https://www.scmp.com/rss/323627/feed en https://assets.i-scmp.com/static/img/icons/scmp-meta-1200x630.png https://www.scmp.com The first thing that hits the senses when walking into Lendlease’s International House Sydney is the sweet smell of the forest. It is the first engineered timber office in the country and sits in Barangaroo complex, Sydney. The designers say it will help to lower blood pressure and orders are said to be flowing in. The wooden beams across the open plan office floors mean staff can literally hug a tree. The managing director of Barangaroo, Rob Deck, said now clients can see the property “we have... https://www.scmp.com/magazines/style/tech-design/article/2091132/australias-first-wooden-office-building-heralds-new-era?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/magazines/style/tech-design/article/2091132/australias-first-wooden-office-building-heralds-new-era?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 27 Apr 2017 06:45:30 +0000 By Bridie Smith The body produces its own defence against HIV, scientists have found, and harnessing this weapon could change the way we treat the virus and prevent it from spreading. The weapon is a protein, found in the reproductive tract of women, which researchers from Hudson Institute of Medical Research and Deakin University have discovered stops HIV from replicating and taking hold. They say the discovery is exciting because of the clever, multi-pronged approach the protein takes in... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/2075023/bodys-clever-protein-could-stop-hiv-its-tracks?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/2075023/bodys-clever-protein-could-stop-hiv-its-tracks?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 01 Mar 2017 03:00:08 +0000 By Esther Han Australia’s dairy farmers are calling for a “truth in labelling crackdown” on the way the word “milk” is used by makers of plant-based milk products. Dairy Connect, a lobby group for New South Wales dairy farmers, says “milk” is defined by Food Standards as the mammary secretion of milking animals, and the use of the term on plant-based products was confusing consumers. “We’re not trying to constrict a product, it’s about appropriate labelling so that whether it’s milked from a... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/2074678/aussie-dairy-farmers-call-labelling-crackdown-word-milk?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/2074678/aussie-dairy-farmers-call-labelling-crackdown-word-milk?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 28 Feb 2017 04:06:12 +0000 By Colin Kruger Backpackers are not the only ones flocking to our shores in world-beating numbers. Australia attracted more millionaires last year than much larger, and wealthier immigration destinations such as the US, according to a report by South African market research group, New World Wealth. The researcher said the number of migrant millionaires rose to 82,000 last year, compared to 64,000 in 2015. More than 11,000 made their way to Australia, which retained top spot on the list. “For the... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/2073385/australia-leads-world-when-it-comes-millionaire-immigrants?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/2073385/australia-leads-world-when-it-comes-millionaire-immigrants?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 23 Feb 2017 06:45:00 +0000 By Kate Aubusson An extra 40-minute stroll every day can mean fewer days in hospital for older Australians, new research shows. For people over fifty-five years old, increasing the number of daily steps from 4,500 to 8,800 is linked to one less day in hospital every three years, researchers at the Centre for Clinical Epidemiology and Biostatistics at the University of Newcastle have found. The extra 4,300 steps - about three kilometres - is linked to a statistically significant drop in... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/2072373/study-shows-extra-2300-steps-could-cut-time-older-australians?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/2072373/study-shows-extra-2300-steps-could-cut-time-older-australians?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 20 Feb 2017 09:05:04 +0000 By Adam Morton After years of unfulfilled promises, Victoria, Australia, is on the cusp of getting its first large-scale solar power stations. Three farms in the state’s northwest are promised to be operating by the start of next year. Australian company Overland Sun Farming plans to start work in April on separate fields of solar photovoltaic panels at Yatpool, Iraak and Wemen, creating about 200 construction jobs. With a combined output of 320 megawatts, they are expected to produce enough... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/2072320/australias-victoria-get-its-first-large-scale-solar-plants?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/2072320/australias-victoria-get-its-first-large-scale-solar-plants?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 20 Feb 2017 06:30:45 +0000 Business and religious leaders, lawyers, academics, entertainers and former politicians have joined forces to oppose Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s visit to Australia, saying his policies “provoke, intimidate and oppress” the Palestinian people and are pushing the Middle East further from peace. Netanyahu plans to visit just weeks after his government passed a controversial law retroactively legalising 4000 settlers’ homes built on privately owned Palestinian land. The measure has... