Australian National University

Underground nuclear tests are hard to detect. A new method can spot them 99% of the time

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수요일, 2월 7, 2024
Earthquake, Seismometer, Travel, Research, Weapon, Explosion, Geophysical Journal International, National university, Safety, Australian National University, Castle Bravo, Los Alamos National Laboratory, Conventional weapon, Comprehensive, Uranium mining

Groups such as the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty Organization are constantly on the lookout for new tests.

Key Points: 
  • Groups such as the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty Organization are constantly on the lookout for new tests.
  • However, for reasons of safety and secrecy, modern nuclear tests are carried out underground – which makes them difficult to detect.

Fallout

  • For example, the US’s 1954 Castle Bravo test, conducted in secret at Bikini Atoll in the Marshall Islands, delivered large volumes of radioactive fallout to several nearby islands and their inhabitants.
  • In 1963, the US, the UK and the USSR agreed to carry out future tests underground to limit fallout.

How to spot an atom bomb


During this period there were substantial international efforts to figure out how to monitor nuclear testing. The competitive nature of weapons development means much research and testing is conducted in secret. Groups such as the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty Organization today run global networks of instruments specifically designed to identify any potential tests. These include:

A needle in a haystack

  • First are body waves, which travel outwards in all directions, including down into the deep Earth, before returning to the surface.
  • As a result, monitoring underground tests is like searching for a potentially non-existent needle in a haystack the size of a planet.

Nukes vs quakes

  • If an event occurs far from volcanoes and plate tectonic boundaries, it might be considered more suspicious.
  • Alternatively, if it occurs at a depth greater than say three kilometres, it is unlikely to have been a nuclear test.
  • This outcome underlines the importance of using multiple independent discrimination techniques during monitoring – no single method is likely to prove reliable for all events.

An alternative method

  • As a result, we were able to take advantage of fundamental differences between the sources of explosions and earthquakes to develop an improved method of classifying these events.
  • We tested our approach on catalogues of known explosions and earthquakes from the western United States, and found that the method gets it right around 99% of the time.


Mark Hoggard works for the Australian National University. He receives funding from Geoscience Australia and the Australian Research Council.

A 380-million-year old predatory fish from Central Australia is finally named after decades of digging

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화요일, 2월 6, 2024
Fossil, Survival, Vertebrate, Tetrapodomorpha, Science, Research, Amphibian, Bird, Bichir, National university, Flinders University, Mammal, Australian National University, Skull, Animal, Estuary, Hand, Spiracle, Vertebrate paleontology, Fish, River, Go go, Paleontology, Journal, Placodermi, Finger, The, Museum, Reptile, Limestone

More than 380 million years ago, a sleek, air-breathing predatory fish patrolled the rivers of central Australia.

Key Points: 
  • More than 380 million years ago, a sleek, air-breathing predatory fish patrolled the rivers of central Australia.
  • Known from at least 17 fossil specimens, Harajicadectes is the first reasonably complete bony fish found from Devonian rocks in central Australia.

Meet the biter

  • This group had strongly built paired fins and usually only a single pair of external nostrils.
  • Tetrapodomorph fish from the Devonian period (359–419 million years ago) have long been of great interest to science.
  • They include the forerunners of modern tetrapods – animals with backbones and limbs such as amphibians, reptiles, birds and mammals.

A long road to discovery

  • Packed within red sandstone blocks on a remote hilltop were hundreds of fossil fishes.
  • The vast majority of them were small Bothriolepis – a type of widespread prehistoric fish known as a placoderm, covered in box-like armour.
  • These included a lungfish known as Harajicadipterus youngi, named in honour of Gavin Young and his years of work on material from Harajica.
  • There were early attempts at figuring out the species, but this proved troublesome.
  • Then, our Flinders University expedition to the site in 2016 yielded the first almost complete fossil of this animal.

A strange apex predator

  • Likely the top predator of those ancient rivers, its big mouth was lined with closely-packed sharp teeth alongside larger, widely spaced triangular fangs.
  • It seems to have combined anatomical traits from different tetrapodomorph lineages via convergent evolution (when different creatures evolve similar features independently).
  • Similar giant spiracles also appear in Gogonasus, a marine tetrapodomorph from the famous Late Devonian Gogo Formation of Western Australia.
  • They are also seen in the unrelated Pickeringius, an early ray-finned fish that was also at Gogo.

The earliest air-breathers?


Other Devonian animals that sported such spiracles were the famous elpistostegalians – freshwater tetrapodomorphs from the Northern Hemisphere such as Elpistostege and Tiktaalik. These animals were extremely close to the ancestry of limbed vertebrates. So, enlarged spiracles seem to have arisen independently in at least four separate lineages of Devonian fishes.

