Australian Highlights

What if we saw rubbish as a valuable resource?Scientia Professor Veena Sahajwalla is an inventor, engineer and leading expert in the field of recycling science. She is the founding Director of the Centre for Sustainable Materials Research & Technology (SMART) at the University of NSW. Making waste valuable, her first invention reduced carbon emissions from the steel industry, and her second is promising to empower communities to become their own manufacturers. Adding a few more ‘r’s to the reduce, reuse, recycle list – such as reform and remanufacture – she is upending existing systems to engineer solutions for a waste-free world.Comedian Bec Charlwood is excited to be on such a classy podcast and we're thrilled to have her help host Rachel Rayner unravel our trash to reveal the treasure within.TranscriptLinks Highlight article by Rachel Rayner, Science ExplainerRead more on UNSW's SMaRT Centre More on Green SteelMore on plastic filaments from MICROfactoriesMore on ceramics from MICROfactoriesFind out more on the circular economy at the Australian Circular Economy HubCheck out Bec Charlwood's comedy on her YouTube channelCredits Producer: Rachel Rayner, Science ExplainerGuests: Veena Sahajwalla, Bec CharlwoodMusic: Michelle CashmanEditing: Graham Hunter

The power of positive role models cannot be understated.No one knows this best than Associate Professor Corey Tutt OAM, founder of Deadly Science. The results of his work are obvious. As he says:"Young Indigenous kids in Australia, you know, they used to say they wanted to be a deadly footballer, now they’re saying they want to be a deadly scientist.”Deadly Science is a not-for-profit, community-led organisation providing STEM resources to schools around Australia and connecting young First Nations People with mentors. Since its beginnings in 2018, it has become Australia's leading Indigenous STEM charity, supporting over 800 schools and community organisations nationwide.Corey worked with Australian Geographic to produce a host of science books with topics ranging from weather, to animal adaptions to the Solar System. Buy the books for yourself, your family or add them to your school’s library. He's also written his own books on Indigenous science and role models. Reptiles were Corey’s gateway into STEM and his latest book, Caution! This Book Contains Deadly Reptiles, is a celebration of Australia’s wonderful diversity of scaly things.Comedian Melody Rachel and host Rachel Rayner absorb Corey's story of trials and challenges, and his steadfast vision to make STEM careers an option for everyone.You can support the work of Deadly Science by partnering, donating, volunteering or following them on social media channels. There's also a whole lot of teacher resources too!TranscriptLinks Highlight article by Rachel Rayner, Science ExplainerDeadly ScienceThe Ninu (Greater Bilby) researchAustralian Reptiles in Colour by Harold Cogger on Ebay (but check your local library first!)Follow Melody Rachel on InstagramCreditsProducer: Rachel Rayner, Science ExplainerGuests: Corey Tutt, Melody RachelMusic: Michelle CashmanEditing: HoboHut Media

Rachel Rayner, Science Explainer and confidante, Kirsty Kapp, catch up on a flash of five episodes.They consider tall poppies, argue about what moths eat, apologise to Perth, and avoid a deep dive into AI. Head to each individual episode for more information on each.TranscriptCreditsProducer: Rachel Rayner, Science ExplainerGuest: Kirsty KappMusic: Michelle CashmanEditing: Graham HunterMade possible through Meta Australia Journalism Fund, administered by the Walkley Foundation, with support from Comedy Victoria.

Can you build your own collaborator? And what goes on behind the scenes of our big, complex, scientific infrastructure?Astronomer Dr Vanessa Moss is Head of Science Operations for CSIRO’s ASKAP radio telescope. Situated in a remote location, the telescope was always planned to be controlled remotely – by a human. But Vanessa has taken this a step further by building a system to autonomously control the telescope, called SAURON.Which is a Lord of the Rings reference (for those of us that are outside the LOTR realm) to Sauron, who has an all-seeing eye. In this case, SAURON stands for Scheduling Autonomously Under Reactive Observational Needs, and it’s helping us see as much of the sky as possible.Comedian Seizure Kaiser is on-hand to make sure we don’t use too many acronyms and is pretty glad we’re not talking cricket facts. Hosted by Rachel Rayner, Science ExplainerTranscriptLinks for more:Highlight article by Rachel Rayner, Science Explainer will be on the website soon: Australian HighlightsCSIRO's ASKAP radio telescope at Inyarrimanha Ilgari Bundara, the CSIRO Murchison Radio-astronomy ObservatoryFollow Seizure on Instagram and find out what shows are coming up, including at the Sydney Comedy Festival.CreditsProducer: Rachel Rayner, Science ExplainerGuests: Vanessa Moss, Seizure KaiserMusic: Michelle CashmanEditing: Graham HuntMade possible through Meta Australia Journalism Fund, administered by the Walkley Foundation, with support from Comedy Victoria.