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/2072168/hostile-reception-awaits-israeli-prime-minister-benjamin?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/2072168/hostile-reception-awaits-israeli-prime-minister-benjamin?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 19 Feb 2017 11:39:32 +0000 By Jane Lee Yahoo7, a partnership between Yahoo! and Australian entertainment and television broadcasting company, Seven West Media has been fined A$300,000 (US$230,880) and convicted of contempt of court for publishing an article that aborted a murder trial, with a judge saying that one of Australia’s biggest media companies put profits before professional journalism. Its employee, Sydney journalist Krystal Johnson, who wrote the article, has escaped with a good behaviour bond, the Supreme... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/2071773/yahoo7-fined-and-convicted-contempt-court-after-publishing?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/2071773/yahoo7-fined-and-convicted-contempt-court-after-publishing?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 17 Feb 2017 07:00:00 +0000 By Marcus Strom It seems something is lurking out there but stargazers don’t know what it is. Measurements taken from the movements of distant objects in our solar system suggest there is a ninth planet way out beyond Neptune in the huge wasteland of icy debris called the Kuiper belt. Now you can join in and help find the elusive object. Astronomers from NASA and the University of California, Berkeley, want you to trawl through thousands of images taken by NASA’s Wide-field Infrared Survey... https://www.scmp.com/tech/science-research/article/2071464/you-can-help-find-planet-nine-outer-space-through-citizen?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/tech/science-research/article/2071464/you-can-help-find-planet-nine-outer-space-through-citizen?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 16 Feb 2017 09:00:45 +0000 By Tammy Mills   Forget Carl (Williams) and Tony (Mokbel). The most criminal name in Australia is ... Leon. Law firm Go To Court looked at names from more than 25,000 crimes listed in the website CrimeNet, which collates a database from publicly accessible records, and cross-referenced them with the most popular names in Australia in the last 90 years to produce a list of the top 500 criminal names. Leon was the most criminal name for men, with 3,193 Leons out of 100,000 committing a crime,... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/2071006/and-most-criminal-name-australia?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/2071006/and-most-criminal-name-australia?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 15 Feb 2017 03:00:45 +0000 By Chloe Booker   Sorry younger siblings, firstborns have been picking on you your whole life and now they have scientific proof to one up you once again. A study published in the Journal of Human Resources, suggests firstborn children have a “mental edge” on their younger brothers and sisters. It found firstborns may have better thinking skills and higher IQs because their parents gave them more mental stimulation in their early years. Researchers from the University of Sydney, University of... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/families/article/2070718/firstborns-both-older-and-wiser-because-study-says-they-dont?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/families/article/2070718/firstborns-both-older-and-wiser-because-study-says-they-dont?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 14 Feb 2017 06:45:45 +0000 By Noel Towell Women in the federal public service are still being used to do the office housework and kept out of important jobs by a ‘macho’ culture, according to a new academic study. A leading workplace researcher says she was ‘shocked’ by some of the attitudes toward female public servants she found in the two large Canberra departments taking part in her survey. An academic conference in the capital on Thursday will hear of women being routinely told “you’re a good girl”, being used to do... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/families/article/2069473/macho-public-service-workplaces-australia-are-making-women-do?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/families/article/2069473/macho-public-service-workplaces-australia-are-making-women-do?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 09 Feb 2017 07:15:30 +0000 By Henry Zwartz The days of TV journalists and photographers using helicopters to get a bird’s eye view are fast fading. Drones, big and small, are increasingly being used to get stunning aerial images most of us thought were out of reach. In fact, drones could well be the next “must-have” technological accessory for photographers. Each year we’re thrown new models with more advanced cameras, better stability, and longer battery life - which has been one of the biggest issues for photographers.... https://www.scmp.com/tech/article/2069433/do-modern-photographers-need-buy-drone?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/tech/article/2069433/do-modern-photographers-need-buy-drone?