Aug 17, 2017 15:18 pm UTC| Insights & Views Life
I cant understand why people are frightened of new ideas, the composer John Cage once remarked, Im frightened of the old ones. Last weeks announcement that the Myer, Tim Fairfax Family, and Keir Foundations are sponsoring...
How subversive artists made thrift shopping cool
Aug 17, 2017 15:17 pm UTC| Insights & Views Life
National Thrift Shop Day (August 17) exists alongside other quirky holidays like Play Your Ukulele Day (February 2) and Rice Crispy Treat Day (September 18). Though intended as a lighthearted celebration of an acceptable...
Costly signals needed to deliver inconvenient truth
Aug 16, 2017 12:30 pm UTC| Insights & Views Life
A little over half the worlds population sees climate change as a serious problem (54% according to a 40-nation Pew Research survey). Coincidentally, roughly the same number identify as Christian or Muslim (55%). On the...
Forced conversions of Hindu girls in Pakistan make a mockery of its constitution
Aug 15, 2017 12:57 pm UTC| Insights & Views Life Law
In a famous speech on August 11 1947, Pakistans founder and first governor general, Muhammad Ali Jinnah, stressed that the new country was being built on the idea of religious tolerance: You are free; you are free to...
Public v private art collections: who controls our cultural heritage?
Aug 13, 2017 23:14 pm UTC| Insights & Views Life
The BMW Art Guide 2016 lists 256 private collections worldwide that are currently open to the public. But this figure omits the swiftly increasing number of multi-million dollar, independently operated gallery spaces that...
Why it costs you so much to see a specialist – and what the government should do about it
Aug 13, 2017 23:08 pm UTC| Insights & Views Life
Australians pay too much when they go to medical specialists. The government can and should do more to drive prices down. A current Senate Inquiry on out-of-pocket costs will hopefully lead to some policy action. The...
Love of bookshops in a time of Amazon and populism
Aug 11, 2017 07:54 am UTC| Insights & Views Life
There was genuine positivity at this years Australian Booksellers Association Conference in Melbourne in June. The mood was one of camaraderie and optimism at the sharing of good news. And it only brightened with the news...
Electricity from farm waste: how biogas could help Malawians with no power
What the Supreme Court is doing right in considering Trump’s immunity case
US student Gaza protests: five things that have been missed
Will Solomon Islands’ new leader stay close to China?
IceCube researchers detect a rare type of energetic neutrino sent from powerful astronomical objects