By Vaughan Cruickshank, Senior Lecturer in Health and Physical Education, University of Tasmania
We are two weeks into the 2026 FIFA World Cup, with the knockout rounds starting after the group stages concluded.
On Monday morning, co-hosts Canada left it late to beat South Africa to win through to the round of 16 for the first time in men’s World Cup history.
So, what have been the key moments…
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By Jennifer Parker, Adjunct Professor, Defence and Security Institute, The University of Western Australia; UNSW Sydney
New strikes from the US and Iran continue to put the future of the crucial shipping channel in doubt, but a permanent toll is neither legal nor workable.
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By Kate Griffiths, Democracy Deputy Program Director, Grattan Institute
Feeling gloomy about the future? You’re not alone. New data shows economic pessimism is growing in Australia, and the implications reach far beyond the hip pocket.
The latest Lowy Institute poll shows a sharp decline in economic optimism, with just 41% of Australians feeling optimistic about Australia’s economic performance in the world over the next five years. This is the first year in which pessimism has outstripped optimism since the question was first asked in 2005.
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By Human Rights Watch
Click to expand Image A column of black smoke rises above buildings in Bamako on April 26, 2026. © 2026 AFP via Getty Images (Nairobi) – Islamist armed groups and Malian armed forces and their allies have committed serious abuses against civilians since fighting escalated in Mali in April 2026, Human Rights Watch said today.On April 25, the Al-Qaeda-linked Group for the Support of Islam and Muslims (Jama’at Nusrat al-Islam wal-Muslimin, or JNIM) carried out coordinated attacks across Mali. JNIM joined forces with Tuareg fighters of the Azawad Liberation Front (Front de libération…
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By Alan Gamlen, Professor and Director of the Migration Hub, School of Regulation and Global Governance, Australian National University
Amid the fierce political debate about figures and systems, it’s easy to lose sight of the purpose of migration, to governments, individuals and society as a whole.
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By Dennis Altman, Vice Chancellor's Fellow and Professorial Fellow, Institute for Human Security and Social Change, La Trobe University
Andrew Dodd and Matthew Ricketson have not written another biography of Rupert Murdoch, but a forensic account of how his empire intimidates and destroys.
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By Art Cotterell, Postdoctoral Fellow, Faculty of Law & Justice, UNSW Sydney
Interplanetary travel to Mars aboard nuclear-powered spaceships may sound like science fiction – yet NASA is planning to make it a reality.
The Space Reactor-1 Freedom mission is scheduled for launch by December 2028 to explore Mars, with NASA heralding it as “the first nuclear-powered interplanetary spacecraft”.
NASA also has plans to deploy…
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By Angela Jones, Senior Lecturer Access and Equity, Edith Cowan University
High school students can skip exams and do an ‘enabling program’ in years 11 and 12. This can qualify them for certain undergraduate degrees.
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By Catalina A. Musrri, Postdoctoral Research Fellow in Marine Biology, University of Sydney
Georgina Wood, ARC Research Fellow in Marine Science, Flinders University
Australia’s Great Southern Reef is built not by coral but by seaweed. The seaweed forests on these rocky reefs stretch more than 8,000 kilometres around southern Australia.
Amid the swaying fronds live seadragons, rock lobsters, giant cuttlefish and southern blue devils. The reef is home to more than 1,500 seaweed species and contributes billions to the economy each year.
…
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By Judy Ingham, Newsletter Producer, The Conversation
Every day, we publish a selection of your emails in our newsletter. We’d love to hear from you, you can email us at yoursay@theconversation.edu.au.
Monday June 29
Elon’s free islands
“Gina Rinehart wants the Queensland government to GIVE Elon Musk an island so he can launch rockets. GIVE? The richest man in the world needs a handout? Why do these large corporations constantly…
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