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 09 Feb 2017 05:00:30 +0000 Fairfax Media Fairfax Media By Anna Patty Millennials in Australia no longer consider it the “lucky country” and are less optimistic about the future than their counterparts in developing economies including the Philippines, Indonesia and India. The international study also reveals Australians born after 1982 are more prepared to leave their jobs after two years than they have been in previous surveys. The 2017 Deloitte Millennial Survey is based on the views of 8000 people born after 1982 across 30 countries, including... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/2069101/study-reveals-australia-no-longer-lucky-country-millennials?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/2069101/study-reveals-australia-no-longer-lucky-country-millennials?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 08 Feb 2017 06:30:30 +0000 By Patrick Hatch   An Australian brain surgeon whose pinky finger was jammed in a plane’s fold-out tray table is suing over his resulting physical and psychological injuries. Dr David Walker says he was flying with Austrian Airlines from Brisbane to Manchester, England, via Bangkok and Vienna on July 5, 2016, when his finger was snared by a collapsing tray table. In a statement of claim filed in the Queensland Federal Court, the Brisbane-based neurosurgeon says the cabin crew had folded out the... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/2069096/australian-brain-surgeon-sues-austrian-airlines-after-jamming?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/2069096/australian-brain-surgeon-sues-austrian-airlines-after-jamming?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 08 Feb 2017 06:15:00 +0000 Meet Jack Outback, the Australian who continues to intrigue Dutch political scientist Andre Krouwel months after they first met. Krouwel is the pioneering data scientist behind Election Compass, an online political sentiment tool used in more than 40 countries worldwide. He is also the lead researcher on the Political Persona Project - one of the most comprehensive attempts ever made to profile different types of Australians based on their lifestyles, social values and politics. The project was... https://www.scmp.com/tech/science-research/article/2068388/meet-jack-outback-most-interesting-australian-revealed-new?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/tech/science-research/article/2068388/meet-jack-outback-most-interesting-australian-revealed-new?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 06 Feb 2017 04:45:15 +0000 By Andrew Tailor Millions of Australians are wasting money on drugs for back pain that do more harm than good, a study has found. Sydney researchers say patients taking commonly used non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) are 2.5 times more likely to suffer from gastro-intestinal problems, such as stomach ulcers and bleeding. Yet anti-inflammatory drugs, such as ibuprofen, offer “very limited” short-term pain relief, according to the study’s lead author associate professor Manuela... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/health/article/2067808/back-pain-medications-do-more-harm-good-australian-study-finds?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/health/article/2067808/back-pain-medications-do-more-harm-good-australian-study-finds?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 03 Feb 2017 05:45:30 +0000 By Emily Woods It’s meaty, cheesy, and incredibly saucy, and it was the word on every Australian’s lips in 2016. Last year was a momentous one for the Halal Snack Pack. There were queues at kebab stands as its popularity skyrocketed, a HSP appreciation society was formed, and the greasy treat made its mark on Australian politics on election night when Labour senator Sam Dastyari offered to take Pauline Hanson out for a halal bite. Finally the people have spoken. Halal snack pack (HSP), “a fast... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/2067166/halal-snack-pack-named-peoples-choice-word-2016-macquarie?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/2067166/halal-snack-pack-named-peoples-choice-word-2016-macquarie?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 01 Feb 2017 07:00:30 +0000 The Turnbull government is pinning hopes for its US refugee deal on a potential loophole buried deep within Donald Trump’s controversial anti-Muslim executive order. The US president’s latest executive order has closed the nation’s borders to refugees, suspending entry for 120 days and targeting Syrians with an indefinite ban. Declaring the measures were aimed at keeping “radical Islamic terrorists” out of the US, Trump also suspended all immigration from seven predominantly Muslim nations and... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/2066216/turnbull-confident-australia-us-refugee-swap-despite-trump?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/2066216/turnbull-confident-australia-us-refugee-swap-despite-trump?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 28 Jan 2017 06:19:15 +0000 Australian Foreign Minister Julie Bishop has refused to express confidence a refugee swap with the United States will go ahead, after the chief diplomat had her first high-level interaction with President Donald Trump’s administration. The deal, struck in November under president Barack Obama, was to see 1,800 refugees held in Australian offshore detention centres resettled in the US, but Trump has thrown the agreement into doubt. A leaked draft executive order from the White House reported by... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/2066014/australias-refugee-swap-us-air-due-trump-presidency?