  • The only living fishes with similar structures are bichirs, African ray-finned fishes that live in shallow floodplains and estuaries.
  • It was recently confirmed they draw surface air through their spiracles to aid survival in oxygen-poor waters.


Brian Choo receives funding from the Australian Research Council and is employed by Flinders University. Alice Clement receives funding from the Australian Research Council and is employed by Flinders University. John Long receives funding from The Australian Research Council.

QS World University Rankings: Sustainability 2024

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화요일, 12월 5, 2023
Knowledge, Environmental issues, Environmental Research, Environmental education, National university, Delft University of Technology, American University of Beirut, QS, American University, Stanford University, University of Tokyo, Ranking, University, 142nd Delaware General Assembly, National University of Singapore, Fudan University, Imperial College London, University of Sydney, Columbia University, Lund University, Australian National University, Nursing, Social impact, Equality

LONDON, Dec. 5, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- QS Quacquarelli Symonds, released the 2024 QS World University Rankings: Sustainability*.

Key Points: 
  • In the US, Stanford, the University of Michigan-Ann Arbor, and Columbia University excel in Employability & Opportunities.
  • Fudan University (142nd) and the University of Delhi (220th) are the highest ranked in China and India, respectively.
  • The University of Sydney tops in Social Impact, while the Australian National University ranks second globally.
  • The University of Cape Town (50th) leads Africa in Sustainability, with the American University of Beirut topping the Middle East and Universidade de São Paulo (67th) leading in Latin America.

QS World University Rankings: Sustainability 2024

Retrieved on: 
화요일, 12월 5, 2023
Knowledge, Environmental issues, Environmental Research, Environmental education, National university, Delft University of Technology, American University of Beirut, University of California, Berkeley, QS, American University, Stanford University, University of Tokyo, Ranking, University, 142nd Delaware General Assembly, National University of Singapore, Fudan University, Imperial College London, University of Sydney, Columbia University, Lund University, Australian National University, UC, Nursing, Social impact, Equality

LONDON, Dec. 5, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- QS Quacquarelli Symonds, released the 2024 QS World University Rankings: Sustainability*.

Key Points: 
  • In the US, Stanford, the University of Michigan-Ann Arbor, and Columbia University excel in Employability & Opportunities.
  • Fudan University (142nd) and the University of Delhi (220th) are the highest ranked in China and India, respectively.
  • The University of Sydney tops in Social Impact, while the Australian National University ranks second globally.
  • The University of Cape Town (50th) leads Africa in Sustainability, with the American University of Beirut topping the Middle East and Universidade de São Paulo (67th) leading in Latin America.

Australian universities have dropped in the latest round of global rankings – should we be worried?

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목요일, 9월 28, 2023
University of Oxford, National university, Conversation, Industry, University, Education, Times Higher Education, Stanford University, Harvard University, National University of Singapore, Teaching, Research, COVID, Falls, Associate, Accord, Student, University of Melbourne, University of Sydney, United Kingdom, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Time, News, Australian National University, Nursing, Pharmaceutical industry, Creative industries, Tutoring, Renewable energy

In Australia, headlines have talked about a “slide” down the world rankings for Australian universities, with our reputation also “slipping”.

Key Points: 
  • In Australia, headlines have talked about a “slide” down the world rankings for Australian universities, with our reputation also “slipping”.
  • For example, The University of Sydney dropped six places to 60 and the Australian National University dropped five places to 67.
  • The Conversation spoke to Associate Professor Gwilym Croucher, a higher education researcher at the University of Melbourne about what the latest rankings mean.
  • Given international student fees have played a key role in funding much research in Australian universities, this is important.

Net zero goal still alive, says IEA – but the world still faces major obstacles to reach it

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수요일, 9월 27, 2023
Lund University, UCL, Optimism, Industry, University, IEA, International Energy Agency, La Trobe University, Policy, Electricity, ARC, Research, University of Surrey, Carbon, Wind, Science, Coal, Wood, Sunlight, Steam, Climate change, Developed country, UN, Water, Australian Research Council, City, Biomass, Greenhouse, McNally, Australian National University, Renewable energy, Fossil fuel

Globally, the rate at which people are installing solar panels and buying electric vehicles is “perfectly in line” with what experts have said is necessary to reach net zero emissions by 2050.

Key Points: 
  • Globally, the rate at which people are installing solar panels and buying electric vehicles is “perfectly in line” with what experts have said is necessary to reach net zero emissions by 2050.
  • That’s according to Fatih Birol, the economist who leads the world’s energy watchdog, the International Energy Agency (IEA).
  • In a recent update on humanity’s progress with cutting greenhouse gas emissions, the IEA concluded that by 2030:


The report assumes that renewable energy capacity will need to triple and replace coal, oil and gas at a rapid pace by the end of this decade to guard against catastrophic levels of warming. But despite sources like solar consistently defying even the most bullish predictions, fossil fuels have hardly budged: they supplied 82% of the world’s energy last year and 87% in 2000. Why?

