall.

This is not a sound business model. Anything you sell actually comes at a cost to you; think profit, not just sales.

The tax office is unlikely to be interested in these types of occasional, low-value, generally loss-making personal-type activities.

In this scenario, where you’re just cashing in on your existing wardrobe, the tax office is likely to consider it private in nature and just a “hobby”.

This is unlikely to create a tax bill. However, you still may need to declare certain activity and have records to support your position.

When does online selling become a business?

What happens when you go from selling just a few old dresses to spotting a market opportunity? Perhaps you start to develop a pattern of buying vintage clothes from friends, family and op shops and selling them at a markup?

Now you’re putting in time and money with the aim of making a profit.

That sort of activity makes it more likely for the tax office to see it as a “business”.

A business typically involves repeated and continuous activities. For example, regularly buying items to resell online for profit would be more likely to be considered a business.

Another factor to consider is how systematic you are being. Are you acting in a “business-like” manner? For example, the kind of records you keep, and whether you advertise beyond family and friends, will both be relevant.

No minimum sales to be a business

While the value of sales can be a factor, be careful, as there is no clear dollar threshold for when activities will be considered a business.

But what data the tax office collects from eBay and Amazon provides a clue as to when you’re more likely to be asked questions. Amazon and eBay both share data for people who sell goods worth a total of A$12,000 or more in a particular year.

Earning more or less than that amount does not rule you in or out of running a business, and whether your activities are taxable or not. But if you are earning more than $12,000, you will be on the radar of the tax office – and more likely to be asked to explain your activities.

If you are running a business, you will need to declare income and can claim allowable expenses. You need to pay tax on the net business income.

Consider other tax obligations too. For instance, do you need an Australian Business Number (ABN)? Should you register for the goods and services tax (GST)? If you’re unsure, the federal government’s business website has useful resources.

When in doubt, get advice

Even if you only sell online occasionally, the tax office may be more interested if it involves higher valued goods – such as jewellery originally purchased for more than $500, or other personal items purchased for more than $10,000 – which you’re now trying to sell.

For these more valuable sales, any gain you make – if you managed to sell it for more than you originally paid – is taxable.

However, it gets a little murky if you have made a loss. In general, the tax office restricts how to use losses for these higher valued personal items.

If you’re still unsure whether your online selling is just a hobby, if you’re about to sell a valuable asset, or think you might have crossed over into running a business, don’t risk it – speak to a registered tax practitioner for advice.

Disclaimer: This is not tax advice, it is for educational purposes only. Taxpayers should seek advice from a registered tax agent or suitably qualified professional.

Elizabeth Morton has previously been contracted to co-facilitate a short-term training contract for tax and crypto facilitated by UNSW for the Australian Taxation Office and is currently a member of the ATO’s Crypto Industry Working Group. This is unrelated to this article. Elizabeth has not received grant funding directly related to the content of this article. Elizabeth is a Chartered Accountant, Fellow of the Tax Institute and member of the Institute of Public Accountants.

Lisa Greig is affiliated with the Chartered Accountants Australia & New Zealand, The Tax Institute and the Institute of Public Accountants. She has previously been contracted to co-facilitate a short-term training contract for tax and crypto facilitated by UNSW for the Australian Taxation Office.

Original source: https://analysis1.mil-osi.com/2026/08/24/when-is-selling-clothes-or-other-items-online-a-hobby-vs-a-business-these-are-the-tax-rules/

Summer in Europe is normally cause for celebration. Not this one, however, which will rank as one of the hottest on record. Wildfires have broken out everywhere from France to Greece, while intense drought has turned the grass in London’s famous Hyde Park brown. This week, much of Europe is sweltering through yet another heatwave.

Most European cities are designed to weather cold, not intense heat. But temperatures are now regularly climbing over 35°C. Prolonged, damaging heat is forcing rapid change. Rather than abandoning normal life, urban residents put it on hold until cooler conditions arrive in the evening.

These changes are already measurable. In our recent research, we analysed two years of bank card transaction data from three Australian cities to see what happened when the temperature rose over 35°C. We found overall spending fell 7% during heatwaves. Consumers spent less between midday and early evening, before spending stabilised after sunset.