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/2066014/australias-refugee-swap-us-air-due-trump-presidency?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 27 Jan 2017 05:52:45 +0000 By Marcus Strom Scientists have grown the first human-pig hybrid embryos and taken them a third of the way through pregnancy inside a sow. Geneticists at the Salk Institute in California hope this research will pave the way to grow fully-functioning human transplant organs inside hybrid animals. That, however, is a long way off. The immediate use for this research promises to revolutionise drug testing and help create personalised medicine for treatment of cancers and genetic diseases. “The... https://www.scmp.com/tech/science-research/article/2065988/first-human-pig-embryos-open-route-growing-transplant-organs?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/tech/science-research/article/2065988/first-human-pig-embryos-open-route-growing-transplant-organs?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 27 Jan 2017 03:30:30 +0000 By James Wong, Naomi Neilson   The chips are down for Australia’s potato lovers. Heavy rain, particularly in New South Wales, combined with a cold winter have led to tight supply and higher prices. “Pretty much every state got affected in some way. We probably only just broke even,” said potato farmer Anthony Failla, whose family have been farming potatoes outside of Melbourne for more than 50 years. The family says they have never seen a shortage as bad. “Supermarkets weren’t able to fill their... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/2065362/potato-shortage-never-bad-australia?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/2065362/potato-shortage-never-bad-australia?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 25 Jan 2017 08:15:45 +0000 By Rachel Clun A racist Australian radio ad featuring an Asian man named “Ping Pong” calling a concrete company for help has been pulled off air by the advertising watchdog. The ad for TP Concreting in Kingaroy was found to have breached section 2.1 of the Advertiser Code of Ethics for racial discrimination and vilification. The ad features a man speaking with an "Asian accent", who calls the company asking them to fix his driveway right now because "Mama has bog in driveway", and a voiceover... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/2065313/racist-ad-mocking-asians-pulled-air-australia?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/2065313/racist-ad-mocking-asians-pulled-air-australia?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 25 Jan 2017 06:00:45 +0000 By Peter Hannam An unusually quiet period for cyclones in the Australian region may come to an abrupt end within days as forecasters predict a major storm will develop off the Kimberley by Friday. Any breakup of the abnormally warm waters off northern Australia would be welcomed, as much of the Great Barrier Reef off central and north Queensland faced a “warning” level risk of coral bleaching, according to the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Coral Reef Watch service. Phil... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/2065001/looming-cyclone-may-break-record-drought-australias-region?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/2065001/looming-cyclone-may-break-record-drought-australias-region?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 24 Jan 2017 09:30:45 +0000 By Michael Gorey More Australians than usual are expected to be ill on Friday after celebrating Australia Day, prompting employer groups to plead that workers take annual leave instead of a sickie, while unions say there are bigger issues to worry about. Paul Dundon, the managing director of Direct Health Solutions, estimates A$54 million (US$41 million) will be lost from the Australian economy on Friday. “Sick leave will rise from an average of 3.5 per cent of workers each day to five per cent... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/2064896/australian-employers-concerned-workers-will-take-sickie-friday?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/2064896/australian-employers-concerned-workers-will-take-sickie-friday?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 24 Jan 2017 03:45:45 +0000 By Kate Aubusson At face value it sounds too arbitrary to be possible. A child’s birth date is a powerful predictor of whether they will be medicated for ADHD, an Australian study suggests. In reality, the findings show children who are younger and less mature than their classmates are being misdiagnosed and prescribed ADHD drugs, its lead author argues. The new research published Monday wades into a fierce decades-long debate over ADHD diagnosis and whether unruly children are being medicated... https://www.scmp.com/tech/science-research/article/2064559/australian-study-says-childs-birth-date-predicts-whether?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/tech/science-research/article/2064559/australian-study-says-childs-birth-date-predicts-whether?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 23 Jan 2017 03:45:00 +0000 By Rachel Clun While emojis look odd in formal writing - think important emails, and online articles like this one - they are used by almost everyone in text messages and on social media. However despite their widespread use, the study of emoji use is in its infancy. So, in an article recently published on Trends in Cognitive Sciences, a group of international researchers from Australia and the UK are calling on other researchers to study our use of emojis. “Emojis provide us with an insight... https://www.scmp.com/tech/article/2063880/why-british-and-australian-researchers-think-we-should-study-emojis?