4 Reasons Why You Might Struggle To Make A Profit In Your Business
So...how profitable is your business? We hope you are making a success of your operation, but if you are barely making a profit, or if (dare we say it) making more losses than financial gains, then...
News Company
Inducing consumer paralysis: how retailers bury customers in an avalanche of choice
Three decades of behavioural experiments show consumers given too many choices are more likely to make a bad or no choice.www.shutterstock.comDo you think you are paying more than you should for energ...
The Conversation
Quantum physics experiment shows Heisenberg was right about uncertainty, in a certain sense
Quantum particles are not really just particles... they are also waves.Shutterstock/agsandrewThe word uncertainty is used a lot in quantum mechanics. One school of thought is that this means there&rsq...
Howard Wiseman, Director, Centre for Quantum Dynamics, Griffith University
Setka furore opens division within the labour movement – and there is no easy solution
Setka has form in attracting negative media attention as Victorian state secretary of the Construction, Forestry, Mining, Maritime and Energy Union.AAP/Daniel PockettJohn Setka’s reported commen...
Ray Markey, Emeritus Professor, Macquarie University
VIDEO: Michelle Grattan on John Setka, press freedom, Adani approval and tax
Opposition leader Anthony Albanese has called for John Setka to be expelled from the Labor Party.AAP/Bianca de MarchiMichelle Grattan talks with University of Canberra Deputy Vice-Chancellor and Vice-...
Michelle Grattan, Professorial Fellow, University of Canberra
Built like buildings, boab trees are life-savers with a chequered past
A boab tree in the Kimberley. Boab trees can live for thousands of years and their trunks hollow out as they get older. ShutterstockSign up to the Beating Around the Bush newsletter here, and suggest ...
Gregory Moore, Doctor of Botany, University of Melbourne
Proposal to mine fossil-rich site in New Zealand sparks campaign to protect it
Foulden Maar formed 23 million years ago and contains tens of thousands of fossils of extinct plants and animals.Supplied, CC BY-NDAn Australian company’s application to mine a fossil-rich site ...
Nic Rawlence, Lecturer in Ancient DNA, University of Otago
'People felt totally trapped': what it's like to be a pensioner renting privately as Australia's housing costs soar
Older private renters are far more likely to experience loneliness than their counterparts in social housing and that loneliness can be acute.ShutterstockA growing number of older Australians don&rsqu...
Sunanda Creagh, Head of Digital Storytelling
How a cyber attack hampered Hong Kong protesters
Massive public protests taking place in Hong Kong over the past week are aimed at a new extradition law, known as the Fugitive Offenders Ordinance, that would see accused criminals extradited to mainl...
Stanley Shanapinda, Research Fellow, La Trobe University
Research Check: is white meat as bad for your cholesterol levels as red meat?
Whether you're eating red meat or white meat, a lean cut is the healthier way to go.From shutterstock.comYou’ve probably heard eating too much fatty red meat is bad for your health, while lean m...
Clare Collins, Professor in Nutrition and Dietetics, University of Newcastle
Inside the story: the all-knowing narrator in Kim Scott's Taboo
View from a highway rest stop east of Ravensthorpe, Western Australia. In Kim Scott's Taboo, the landscape becomes a narrator.Chris Fithall/flickr, CC BYWhy do we tell stories, and how are they crafte...
Julienne van Loon, Vice Chancellor's Principal Research Fellow, School of Media & Communication, RMIT University
Adani is cleared to start digging its coal mine – six key questions answered
There is now nothing standing between Indian mining giant Adani and the coal buried in Queensland’s Galilee Basin.By approving the Adani’s groundwater management plan on June 13, the Queen...
Adrian Werner, Professor of Hydrogeology, Flinders University
Vital Signs: the RBA's marching orders are no longer realistic. They'll have to change
Every few years, the government hands the Reserve Bank a new set of instructions.ShutterstockA somewhat obscure fact about the marching orders for Australia’s Reserve Bank is that, usually, when...
Richard Holden, Professor of Economics, UNSW
Friday essay: Barry Humphries' humour is now history – that's the fate of topical, satirical comedy
Dame Edna Everage at Melbourne Town Hall in 2006 after being presented with the Key to the City. Simon Mossman/AAPLet’s face it, Thursday evenings on ABC television are not quite the same any mo...
Anne Pender, Professor, University of New England
Sick with the flu? Here's why you feel so bad
You might feel terrible. But your runny nose, sore throat and aches are signs your body is fighting the flu virus. And that's a good thing.from www.shutterstock.com“You never forget the flu&rdqu…
Children with autism may use memory differently. Understanding this could help us teach them
Some stereotypical behaviours of individuals with autism suggest they don’t use a certain type of memory in the same way others might.Annie Spratt/UnsplashAround one in every 70 Australians are …
Keep Your Workplace Clean and Healthy - Start with Your Carpet
The carpet is one of the dirtiest places in your office. It’s designed to catch all the dirt that you bring in with your footwear, or the fur and animal dander from pets, or just dust deposits fro…
Fathers need to care for themselves as well as their kids – but often don't
Fathers often place more emphasis on their role as head of household than their health.Marmion/Shutterstock.comIf you had to choose, which would you rather have: a healthy father or a good father? Stu…
Divorced dads often dissed by schools
Educators often fail to recognize fathers, a researcher contends. Brad Tollefson/APBy the time Father’s Day takes place, the school year is usually over.In many ways, that’s an apt metap…
When America had an open prison – the story of Kenyon Scudder and his 'prison without walls'
The institution's west dormitory is depicted in this 1942 photograph. Scudder demanded that no walls be erected on the prison grounds.AP PhotoIn a country with mass incarceration, horrific prison cond…
Americans don't agree on whether the poor should chip in or do work in exchange for aid
Most adults under 49 without kids must work 20 hours a week to get food stamps.AP Photo/Julio Cortez Americans don’t agree on how safety-net programs should work. For example, Republicans are pu…
How an aid gusher helped and hurt Liberia
Two violent civil wars in Liberia killed a quarter million people between 1989 and 2003 and destroyed the West African country’s economy. A massive influx of foreign aid followed that turmoil, u…
Elder abuse increasing, without increased awareness
Elder abuse is far more common than many believe, making an already challenging time of life harder for those who are victims of it.SpeedKingz/Shutterstock.comAbout 16% of older adults are victims of …
Maryland has created a truth commission on lynchings – can it deliver?
