
Spin has transformed modern-day tennis. Here’s the physics behind it
Watch any match at this years Australian Open and youll see balls curving in the air or bouncing higher or lower than expected. Players such as Novak Djokovic, Iga Swiatek and Coco Gauff are particularly masterful at the...

Manufacturing crisis: the challenge of Trump 2.0’s ‘power in chaos’ for other democracies
On the eve of Donald Trumps presidential inauguration, the world is braced for more of what has been described as his instinct for weaponised chaos. During his previous presidency, Trump upended political convention and...

‘Shoddy dropping’: how the 1920s cost-of-living crisis fuelled a black market in menswear
With almost all menswear bought off the rack or online today, the shoddy dropper has long passed into obscurity. This 1920s slang term, used only in Australia and New Zealand, referred to roving sellers of cloth. Most...

Aussie film Take My Hand is a sweet love story – but it misses the mark in depicting chronic illness
Laura (Radha Mitchell) is an ambitious investment banker living in London with her husband and three children, at the peak of her career. When she is diagnosed with multiple sclerosis (MS) and, in quick succession, her...

What’s going on with TikTok in the US, and what will this mean for Australia?
According to the latest reports, TikTok has restored services in the United States after going dark on Saturday evening US time. The company turned off its services ahead of a nationwide ban that was set to take effect on...

The US has exposed the World Anti-Doping Agency’s precarious funding model
Warren Buffet once famously said: you only find out who is swimming naked when the tide goes out. In this context, the US governments decision this month to withhold its annual funding to the World Anti-Doping Agency...