As extreme heat becomes more common, it will affect businesses and organisations in more cities. More of life will have to happen at night.

People stay home when extreme heat arrives

We used anonymised, large-scale bank card transaction data and daily temperature records from Melbourne, Sydney and Adelaide between January 2023 and December 2024. Temperatures reached 35°C or higher on 62 days over this period – 27 in Adelaide, 20 in Melbourne and 15 in Sydney. The dataset captures virtually all point-of-sale spending in three-hour intervals.

When temperatures rose above 35°C, daytime spending fell sharply, especially during the hottest part of the day – 12pm to 6pm. Some spending shifted to cooler periods, such as evenings or the days before, or after extreme heat.

Department and variety stores were among the hardest hit: despite being air-conditioned, spending was 35% lower between 3pm and 6pm on extremely hot days.

Spending on eating out, entertainment and shopping dropped off during the afternoon before recovering in the evening. Spending at convenience stores proved more resilient. Overall, some purchases were postponed but others were lost altogether.

The shift to cooler hours

Heat is no stranger to many cities around the world. But even these places are now finding it too hot.

The daily rhythm of urban life is changing in cities such as Dubai, where summer temperatures can now push past 50°C. The Middle East is warming faster than the global average. In response, authorities have opened floodlit public beaches, which remain open overnight.

In France, Paris and Toulouse have begun keeping parks, gardens and swimming areas open into the night. In Italy and Spain, tourists are increasingly exploring Rome and Seville after sunset. In Seoul, South Korea, more than 120 public libraries now stay open until 10pm to act as climate shelters.

Despite these examples, there’s little evidence of a wider shift. Authorities in many cities are not yet actively planning for a future where extreme temperatures make afternoons unpleasant or dangerous.

Most cities are still organised around a daytime model. Public transport becomes less frequent after the commuter rush in early evening, while community centres, childcare facilities and public buildings tend to close early. Parks often lack adequate lighting or safety measures to make it possible to visit in cooler evenings.

Efforts to make cities more resilient to climate change often focus on redesigning streets, cooling buildings and expanding tree plantings and other green infrastructure. These are essential. But they are only part of the story.

Cities will have to adapt not only through modifying spaces, but also by modifying times. Climate resilience is more than just what infrastructure cities provide – it’s when it is available.

Rethinking the city after dark

To keep cities open later, authorities will need to strengthen social infrastructure – the network of public spaces, cultural institutions, libraries, sports facilities, community centres and other neighbourhood amenities crucial to everyday life in a city.

Public libraries are well-known heat refuges. But if they close before temperatures fall, it leaves people exposed.

Creating night cities doesn’t have to mean large-scale redevelopment. Often, it’s about changing existing patterns.

Sensible measures include:

• boosting frequency and reliability of public transport in evenings, especially during heatwaves
• extending opening hours for libraries and other community facilities
• installing better lighting along pedestrian routes
• ensuring public spaces remain safe and comfortable after dark.

It’s hard for some people to shift schedules to avoid the worst of the heat. Workers with fixed hours cannot simply move their working day, while carers and parents are constrained by school and care schedules. Older adults and people with limited mobility may also depend on public transport and services that become less available after dark.

That means time-shifting will have to be accompanied by investment in accessible evening infrastructure, as well as protections for the workers needed to keep cities running later.

Nightlife – or life at night?

As extreme heat reshapes daily life in more cities, authorities must plan ahead. We will need more research on how cities can best adapt their daily rhythms to rising temperatures.

It’s common to think of a city’s nightlife as revellers visiting bars or watching performances.

But in the very near future, nightlife may come to mean something else: normal life lived at night to avoid broiling by day.

Acknowledgements: Shashi Karunanethy and Dean Magee contributed to the Australian research.

Andreina Seijas 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.

Original source: https://analysis1.mil-osi.com/2026/08/24/from-nightlife-to-life-at-night-cities-must-stay-open-later-to-beat-the-rising-heat/

The Buss family’s 47-year ownership of the Los Angeles Lakers, 17-time NBA champions, could soon come to an end despite their patriarch’s clear wishes before he died. A group of investors that includes former Disney CEO Bob Iger and Joshua Kushner – the brother of Jared Kushner, President Donald Trump’s son-in-law – wants to buy the basketball team for US$12.5 billion.