Dr Vanessa Finney, Head of World Cultures, Archives and Research Library at the Australian Museum introduces us to the Scott sisters, possibly Australia’s first professional female illustrators. Their scientific paintings of life-sized moths and butterflies must have been produced with microscopes and single-hair brushes to capture colour, texture and details of tiny features like caterpillar legs and moth antennae.Vanessa oversees the collection of the sisters’ work, held at the Australian Museum, and wrote the book on the sisters, Transformations, Harriet and Helena Scott: colonial Sydney's finest natural history artists, which explores the lives of these two extraordinary women.Hear comedian Elsa Daddo's awe at the work of the sisters. She also shares her wonderful imagination, experiences as a professional artist, and a reminder to connect with nature.Hosted by Rachel Rayner, Science Explainer.TranscriptLinks Highlight article by Rachel RaynerSee the artwork we show Elsa - the front cover of Vanessa's book. (Also the first image in the article linked above).History of the Scott sisters on the Australian Museum website, also here.The history of sunfish at the Australian MuseumThe Art of Science app by the Australian Museum (scroll down a few entries)CreditsProducer: Rachel Rayner, Science ExplainerGuests: Dr Vanessa Finney, Elsa DaddoStudio: Damn Good ProductionMusic: Michelle CashmanEditing: HoboHut MediaMade possible through Meta Australia Journalism Fund, administered by the Walkley Foundation, with support from Comedy Victoria.

Astronomer Dr Kat Ross has been frustrated many times by the ‘lone male genius’ myth in science. Pervasive narratives that ‘women don’t do science’ are not accurate, and Kat is on a mission to prove it. Kat is a proud bisexual, agender person who loves pink and is the founder of IncludeHer, an international not-for-profit organisation working with teachers, governments, curriculum developers and students to help create a modern, engaging and relatable perception of science.Hear comedian Lou Conran’s admiration for her sister, a renowned research scientist, and her amazement at the situation of things. She also shares her experiences as a comedian and women’s desire to have their stories heard.To see Kat’s dress, head to our website!Content warning: We talk about child loss in this episode, which can be distressing. If you or anyone needs resources or support, go to beyond blue.org or call Lifeline at 13 11 14 and remember to look out for yourself and each other.Hosted by Rachel Rayner, Science ExplainerTranscriptLinks for more:Highlight article by Rachel Rayner, Science ExplainerKat’s research paperScientists mentioned:·      Nicola Conran, Biochemist looking into Sickle Cell·      Marie Curie, pioneer of radioactivity research and winner of two Nobel Prizes·      Margaret Hamilton, developed onboard flight software for the Apollo missions·      Dorothy Vaughan, NASA mathematician·      Margaret Thatcher, chemist, though it turns out she didn’t invent Mr Whippy Icecream – sorry about that!·      Captain Kathryn Janeway, of StarTrek Voyager.Katy Hessel’s Great Women Artists, National Gallery of Australia’s Know My NameLou is an advocate for the charity, Saying Goodbye, which provides support and more to those suffering the loss of a babyCreditsProducer: Rachel Rayner, Science ExplainerGuests: Kat Ross, Lou ConranMusic: Michelle CashmanEditing: Graham Hunt

Where does Australia’s culture of innovation come from, if it exists at all?Dr Jonathan Englert unravels the conundrum, fresh from his PhD looking into Australian innovation, where he interviewed various inventors and explored his relationship to Australian culture.We uncover the stories of inventors like Barry Marshall, who rejected the establishment to change medicine forever, Lawrence Hargrave whose kites paved the way for flight, and David Skillern, a leader of the Wifi team.Comedian Mandy Scotney, still on her PhD journey, joins us with her insightful and hilarious takes, biting commentary and tales of wombat poo.Promised notes from the episode:In the episode, we mention putting bricks in the toilet - the cistern specifically, which was a thing many householders did before the Australian invention of the dual flush system.The wombat poo... It’s vaguely cube-shaped. The reason? Biomechanical engineers, who were studying how it becomes cube-shaped, postulated that perhaps it is to signpost their territory (it doesn't roll away). Research into how wombats make it cubed was done at the Georgia Institute of Technology…yep, in the USA. Biomechanics researcher on the study, David Hu, says, the wombat's strategy could help engineers design better ways to shape valuable or sensitive materials. Hosted by Rachel Rayner, Science ExplainerTranscriptLinks for more:Highlight article by Rachel Rayner, Science Explainer Bonus episode on Jonathan’s journalistic interview technique, the Bueller method, is our episode 7!Lawrence Hargrave, who is credited as supplying key innovations to enable airplanes in the 1890s.Barry Marshall, who worked out that bacteria cause stomach ulcers in the 1980sDavid Skellern, a key figure in the story of inventing fast Wifi in the 1990s.Henry Hoke, who built a collection of innovations like the rope hammer and the leg pull from the first half of the 20th century. Mark Thomson, keeper of Henry Hoke’s archives and founder of the Institute for Backyard Studies.Follow Mandy and find out what she’s up to nextCreditsProducer: Rachel Rayner, Science ExplainerGuests: Jonathan Englert, Mandy ScotneyMusic: Michelle CashmanEditing: HoboHut MediaMade possible through Meta Australia Journalism Fund, administered by the Walkley Foundation, with support from Comedy Victoria.

Rachel Rayner, Science Explainer and confidante, Kirsty Kapp, catch up on the first four episodes of the series.Rachel is thankful she can explain a bit of quantum physics, and Kirsty is excited about recognising Traditional Knowledge, and horrified at the lack of women in arts leadership in Australia’s recent past.They argue about whether an octopus has eight arms or eight legs and celebrate science's role in making trivia great again. Head to each individual episode for more information on each.Note, Rachel made some factual errors in the show:The technology stack has six layers, the seventh being Country.The Story of the Ned Kelly Gang, the world's first feature-length film, opened in 1906 (December, though, so she's close)CreditsProducer: Rachel Rayner, Science ExplainerGuest: Kirsty KappMusic: Michelle CashmanEditing: Graham HunterMade possible through Meta Australia Journalism Fund, administered by the Walkley Foundation, with support from Comedy Victoria.