More than 40 lynchings have been documented in Maryland.ShutterstockBetween 1850 and 1950, thousands of African American men, women and children were victims of lynchings: public torture and killings …
City temperatures and city economics, a hidden relationship between sun and wind and profits
Cairns Lagoon: as a good response to the tropical climate, it's a very active place but with little business activity.Silvia Tavares, Author providedUrban design undoubtedly influences the urban econo…
6 actions Australia's government can take right now to target online racism
Paul Fletcher, Australia's recently appointed minister for communications, cyber safety and the arts, says he wants to make the internet safe for everyone. Markus Spiske / unsplash, CC BYPaul Fletcher…
Racial abuse is rife in junior sports – and little is being done to address it
Junior sports clubs in Australia have policies in place for handling racial taunting and vilification, but punishments are rarely enforced. David Crosling/AAPThe AFL and its clubs have finally issued …
Why too many fearless people on a team make collaboration less likely
People high on psychopathic personality traits, such as fearlessness and impulsiveness, often refuse to find common ground.from www.shutterstock.com, CC BY-NDTeam work is common across society. From s…
Grattan on Friday: The battle to stare down the defiant John Setka
In his first days as leader Anthony Albanese has taken two decisive actions to reset Labor’s relationship with the militant Construction, Forestry, Maritime, Mining and Energy Union.Reshuffling …
Undocumented plant extinctions are a big problem in Australia – here’s why they go unnoticed
Matchstick banksia (_Banksia cuneate_). There are only about 500 of these plants left in the wild at 11 different sites, with much of its habitat having been historically cleared for agriculture. An…
Hong Kong in crisis over relationship with China – and there does not appear to be a good solution
Mass pro-democracy demonstrations over recent days have underscored the fact that Hong Kong residents are fearful of creeping mainland control.AAP/EPA/Vernon YuenWhen Britain ceded its control of Hon…
A giant species of trilobite inhabited Australian waters half a billion years ago
A fossil of the giant new trilobite species _Redlichia rex_. James Holmes, Author providedAt up to 30cm long and armed with spines for crushing and shredding food, we’ve identified a previously …
Our culture affects the way we look after ourselves. It should shape the health care we receive, too
Australia is a multicultural society, and our health services need to be designed accordingly.From shutterstock.comThis article is the final part in a series, Where culture meets health.For South Asia…
'Naming and shaming' juvenile offenders or open justice? A new battle over press freedom
The Northern Territory is the only Australian jurisdiction where the media can identify juvenile offenders. The government now wants to end the practice.Lucy Hughes Jones/AAPFor the past week, momentu…
Dark Mofo 2019: a journey through the inferno to robots and extinction
Mona Confessional 2016 – 19. The art unveiled for this year's Dark Mofo is a disturbing journey into our future.Julie ShielsWhile Dark Mofo’s winter solstice events populate many above-gro…
Vital Signs: the RBA's marching orders are no longer realistic. They'll have to change
Every few years, the government hands the Reserve Bank a new set of instructions.ShutterstockA somewhat obscure fact about the marching orders for Australia’s Reserve Bank is that, usually, when…
Seaweed and sea slugs rely on toxic bacteria to defend against predators
Coral reefs contain an intricate web of predators and prey.lisnic/Shutterstock.comPlants, animals and even microbes that live on coral reefs have evolved a rich variety of defense strategies to protec…
Who’s your daddy? Don’t ask a DNA test
What are the rules that make a man a father?Slava Potik/Unsplash, CC BY“Man Ordered to Pay $65K in Child Support for Kid Who Isn’t His.” “Father Hopes to Change State Paternity…
European elections suggest US shouldn't be complacent in 2020
The 2019 European Parliament elections were well defended against outside interference.AP Photo/Olivier MatthysIn many ways, the European Parliament elections in late May were calmer than expected. Th…
Consumer genetic testing customers stretch their DNA data further with third-party interpretation websites
If you've got the raw data, why not mine it for more info?Sergey Nivens/Shutterstock.comBack in 2016, Helen (a pseudonym) took three different direct-to-consumer (DTC) genetic tests: AncestryDNA, 23an…
What does the Trump administration want from Iran?
Two oil tankers were attacked on June 13 off the coast of Oman, forcing the crew members of one burning ship to flee. It was the latest in a series of assaults on tankers transporting oil through the …
For some, self-tracking means more than self-help
What does all that data mean to you?Andrey_Popov/shutterstock.comPeople who identify with the “Quantified Self movement” are, as expressed in the movement’s motto, seeking “sel…
How to handle raccoons, snakes and other critters in your yard (hint: not with a thermos)
Oh-so-cute raccoons can carry diseases and also fight with pets. If you don't want raccoons around, minimize food sources such as bird seed.Nancy Salmon/Shutterstock.comI heard a local story of a man …