The pending deal would set a record: No other sports franchise has ever fetched that high a price.

After news about the pending sale broke on Aug. 12, 2026, Jeanie Buss, who has run the Lakers since her father, Jerry Buss, died in 2013, said she wasn’t on board. Her five siblings, however, are ready to sell their stakes.

This transaction isn’t only evidence that investors are willing to pay eye-popping sums to buy teams. It also illustrates how hard it was for the late Jerry Buss to structure his estate so that his family could continue to own and run the Lakers for years to come. And it raises a thorny legal question: Who has the authority to sell property held jointly by multiple relatives in a family trust?

The succession plan

As law professors who study what happens to property after someone dies, we are fascinated by questions like this because they cast light on the complexities of family dynamics and the challenges that arise when people jointly own unusual assets, such as professional sports teams.

And we’re not alone. Jeanie Buss’ leadership of the Lakers inspired a television series, “Running Point,” starring Kate Hudson. Netflix renewed the comedy for a third season in May 2026.

The Buss family has owned the Lakers since Jerry Buss bought it in 1979. Jerry Buss put the family’s Lakers shares into trusts for his six children.

A trust is a legal arrangement for owning and managing property and other assets. The person who creates the trust must fund it with property and provide instructions to the trustee for how the property should be managed and distributed.

Trustees have legal control over property in the trust. Beneficiaries have the right to receive and benefit from the property. You can be both a trustee and a beneficiary of a trust.

Following the succession plan that Jerry Buss reportedly wrote into the family trust, Jeanie Buss became the team’s controlling owner and the Lakers’ “governor” after he died. In the NBA, the governor has the final say over a team and represents it to the league. And the NBA’s board of governors has to approve any team’s sale.

The Lakers were worth about $1 billion when Jerry Buss died in 2013, and the Buss family owned about two-thirds of the team at the time.

Most of their stakes already sold

The Buss siblings sold most of their majority stake in the Lakers in 2025 to businessman Mark Walter in a deal that valued the team at $10 billion. But they kept a 17.8% share, and Jeanie Buss was to stay on as governor until 2030.

Walter has now agreed to sell his share to the Iger-Kushner group, although the NBA still needs to approve the deal.

Jeanie Buss’ five siblings reportedly want to sell the family’s remaining stake, but she does not. If the family sells its remaining stake, Jeanie Buss would probably lose her position as the Lakers’ governor because NBA rules require that a governor hold at least a 15% ownership stake.

2 sides of the family fight

Jerry Buss’ six adult children share the team’s financial benefits, but only the trustees have the legal power to manage the property.

Three of the siblings – Jeanie Buss, Janie Buss and Joey Buss – currently serve as co-trustees.

Jeanie Buss’ position appears to rest on conditions written into the trust itself. According to her attorney, it requires the trustees to do everything possible to ensure that she remain the controlling owner of the Lakers for her lifetime.

That was apparently what their father wanted. In 2017, according to Jeanie Buss’ lawyer, when a prior dispute arose over the trust, a California court reaffirmed that Jeanie Buss remain as controlling owner.

Jeanie Buss’ siblings may counter that the 2017 order does not expressly prohibit a sale and that the trust, according to a prior court filing, permits the trustees to act by majority vote, which they appear to have done.

The 2025 deal struck with Walter also reportedly included a “tag-along” provision that would allow the trust to sell its interest for the same valuation as Walter. The siblings may argue that the currently proposed sale is exactly what was contemplated in the tag-along provision because it exceeds the 2025 valuation.

Ultimately, who prevails will depend on the terms of the trust and the 2025 agreement – neither of which is public – and the 2017 court order.

Family feuds over franchises

Owning a sports team has become a popular asset for billionaires, who sometimes see them as a way to strengthen family ties.

The Buss family drama shows that sharing ownership of a professional sports team can instead cause family disputes that play out publicly. One heir might prefer to remain actively involved in managing it, while the others may want to sell their stakes.

The Denver Broncos were controlled by a family trust until 2022. The family sold the football team because the siblings could not agree on which of them would otherwise own it.