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/tech/article/2063880/why-british-and-australian-researchers-think-we-should-study-emojis?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 20 Jan 2017 03:28:26 +0000 By Kim Arlington Eighty years after the last Tasmanian tiger died, scientists have used imaging techniques to map the marsupial’s brain for the first time. The Tasmanian tiger, or thylacine, was elusive before its extinction and its behaviour in the wild was never scientifically documented. But a reconstruction of its brain architecture and neural networks suggests it had more cortex devoted to action planning and possibly even decision making than its closest living relative, the Tasmanian... https://www.scmp.com/tech/science-research/article/2063508/australian-scientists-use-imaging-map-brain-extinct-tasmanian?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/tech/science-research/article/2063508/australian-scientists-use-imaging-map-brain-extinct-tasmanian?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 19 Jan 2017 03:45:45 +0000 By Tim Biggs We’ve all heard the warnings about passwords — use a variety of character types, make it random, use a password manager — but many of us, it seems, still aren’t listening. Every year some security firm or another releases a list of the most common passwords used online, and every year the top spot goes to some variation of ‘123456’. This is not surprising. By definition, a list of most common passwords will always be a list of worst passwords, regardless of how many people are using... https://www.scmp.com/tech/article/2063118/most-common-passwords-2016-are-exactly-what-youd-expect?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/tech/article/2063118/most-common-passwords-2016-are-exactly-what-youd-expect?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 18 Jan 2017 04:00:15 +0000 By Julia Medew Ever lost your cool in a hospital? New research suggests you would be wise to stay calm. Criticising doctors and nurses while they’re caring for you or a loved one increases the risk of potentially catastrophic errors, a study of intensive care units has found. With thousands of people dying every year due to preventable errors in hospitals, a team of American researchers set out to test whether rude parents undermined the care of their children. Doctors and nurses from 39... https://www.scmp.com/tech/science-research/article/2062797/criticising-doctors-and-nurses-causes-medical-errors?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/tech/science-research/article/2062797/criticising-doctors-and-nurses-causes-medical-errors?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 17 Jan 2017 07:45:00 +0000 Australia's most dangerous venomous creature is not a snake or a spider, nor even a jellyfish. It's the bee and other stinging insects that pose the biggest public health threat, according to an analysis of more than a decade of Australian bites and stings. The University of Melbourne study, published in the Internal Medicine Journal on Tuesday, found that it was bees and other insects such as wasps that often had the most dangerous effect on a person once bitten or stung. The analysis of 13... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/2062766/snakes-spiders-jellyfish-nope-australias-most-dangerous-animal?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/2062766/snakes-spiders-jellyfish-nope-australias-most-dangerous-animal?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 17 Jan 2017 06:15:00 +0000 By Clancy Yeates   ANZ is moving a step closer towards “virtual” credit and debit cards in Australia, through new changes to automatically upload replacement cards for those that are lost onto customers’ smart phones. As part of its push to drive greater use of digital wallets, the bank is revamping the technical and security processes triggered when a customer reports a card as lost or stolen. About 670,000 cards are lost or stolen at the bank each year. Previously, replacement cards needed to... https://www.scmp.com/business/banking-finance/article/2061859/anz-moves-closer-towards-virtual-credit-cards-australia?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/business/banking-finance/article/2061859/anz-moves-closer-towards-virtual-credit-cards-australia?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 13 Jan 2017 04:00:45 +0000 By Eryk Bagshaw Australian teachers, parents and recruitment agencies have lashed out at deceptive marketing practices which have turned the working-holiday dreams of some young Australian teachers into “unsustainable” experiences. The migration of young Australian teaching graduates overseas has boomed on the back of a chronic shortage of teachers in the UK and an oversupply of teachers at home, where up to 47,000 remain on a waiting list in NSW. Contracts that “trap” teachers in poor... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/2061568/australian-teachers-lash-out-unsustainable-uk-workload?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/2061568/australian-teachers-lash-out-unsustainable-uk-workload?