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Radio National: Peter Lalor's Bakery Hill speech

What events led to the attack on the Eureka Stockade (Eureka rebellion) on the Ballarat goldfield in 1854? This audio clip examines the famous Bakery Hill speech by activist Peter Lalor. Listen to Dr Anne Beggs-Sunter discuss the effect that the speech had on the assembled miners. Find out why this is considered a key event ...

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Big Ideas: Evolving English and the role of social media

How many times have you heard teenagers berated for using the term 'like'? Yet this term has existed at least since 1586 when the term, 'Yon man is like out of his mind' was written into history. The truth is, our language is constantly evolving, with new words added, others dying off and some resurfacing again. In this ...

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Radio National: Shakespeare sweated it!

Ben Jonson, a 17th-century playwright and critic, said of Shakespeare that 'a great poet is not just born, but made'. Enjoy this discussion between Phillip Adams and John Bell, Australian actor and director of the Bell Shakespeare company. They explore soliloquies, authorship and why Shakespeare came to be considered the ...

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Coastal erosion and king tides

A friendly discussion about the economic and environmental impacts of ways of dealing with the problems of simultaneous king tides and tidal surges associated with storms from a Californian perspective. Download the audio or view the transcript of this ABC radio interview.

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Green glow of radiation

Coming into contact with a large dose of radiation is known to be hazardous. But will it make you light up like a car dashboard at night? Some anecdotes that will engage the students to learn about radioactivity while dispelling a few myths.

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Conserving seeds of agricultural crops

This radio interview discusses how Global Crop Diversity Trust is trying to conserve the biodiversity of the world's agricultural crops. A network of seed banks is being developed, together with a backup in a mountain in Norway. Just 10 or 12 crops dominate human nutrition. And there's turnover in varieties as crops are ...

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Malaria: affects animals as well as humans

This program is an excellent example of the latest research into one of the world's most deadly disease. Humans are infected by five out of the two hundred species of malaria parasite. But birds, bats, lizards and antelopes are also hosts for malaria parasites. Each species of malaria has a different life cycle and life ...

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Gateway to Chinese

This website is a collection of resources that practise the skills of pronunciation, listening, reading, grammar and vocabulary for beginning Chinese language learners. The linked resources provide both characters and Pinyin for reading and are accompanied with audio to listen to the Chinese as well. This resource is part ...

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Radio National: Sir Henry Parkes's Tenterfield Oration, 1889

What role did Henry Parkes play in the federation of Australia? Listen to a re-enactment of Sir Henry Parkes's famous 1889 speech in Tenterfield, known as the Tenterfield Oration. Note in particular the arguments Parkes used to gain political support.

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Science student of the year Western Australia 2008

This friendly chat helps to break down some stereotypes about scientists. Jacinta Delhaize travelled to Chile and work at the Gemini South Observatory in the Andes Mountains. She talked about her experience with high school students and for this received the Science Student of the Year award in 2008. Her PhD researches ...

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Diabetes type 2 cured by surgery ABC Radio national

Download the audio or view the transcript of this ABC radio program. It is an excellent example of how approaching a problem from a different perspective and with an open mind may result in an amazing solution. Richard Stubbs, and New Zealand scientist, claims type 2 diabetes is a disease of the gut. If his hypothesis is ...

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Chemicals on the Great Barrier Reef

This program deals with a range of human impacts on the Great Barrier Reef. Herbicides from land runoff have been traced to algae and sea grasses in river mouths and coastal zones along the Great Barrier Reef. Effects include retardation of photosynthesis and growth of corals. Other pressures on the reef include high water ...

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Solar thermal electricity

This program gives an update on research into solar thermal electricity. Liddell Power Station in the Hunter Valley, NSW is a hybrid power station using solar energy to pre-heat water and so reduce the use of coal and the production of carbon dioxide. Some scientists claim that harnessing the solar heat in an area 50km ...

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Killer cholera begins where other diseases end

This ABC article by Dr Karl continues his examination of the causes, effects and treatments for cholera. A good explanation of how the body responds to the disease cholera and when healthy, maintains a balance in its absorption of water through the digestive system. The historical background to developing treatment for ...

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Cholera's prevention preferable to its cure

This ABC article by Dr Karl describes in detail aspects of how water balance occurs with some interesting examples of when things go wrong. He then outlines the disease, cholera and how it is associated with bacteria carried by water and the disruption to our water balance. Dr Karl looks at the causes and effects of cholera ...

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Brown note: bad vibration mega-hurts

This ABC article by Dr Karl investigates the myth that low frequency vibrations can result in an involuntary motion. The range of sound frequencies related to human hearing is described and how it can and cannot be used.

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Ig Nobel prizes

Some humorous examples of scientists thinking outside the square and doing some unusual research. Download the audio or view the transcript of this ABC radio interview.

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Space telescopes and servicing Hubble

This radio interview gives examples of how improvements in technology have influenced astronomy. The Space Shuttle Atlantis is paying a service call to the Hubble Space Telescope, repairing, replacing and deploying new equipment. Jonathan Nally describes the mission and looks at other large telescopes in orbit now, and ...

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Robyn Williams talks about inspiring young scientists, 2008

This is an edited sound recording of the leading science journalist and broadcaster, Robyn Williams, offering advice on how to encourage children to be interested in science. Williams states that the 'greatest challenge' is to exploit and maintain a 'natural' interest displayed in early childhood. He suggests that children ...

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Forbes Carlile discusses development of Australian sports science, 2008

This is an edited sound recording of the leading sports scientist and swimming coach Forbes Carlile speaking about his work in sports science. Carlile says that he worked under the 'father of sports science in Australia', Professor Frank Cotton. His own interest in the field was as a physiologist, measuring physical changes ...