Another dispute involving the Los Angeles Chargers arose in 2021 when one sibling, who served as co-trustee, sought to force a sale of the family trust’s stake in the football team, while her brother and other siblings sought to preserve family control.

A similar trust dispute cropped up in 2022 over family ownership of the Baltimore Orioles, when one of the owner’s sons sued the other over control of the trust and the baseball franchise, including whether to sell the team.

These cases underscore an important lesson for estate planning: Giving several heirs equal shares of an estate does not mean that they will amicably decide how to manage the property they own together.

Sibling disputes aren’t unusual

Anyone can establish a trust, and disputes over trusts usually have nothing to do with professional sports.

One of us (Weisbord) worked with two colleagues on a study of trust lawsuits filed in California that will be published in September 2026. It found that in 25% of those 640 cases, siblings were fighting each other in court.

Conflicts when parents do what Jerry Buss did by naming some of his children as both trustees and beneficiaries, but leaving others with beneficiary status only, were the most common type of dispute.

For the Buss family, the question of what happens to its trust could decide whether a basketball dynasty ends.

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.

Original source: https://analysis1.mil-osi.com/2026/08/24/legal-wrangling-over-12-5b-lakers-sale-shows-how-family-trusts-dont-guarantee-a-business-stays-in-the-family/

Months out from its projected peak, El Niño is already helping push ocean temperatures into record territory.

July brought the highest global sea-surface temperatures ever recorded for that month, partly fuelled by the fast-developing climate pattern. The latest forecasts suggest there is much more to come.

So, what exactly is El Niño, why is this one potentially so significant and what could it mean for New Zealand? Here are five things to know.

El Niño begins with a huge shift in ocean heat

El Niño is a natural climate pattern involving unusual warming of the central and eastern tropical Pacific Ocean, accompanied by changes in winds and atmospheric circulation.

Here’s how the process normally works. The sun heats the tropical ocean, while trade winds push warm surface water westward across the equatorial Pacific, causing it to pile up around Indonesia, northern Australia and Southeast Asia. Cooler water rises from below in the eastern Pacific.

This build-up means sea levels in the western Pacific “Warm Pool” average about 60cm higher than in the eastern Pacific off South America. Without the trade winds holding it there, that warm water would flow back eastwards. But there is a limit to how much can build up.

Exactly how an El Niño gets underway varies, with weather and tropical storms sometimes weakening the tradewinds and providing the trigger. Once it begins, warm water starts surging back eastwards across the Pacific.

It can take two to three months to cross the ocean, shifting thunderstorms and rainfall as it goes and influencing weather patterns far beyond the tropical Pacific.

El Niño events typically occur every two to seven years, most commonly every three to five. Sea temperatures typically peak around December, with the biggest atmospheric effects occurring around February the following year.

This El Niño will be one for the record books

By December 2025, the tropical Pacific was already primed for an El Niño. Westerly wind bursts associated with tropical storms then helped set things in motion, with subsequent surges reinforcing warming towards South America.

Signs of a major event emerged early this year. Former NIWA meteorologist Ben Noll raised the prospect in February, and by July was warning it could become a very strong – or “super” – El Niño.

Current forecasts suggest the event will continue strengthening towards the end of the year, with sea-surface temperatures in key parts of the tropical Pacific reaching more than a record 3°C above average.

It will push global temperatures even higher

El Niño is unfolding against a backdrop of human-caused warming, with global ocean heat content reaching record levels in every year from 2017 to 2025.

A 1997-98 event contributed to 1998 becoming the warmest year of the 20th century. The 2015-16 El Niño pushed temperatures to another level, while records were reset again during the 2023-24 event.

Strong El Niño events release some accumulated ocean heat into the atmosphere, temporarily boosting global surface temperatures. Global temperatures can therefore resemble a staircase, with major El Niños helping push them onto successively higher steps.

This developing El Niño could provide the next step, with record-high global temperatures possible in 2026 and even more likely in 2027.

Exactly how climate change is affecting El Niño remains uncertain. But there are indications warming may be altering the phenomenon itself, potentially increasing the risk of very strong events.

Its impacts will reach far beyond the Pacific

El Niño has profound consequences worldwide, influencing droughts, floods, storms and heatwaves, as well as agriculture, health, fisheries, wildfire risk and economic activity.

