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After a third straight La Niña event delivered a cool start to spring for much of Australia, the weather is starting to heat up – as are, sadly, our power bills. Amid a cost-of-living crisis, many families might feel they face a stark choice between paying ever more for air conditioning to keep cool, or stopping their household budget from spiralling out of control.
As Ross Gordon and his colleagues remind us, though, it’s not just a question of high energy costs versus discomfort. There’s another cost to consider, as people’s health suffers in sustained heat. Mercifully, their research has identified a range of actions Australians can take to keep cool this summer while managing their energy bills.
Their top 10 tips for keeping your home cool are all proven, cost-effective ways to escape the heat without cranking up the air conditioner. They’re better for your health, your budget and, by reducing energy emissions, the planet.
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John Watson
Cities Editor and Deputy Energy + Environment Editor
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Ross Gordon, Queensland University of Technology; Gordon Waitt, University of Wollongong; Theresa Harada, University of Wollongong
Soaring power bills add to people’s worries about keeping their homes cool, especially as their health can suffer if they don’t. Fortunately, there are effective and affordable ways to beat the heat.
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Natalie Gately, Edith Cowan University; Suzanne Rock, Edith Cowan University
Our research has focused on finding out more about why offenders commit burglary, what they’re looking for and how they decide which house to target. Here’s what you need to know.
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C Raina MacIntyre, UNSW Sydney
Be prepared. Download an air quality app, stock up on respirators and stay inside if you can.
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Kate Douglas, Flinders University
How can you get your kids to read this summer? Research has found they respond well to reading non-fiction – so we’ve gathered 6 top non-fiction books, recommended by the kids themselves.
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Grainne Cleary, Deakin University
For one, they’ll work as a team to dive bomb potential enemies, even vomiting or defecating on them.
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Ashley Jameson Eriksmoen, Australian National University
Not everything needs to be Marie Kondo-ed just because it doesn’t ‘spark joy’. Ask yourself if there’s a less wasteful option.
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Jane Messer, Macquarie University
Neanderthals living in Italy swam confidently and in early Egyptian, Greek and Roman images people are shown swimming overarm. But today, only one in four people in low income countries can swim.
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Politics + Society
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Rick Sarre, University of South Australia; Juliette McIntyre, University of South Australia; Lisa Parker, University of South Australia; Michelle Fernando, University of South Australia; Sarah Moulds, University of South Australia
We’ve all been at a work or family gathering when someone has offered a seemingly authoritative statement about the way the law operates. Without some knowledge of the field of law, listeners may simply…
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Jon Piccini, Australian Catholic University
The climate emergency is in many ways the Vietnam of today’s young people. The 50th anniversary of the release of resisters to that conflict should give today’s decision-makers pause for thought.
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Michelle O'Shea, Western Sydney University; Alison Pullen, Macquarie University; Hazel Maxwell, University of Tasmania; Sarah Duffy, Western Sydney University; Sonya Joy Pearce, University of Technology Sydney
The Qatar World Cup has attracted criticism of the country’s human rights. With Australia set to host the women’s world cup next year, there’s some work we need to do in this area, too.
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Health + Medicine
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Michael Mathai, Victoria University
Do you know someone who brings their own hot chilli sauce to restaurants and friends’ houses? Are you that person? What makes that burning taste sensation hurt so good?
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Science + Technology
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Michelle Langley, Griffith University
Rituals have been around for hundreds of thousands of years – but are they still useful today?
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David Bean, Federation University Australia; Andrew Greenhill, Federation University Australia
Removing alcohol from wine and beer can be an expensive undertaking. But the craft industry is applying some smart low-tech options – with great results!
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Environment + Energy
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Erin Siostrom, University of the Sunshine Coast
Wet weather is great for some species of bugs. But Christmas beetle swarms look to be a thing of the past
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Education
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Amanda Watson, University of South Australia; Carol Maher, University of South Australia; Tim Olds, University of South Australia
Kids have structure during the school year which facilitates regular physical activity and healthy eating habits. But this ends during school holidays. How can we maintain these healthy habits?
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Arts + Culture
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Clare Corbould, Deakin University; Hilary Emmett, University of East Anglia
Black Snow, a six-part drama on Stan, puts the stories of Australian South Sea Islanders in frame.
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Gregory Ferris, University of Technology Sydney
From augmented reality to hitting an escape room, here’s how to keep yourself – and your senses – occupied this summer.
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Books + Ideas
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Carol Lefevre, University of Adelaide
John Banville calls Mrs Eckdorf in O'Neill’s Hotel, ‘an inexplicably neglected 20th-century masterpiece’. Carol Lefevre shares her fascination with William Trevor’s ‘crazed’ photographer Ivy Eckdorf.
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Mike Jones, Australian National University; Deb Verhoeven, University of Technology Sydney
Seven years after the #fundtrove campaign, the National Library’s Trove is once again under threat – and it’s part of a broader neglect of Australia’s cultural institutions.
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Business + Economy
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Meg Elkins, RMIT University; Robert Hoffmann, University of Tasmania; Swee-Hoon Chuah, University of Tasmania
The merits of ‘nudging’ have become. entangled in the ideological war over pandemic responses.
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