Fossil fuels linger, wind power stalls

    • “[In Europe and North America] renewable energy has slowly eaten into the proportion of energy generated by fossil fuels, while all other energy sources (nuclear, hydro, biomass) have remained about the same.
    • Jansen says wind is a particularly valuable energy source during winter, when energy demand peaks.
    • McNally does not believe this setback heralds the end of cheap offshore wind, as some have claimed.

Net zero must come sooner

    • According to the IEA, “almost all countries” will also need to move their net zero target dates forward by several years.
    • A team of energy experts at Australian National University (with support from nearly 900 engineers) recently argued that Australia could hit net zero as early as 2035.
    • Australia must aim for 2035

      But in the UK at least, government policies on net zero are moving in the opposite direction.

We’ve been here before

What's to stop Philip Lowe moving to a private bank after he leaves the RBA? It's what his predecessors did

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화요일, 9월 5, 2023
NAB, Australian Super Touring Championship, National university, Employment, Industry, The arts, National Australia Bank, Sydney, Perception, ME Bank, Reserve Bank of Australia, Head, Age, Reserve, H. C. Coombs, Ministry of Aboriginal Affairs, Treasury, Retirement, Macquarie Group, Reserve Bank, Council, ANZ, Knowledge, Commonwealth, RBA, Australian National University, Nursing, Pension fund, Westpac

Surely Reserve Bank Governor Philip Lowe won’t move to a private bank after his term as governor ends next week.

Key Points: 
  • Surely Reserve Bank Governor Philip Lowe won’t move to a private bank after his term as governor ends next week.
  • Banks such as Westpac, NAB, the ANZ and Macquarie Bank deal with the Reserve Bank all the time.
  • Every one of the four banks I just mentioned has employed either a former Reserve Bank Governor or Treasury Secretary.

Perceptions matter when a Governor moves on

    • Read more:
      The RBA has kept interest rates on hold.
    • Philip Lowe’s predecessor, the man to whom he was deputy, Glenn Stevens, finished up as Reserve Bank Governor in September 2016 and joined the board of the Macquarie Bank and Macquarie Group in December 2017.
    • Stevens’ predecessor as governor, Ian Macfarlane, finished as head of the Reserve Bank in September 2006 and joined the board of the ANZ bank in February 2007.
    • In 2021–22 Philip Lowe was on a package of $1.037 million including superannuation and a salary of $890,252.
    • On retiring from the Reserve Bank in 1968, its first governor HC Coombs, chaired the Council for the Arts and the Council for Aboriginal Affairs.

Ukraine recap: fallout from death of Yevgeny Prigozhin will be felt far beyond Moscow

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목요일, 8월 31, 2023
Review, Weapon, University of Oxford, Catholic Youth Organization, Katherine, National university, Deception, Conversation, University, The Whole Story, University of London, Violence, Religion, War, Atmosphere, Culture, Agriculture, Saint, Russians, Australian National University, Monash University, The Conversation, Fear, Telephone numbers in Hungary, Feather, Mikoyan MiG-29, Zapruder, Embraer Legacy, History, Corvo, Government, Thought, University of Portsmouth, Royal Holloway, University of London, Natural Resources, JFK, Death, Crash, F-16, Man, Lancaster University, Terror, Chatham House, Usmanu Danfodiyo University, SOAS, News, Wagner Group, PPDS, Safety, Injury, Aircraft, Airline, Book, Arms industry, Jet fuel

Where were you when you heard that Wagner Group boss Yevgeny Prigozhin’s aircraft had crashed and he was presumed dead?

Key Points: 
  • Where were you when you heard that Wagner Group boss Yevgeny Prigozhin’s aircraft had crashed and he was presumed dead?
  • Within minutes of the visuals emerging, journalists and other commentators were scrambling to reach conclusions: was it a bomb on board?
  • The Wagner Group boss had been travelling with colleagues from Moscow to St Petersburg: had he met with Vladimir Putin?
  • On the one hand Prigzhin’s death may have given anyone seeking to challenge the Russian president pause for thought.
  • Read more:
    Wagner Group: what Yevgeny Prigozhin's death means for stability in Africa

On and above the battlefield

    • About 30% of Ukraine is now thought to be contaminated by mines, which will take decades to clear.
    • And, tragically, this means the deaths and injuries will continue long after the shooting stops.
    • At present there are about 40 aircraft being made available by Denmark and the Netherlands and more are expected to follow.
    • Read more:
      Ukraine war: the implications of Moscow moving tactical nuclear weapons to Belarus

History matters

Higher prices have hit most people but homeowners have felt it harder than renters

Retrieved on: 
화요일, 8월 22, 2023
Bureau, Australian Bureau of Statistics, Household, St. Louis Fed Financial Stress Index, Growth, National university, Ageing, Housing, Social security in Australia, Time, COVID, Income, Australian National University, Music, Tutoring, Real estate, Pension fund, Life insurance, Insurance, Lease, Renting

Cost of living pressures are acute for some, but in different ways for different types of household.