Some effects are already emerging. Dry conditions have disrupted crops in parts of Southeast Asia and Central America, while the UN World Food Programme estimates El Niño could leave nearly 50 million more people facing acute hunger by year’s end.

Much of El Niño’s global reach comes from its influence on rainfall. Exceptionally high sea surface temperatures in the tropical Pacific shift rainfall towards the ocean, often favouring drought on land. These changes alter atmospheric circulation and weather patterns much further afield, while increasing wildfire risk in dry areas.

Changes in temperature and rainfall can affect diseases such as malaria, dengue and cholera. El Niño also shifts tropical cyclone activity, typically increasing it in central and eastern parts of the Pacific while suppressing it in the tropical Atlantic.

Weakened upwelling off South America also reduces the supply of cold, nutrient-rich water, disrupting marine ecosystems and potentially causing dramatic declines in fisheries and seabird populations.

The economic effects can linger for years, with the potential to cause trillions of dollars in losses.

New Zealand could be in for a dry year

New Zealand is already experiencing some effects of El Niño, including the relatively sunny but cold southerly conditions seen through much of this winter.

Unlike many parts of the world, New Zealand often experiences cooler conditions during El Niño.

Strongest effects typically emerge later in the year. Across the Tasman, it can contribute to drought and wildfire risk in much of Australia, with smoke plumes from fires occasionally reaching New Zealand.

El Niño tends to bring drier conditions to northeastern parts of New Zealand, particularly the North Island, while the southwest – including Fiordland and the West Coast – can become wetter.

Given the potential strength of this event, there is a real risk New Zealand could experience a so-called “dry year”, with consequences for agriculture and hydroelectric generation, and an increased risk of wildfires.

Farmers and others exposed to these risks should prepare for the possibility of drought as conditions develop.

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.

Original source: https://analysis1.mil-osi.com/2026/08/24/how-will-this-years-record-breaking-el-nino-affect-nz-and-the-world-5-things-to-know/

Ukraine celebrated this year’s independence day on August 24 in the presence of key allies and amid the unfolding of another major corruption scandal.

It all started when Mykhailo Fedorov, Ukraine’s defence minister until his dismissal as part of a government reshuffle last month, posted a nine-minute video on August 19 that was widely seen as a direct challenge to the country’s president, Volodymyr Zelensky. One part of the challenge was what amounted to a call for an election, despite the fact that the ballot would have to be held in wartime. This is something that both Zelensky and a majority of Ukrainians have repeatedly rejected.

The other part of Fedorov’s challenge was his diagnosis of a “systemic crisis of governance”. He is not wrong. Corruption in Ukraine is no longer simply about this scandal or that minister. It is a pattern of elite behaviour that has outlasted every Ukrainian government since independence. It survived revolutions in 2004 and 2014 fought explicitly in the name of ending it. And it’s now undermining a war for national survival.

The depth of this problem has become more obvious over the past year. In November 2025, a bribery scheme worth an estimated US$100 million (£73 million) in the energy sector reached into Zelensky’s inner circle, forcing out his justice and energy ministers. Both have denied any wrongdoing. As part of the fall-out from that scandal, Zelensky’s long-time chief of staff, Andriy Yermak, resigned the same month. Yermak’s legal counsel has denied any involvement in illegal activities.

In July 2026, Fedorov’s own removal from his post as defence minister came after a rift with the armed forces’ commander-in-chief, Oleksandr Syrskyi. The rift was partly about strategy and partly about procurement reforms – allegedly threatening entrenched interests – that Fedorov had been keen to push through. Like a year earlier, large-scale public protests ensued.

On August 5, Olha Stefanishyna, the former deputy prime minister for European and Euro-Atlantic integration, former justice minister and former Ukrainian ambassador to the US, was formally charged with illicit enrichment and filing false asset declarations. She denies the allegations.

Meanwhile a separate investigation into her time overseeing Ukraine’s asset recovery and management agency — where contracts allegedly went to companies linked to her ex-husband — remains open but hasn’t yet led to formal charges.

And as if Fedorov’s point about systemic corruption needed any further proof, Iryna Mudra, the deputy head of Zelensky’s presidential office, who oversaw judicial reform and the special tribunal on Russian aggression, was dismissed by the president on August 19. His decision came after Ukraine’s anti-corruption agencies launched a new investigation into allegations of money-laundering.

