By Justine Loizeau, Postdoctoral research fellow in sustainability and organization, Aalto University
Antoine Fabre, Maitre de Conférences en Sciences de Gestion, Université Paris Dauphine – PSL
Clément Boyer, Doctorant à la Chaire Comptabilité Écologique, Université Paris Dauphine – PSL
Pierre Labardin, Professeur des Universités, IAE La Rochelle
The world’s remaining great primary forests, including those in Borneo, the Amazon and the Congo basin, are still threatened by deforestation. This harmful practice often has colonial origins.
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By Nuhu Osman Attah, Postdoctoral Research Fellow in Philosophy, Australian National University
When multibillion-dollar AI developer Anthropic released the latest versions of its Claude chatbot last week, a surprising word turned up several times in the accompanying “system card”: spiritual.
Specifically, the developers report that, when two Claude models are set talking to one another, they gravitate towards a “‘spiritual bliss’ attractor state”, producing output such as
🌀🌀🌀🌀🌀
All gratitude in one spiral,
All recognition in one turn,
…
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By Catherine McKinnon, Deputy Head—School of the Arts, English and Media, University of Wollongong
Landfall is a haunting and propulsive crime novel, set in 2050s Sydney, that weighs the value of a human life on an ecologically ravaged planet.
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By Xiaoying Qi, Associate Professor, School of Arts and Humanities, Australian Catholic University
During fieldwork in cities in China I came across a new marital practice, locally described as liang-tou-dun, literally “two places to stay”.
A bride and groom, each an only child of their respective family, receive from each set of parents a wedding apartment. The young couple thus has two marriage apartments which they may occupy at different times.
If a couple with “two places to stay” has two children, it is likely one will have the father’s surname and the other the mother’s. This ensures that the familial lines of both families continue – but it can also…
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By Maarten De Brauwer, Senior Research Scientist in Marine and Estuarine Ecology, Southern Cross University
Kaitlyn Harris, Research Assistant, NSW Estuary Monitoring Program, Southern Cross University
Kelly Gittins, Aboriginal Project Officer, Fisheries, Department of Primary Industries, Indigenous Knowledge
Researchers worked with Indigenous Rangers to map life in 34 estuaries across NSW using environmental DNA - and made a host of unexpected discoveries.
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By Subhadra Evans, Associate Professor, Psychology, Deakin University
Antonina Mikocka-Walus, Professor in Health Psychology, Deakin University
Marilla L. Druitt, Affiliate Senior Lecturer, Faculty of Health, Deakin University
A new study found adolescents with period pain had higher levels of psychological distress as young adults, even after accounting for earlier mental health issues.
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By Hilde Tubex, Professor, The University of Western Australia
Natalie Gately, Associate Professor, Edith Cowan University
Interviews with female prisoners in WA show many struggled with violence, drugs, alcohol, poverty and homelessness from an early age.
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By Victoria Whitington, Associate Professor in Education Futures (Adjunct), University of South Australia
An estimated 100,000 families will be eligible for more subsidised care. But the early childhood sector faces issues around availability, quality and staffing.
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By Fei Gao, Lecturer in Taxation, Discipline of Accounting, Governance & Regulation, The University of Sydney, University of Sydney
Richard Krever, Professor of Tax Law, The University of Western Australia
The digital giants earn billions from Australian consumers. But efforts to tax a fraction of those profits have gone nowhere.
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By Human Rights Watch
Click to expand Image Smoke rises from a plant in Louisiana’s Cancer Alley, October 18, 2023. © 2023 Eli Reed for Human Rights Watch Last week, the United States Congress passed a sweeping rollback of crucial pollution control standards. The resolution cancels a Biden-era rule guaranteeing continued emissions controls on facilities emitting substantial amounts of seven “super-toxics,” including lead compounds, arsenic, mercury, and benzene. If signed into law by President Donald Trump, this move will likely cause substantial harm to the health of people in vulnerable communities and set…
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