Key Points: 
  • Cost of living pressures are acute for some, but in different ways for different types of household.
  • The Australian Bureau of Statistics consumer price index has climbed by 6% per year for each of the past two years.
  • The best guide is a different set of indexes to the consumer price index, also produced by the bureau.


But it turns out the main factor that differentiates the new price pressures facing households is whether or not they have a mortgage, and in particular how recently they bought their first home. At the Australian National University, my team has used the Bureau of Statistics’ methodology and data to calculate cost indexes based on the spending patterns of different types of households including those headed by:

  • First homebuyers who bought within the past three years faced the biggest living cost increase, of 20.5%.
  • Those who bought within the past three years but were “changeover” buyers had an increase of 18.4%.
  • As a result, their costs increased by “only” 13.1% over the past two years, whereas the living costs of older Australians (aged 50–64) increased by 15.1%.
  • Perhaps for the same reason, the living costs of group households increased by “only” 13.1%, while the living costs of couples with children increased 15.2%.

Those on benefits are best protected

    • We found very little difference in the percentage cost of living increase based on income level alone, and also very little difference based on gender.
    • But the source of income mattered.
    • Households whose main income was wages suffered cost increases of 14.6%, whereas households whose main income was government benefits had a lesser increase of 12.7%.

Longer term, renters, homeowners treated the same

    • The chart below shows that over the longer term, the living costs associated with all three types of housing have climbed more or less together, and have climbed by less than household income.
    • This isn’t to say those households whose living costs have climbed sharply over the past two years (mortgaged households) are suffering.

A national university for regional Australia isn't necessarily a smart idea. Here's why

Retrieved on: 
화요일, 8월 8, 2023
Regional Universities Network, Australian Catholic University, University, Education, RMIT, Catholic higher education, South Metropolitan TAFE, Leadership, Teaching, National university, Central Queensland University, James Cook University, University of California, Research, Sunshine Coast, Sunshine Coast Region, TAFE, Accord, Bradley, Student, Charles Darwin University, Risk, NSW, ANU, Federation, Social environment, Australian National University, Medical device, Renewable energy, Cryptocurrency, Management, Tutoring, Nursing, Australian

One of the headline ideas floated by the Universities Accord interim report is a second national university.

Key Points: 
  • One of the headline ideas floated by the Universities Accord interim report is a second national university.
  • The basic idea is regional universities could opt in to become part of the new national university.

This is not a new idea

    • Australia’s last major review of higher education proposed a national regional university in 2008.
    • The Bradley review recommended “a study to examine the feasibility of a new national university for regional areas”.
    • The Bradley review suggested a new national university to redress a lack of participation of regional students.

Not (yet) supported by regional unis


    So far, the new national university has not attracted much support. The Regional Universities Network includes seven (though not all) of Australia’s regional universities. The network was “encouraged” by several key ideas in the accord panel’s interim report. But any mention of the national regional university idea was conspicuously missing from its media statement in response to the report.

Other university models

    • The accord report says there are comparable international models for a national regional university, and points to the University of California system.
    • A closer example of a national multi-state university is the Australian Catholic University.
    • But it is doubtful whether this would be a good model for a national regional university.
    • Even if a regional university were to consider amalgamation, it would be more likely with a near neighbour, not another more distant regional university.

Worrying ‘synergies’

    • This is likely to worry university staff and students as “synergies” and “efficiencies” can often lead to cost cutting and job losses.
    • There is a risk that a new national regional university will lead to remote, unsuitable, inflexible and unresponsive systems.
    • And a “regional” university in north Queensland is substantially different from a “regional” university in western NSW.

TAFEs provide more opportunities

    • If we want to improve opportunities for regional students, the accord should consider a bigger role for TAFEs in a national regional university and more generally.
    • more opportunities for physical co-location of education and training facilities.
    • Indeed, Australia already has six highly distinctive “dual sector” universities, which provide both university and vocational qualifications.

What now?


    The interim reports contains more than 70 “areas for further consideration” by the accord panel. Many of these – including the idea for a national regional university – will not necessarily make it into the final report in December. If Australia is to have a new university there needs to be more careful thought about where it should be and what its ultimate structure and purpose should be.