Editor's note
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The world’s last surviving male northern white rhino passed away this week, prompting soul-searching over the loss of an iconic animal. But the reality is most species require far more than a single breeding pair to survive.
Contrary to thousands of stories, from Adam and Eve to Mad Max, small groups quickly fall prey to inbreeding and genetic stagnation. Corey Bradshaw explores the idea of a ‘minimum viable population’.
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Madeleine De Gabriele
Deputy Editor: Energy + Environment
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Environment + Energy
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One of the last two surviving female northern white rhinos.
EPA/AAP
Corey Bradshaw, Flinders University
The death of the last male northern white rhino in the world raises an interesting question: when does a species pass the point of no return?
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Before taking that tempting upgrade, ask yourself if it’s really necessary.
Shutterstock.com
Miles Park, UNSW
The most sustainable phone is the one you already own. But if you're in the market for a new handset, consider choosing one with replaceable parts to avoid having to replace the whole thing again.
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Business + Economy
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Certain types of organisations diffuse responsibility and diminish individual culpability.
AAP
Andrew Linden, RMIT University; Warren Staples, RMIT University
The way corporations are structured makes it hard to establish criminal culpability even if directors and executives control processes and are paid bonuses based on performance.
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The merged union will especially benefit members of the Textile, Clothing and Footwear Union of Australia.
AAP
Peter Holland, Monash University; Marjorie Jerrard, Monash University
Super unions allow for more resources to be put into building union membership and other union activities.
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Education
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In the debate about Catholic school funding, it needs to be recognised that not all Catholic schools are the same.
Shutterstock
Peter Goss, Grattan Institute
Catholic schools say they're losing money under Gonski 2.0, but this is only true for schools serving students in affluent areas – those in poorer areas will either be unaffected, or get more.
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State curricula articulate principles of respect and ethics in relationships, but some don’t use the word ‘consent’.
from shutterstock.com
Melissa Kang, University of Technology Sydney
The #MeToo movement has sparked discussions about appropriate sexual behaviour that teachers can build on in sexual education.
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Cities
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Third places are most effective when, like Waverley Community Garden in Sydney, they appeal to people of all ages and backgrounds.
d-olwen-dee/flickr
Tony Matthews, Griffith University; Joanne Dolley, Griffith University
Third places are shared spaces where people can informally socialise. As a potential antidote to the modern scourge of loneliness, it's worth asking what makes the best of these places tick.
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Victorians who opposed the East West Link before the November 2014 election would have felt not much had changed when the new government announced the West Gate Tunnel in March 2015.
Courtney Biggs/AAP
Crystal Legacy, University of Melbourne
Transport infrastructure has such an impact on what kind of city we become that more democratic planning is long overdue. But public consultation is typically limited and focused on design issues.
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Politics + Society
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Peter Dutton’s sympathy for white South Africans has long historical roots.
AAP/Mick Tsikas
Jon Piccini, The University of Queensland
Peter Dutton’s call for 'civilised nations' to rescue white South African farmers draws explicitly on a long history of equating civilisation with a global white identity.
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George Pell emerges from court during his committal hearing on historical sexual offences.
AAP/Stefan Postles
Mark Pearson, Griffith University
George Pell's current committal hearing engages the principle of 'open justice' and some of its most important exceptions.
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Arts + Culture
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Still from Human Flow, directed by Ai Weiwei.
IMDB/Amazon Studios
Joanna Mendelssohn, UNSW
Artists have long tackled global issues, from war to human rights. While Picasso's celebrated Guernica may not have stopped the Spanish Civil War (or any war), art still holds value, as witness and as truth teller.
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Clouds and sun glint over the Indian Ocean.
NASA on The Commons/flickr
Lawrence English, The University of Queensland
Brian Eno's Music for Airports, released 40 years ago, marked the formal beginnings of ambient music. It is still provoking composers and audiences to contemplate new ways of listening.
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Health + Medicine
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When we get hot, sensors in the body tell the brain. The brain then tells the sweat glands to work, and we sweat.
Marcella Cheng/NY-CC-BD
Nigel Taylor, University of Wollongong
Sweat comes from special parts in our skin called glands. You might be able to see them if you have a very strong magnifying glass.
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A bushfire destroyed around 70 houses and businesses in the coastal town of Tathra this week.
AAP (DEAN LEWINS)
Fay Johnston, University of Tasmania
In NSW and Victoria this week, communities were hit by bushfires. Long after such devastating fires pass, the risks to physical and mental health remain.
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Science + Technology
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In a 2016 ABS survey, one in two women reported having experienced sexual harassment, but 90% of them did not contact the police.
Cindy Zhi/The Conversation NY-BD-CC
Cristy Clark, Southern Cross University
Critics say that #MeToo has turned the legal principle of innocent until proven guilty on its head, but such comments privilege the rights of perpetrators over justice for victims.
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One of the Vanguard satellites being checked out at Cape Canaveral, Florida in 1958.
NASA
Alice Gorman, Flinders University
When Vanguard 1 – the "grapefruit satellite" – was launched in 1958, its only companions were Explorer 1 and Sputnik 2. Soon it may have thousands of descendants swarming around it.
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Featured jobs
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University of Melbourne —
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Macquarie University — Macquarie Park, New South Wales
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RMIT University — Melbourne, Victoria
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Featured events
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Carriageworks, Sydney, New South Wales, 2000, Australia — UNSW
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Carriageworks, Sydney, New South Wales, 2000, Australia — UNSW
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Singapore Theatre, Melbourne School of Design Building Masson Road Parkville Campus, The University of Melbourne, Melbourne, Victoria, 3010, Australia — University of Melbourne
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New Law School LT 104, Sydney Law School, Eastern Avenue, The University of Sydney, Sydney, New South Wales, 2006, Australia — University of Sydney
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