These are not just five unrelated crises. They are symptomatic of exactly the accusation that Fedorov made: that corruption has led to a systemic crisis of governance.

What Fedorov didn’t specifically mention was that none of this is new, or peculiar to Ukraine in wartime. The new country emerged from the Soviet collapse with an economy substantially captured by a small circle of oligarchs who controlled industry, media and – at various points – the presidency itself.

The Orange Revolution of 2004 and the Euromaidan revolution a decade later were explicitly in response to widespread anger at public perceptions of official corruption. Zelensky himself was elected in 2019 on a platform built largely on fighting corruption.

What the war has changed is not the underlying motivation of corruption – human greed, pure and simple – but where the opportunities are to realise it. The privatisation auctions of the 1990s and the gas-trading schemes of the 2000s created a class of oligarchs that have come to dominate Ukrainian politics for the past three decades. The procurement contracts and reconstruction funds of the 2020s are simply the new assets up for grabs that the same oligarchic networks are fighting over now.

Arguably, though, the damage they do is compounded by the war. A 2023 sham contract for undelivered mortar munitions worth some US$40 million left a critical gap in an already stretched defence budget, straining frontline capabilities. A US$100 million scheme in 2025 which syphoned off funds intended to protect Ukraine’s energy grid damaged both the economy and made ordinary Ukrainians’ lives more miserable during the winter.

The crisis now reaches deep into the Ukrainian parliament. On the day that Mudra was charged, the Ukraine’s parliamentary law enforcement committee blocked five bills intended to strengthen the country’s fight against corruption. These bills are a non-negotiable EU requirement for releasing over €2 billion (£1.71 billion) of aid to Ukraine before the end of the year and a key item on Kyiv’s to-do list for the accession negotiations.

Corrupt system ‘protects itself’

Fedorov’s video is both the statement of a deeply felt personal grievance and a diagnosis of a system that may be beyond the point of repair. Fedorov alleged that his own reforms of defence ministry procurement, worth billions of dollars a year, were what cost him his post.

“The old system,” he said, without naming Zelensky directly, “lives by its own rules too often. It protects itself. It is scared of change.” The asymmetry he is describing is stark: reformers get sacked while insiders with the kind of connections implicated in the November 2025 scandal seem able to avoid prosecution.

When Zelensky was elected in 2019, ending corrosive corruption looked mostly like a matter of political will But if Zelensky ever had this will, many of those around him clearly did not. More than four-and-a-half years of full-scale war later and corruption is now embedded in sectors – arms procurement, air-defence contracts, energy-grid protection – where failure costs soldiers’ lives and adds yet more misery to the plight of ordinary Ukrainians.

Ukraine’s survival as an independent state has always depended on not losing the war against Russia. But it depends just as much on winning the older, quieter war against a system that, in Federov’s words, is still “scared of change”. Fedorov’s solution of holding an election is unlikely to be a solution on its own – and western pressure has clear limitations.

But without a solution, the problem will continue to fester and lead to more alienation between state and society in Ukraine. Finding and implementing a workable solution will be impossible without a change of culture among Ukraine’s elite. This will determine how good a wartime leader Zelensky ultimately proves to be and how sincere his partners are in supporting not just him but the survival of a democratic Ukraine.

Stefan Wolff is a past recipient of grant funding from the Natural Environment Research Council of the UK, the United States Institute of Peace, the Economic and Social Research Council of the UK, the British Academy, the Nato Science for Peace Programme, the EU Framework Programmes 6 and 7 and Horizon 2020, as well as the EU’s Jean Monnet Programme. He also regularly provides advice to governments and international organisations. He is a Trustee and Honorary Treasurer of the Political Studies Association of the UK and a Senior Research Fellow at the Foreign Policy Centre in London.

Tetyana Malyarenko receives funding from the Research Council of Norway (project WARPUT, 361835, implemented by Norwegian Institute of International Affairs).

Original source: https://analysis1.mil-osi.com/2026/08/24/volodymyr-zelenskys-other-war-ukraines-endless-struggle-with-corruption/