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 12 Jan 2017 07:15:30 +0000 By Julia Medew Chewing a piece of gum could be more effective than a leading drug for nausea, new research suggests. About one in three people suffer nausea and vomiting after surgery. In some cases the queasiness can last for days and cause people’s wounds to bust open. Nausea after surgery is more common among women and for people who already get motion sickness. It also seems to be associated with certain procedures, particularly those where people’s abdomens are blown up with gas so... https://www.scmp.com/tech/science-research/article/2061489/chewing-gum-better-drugs-easing-nausea-after-surgery?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/tech/science-research/article/2061489/chewing-gum-better-drugs-easing-nausea-after-surgery?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 12 Jan 2017 03:15:45 +0000 Perth-based media company Seven West Media was warned it had “inadequate management oversight” of corporate credit card use which posed an ongoing risk to the company, as it dug through the expenses of former employee Amber Harrison amid a bitter workplace dispute. Ms Harrison, 35, had been having an affair with chief executive Timothy Worner and claims Seven launched an investigation into her credit card use after she tried to end the relationship in 2014. The company later accused her of... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/2061209/australian-listed-media-company-warned-credit-cards-amid-ceo?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/2061209/australian-listed-media-company-warned-credit-cards-amid-ceo?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 11 Jan 2017 06:45:15 +0000 By Tim Biggs Though its decline has been a long time coming, 2016 was the year that the iconic Internet Explorer ceased to be the most popular way to browse the web. Though IE was the most popular browser in the world at this time last year, reports Ars Technica, citing numbers from Net Market Share, 2017 has heralded a new king in the form of Google Chrome. The IE brand was more or less abandoned in 2015 when Microsoft announced it was working on new software, eventually revealed as Microsoft... https://www.scmp.com/tech/article/2060863/2016-was-year-chrome-became-most-popular-browser?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/tech/article/2060863/2016-was-year-chrome-became-most-popular-browser?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 10 Jan 2017 07:15:45 +0000 By Michael Pascoe How much is it worth to save an Australian life? The Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet says not more than A$4.2 million (US$3.08), on average. Young lives are worth a bit more, according to the PM&C guideline for bureaucrats drawing up regulations, and we’re also prepared to pay more to avoid particularly painful and gruesome deaths. The latter is likely to be a factor in our willingness to spend disproportionately large amounts trying to minimise the already very low... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/2060459/what-saving-australian-life-worth?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/2060459/what-saving-australian-life-worth?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 09 Jan 2017 03:00:00 +0000 Dumped One Nation candidate Shan Ju Lin has hit out at the party’s hierarchy over her disendorsement as a candidate in the wake of inflammatory statements she made on social media. The speed of the disendorsement decision – without any chance to defend myself – has also been remarkable Shan Ju Lin Just last month, Ms Lin was unveiled as One Nation’s candidate for the Ipswich-based seat of Bundamba, currently held by ex-Labor minister Jo-Ann Miller, at the upcoming Queensland state election. But... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/2060322/pauline-hansons-party-dumps-queensland-candidate-after-anti?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/2060322/pauline-hansons-party-dumps-queensland-candidate-after-anti?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 08 Jan 2017 06:30:15 +0000 By Harriet Alexander Katrina Hetherington cannot remember a time that her son Charley did not have eczema. When he was born, dry patches gathered in the creases of his little arms and legs, and soon he was wearing a full body suit with covered hands to stop him from scratching himself raw overnight. The Hetheringtons deliberately avoided feeding him food containing peanuts and a blood test at nine months justified their fears: he was severely allergic to peanuts. Now the family is facing the... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/health/article/2059949/new-allergy-guidelines-recommend-earlier-introduction-peanuts-high?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/health/article/2059949/new-allergy-guidelines-recommend-earlier-introduction-peanuts-high?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 06 Jan 2017 07:45:15 +0000 By Tim Biggs A family in the US is suing Apple after a man using the FaceTime app on his iPhone while driving collided with their car, killing their five-year-old daughter. On Christmas eve, 2014, James and Bethany Modisette were driving on the highway in Texas with their two daughters when they were forced to stop their Camry ahead of a blockage caused by police activity. Driving behind them, Garrett Wilhelm failed to stop and his SUV slammed into the car at 105km/h, tearing it apart and riding... https://www.scmp.com/tech/social-gadgets/article/2058859/family-sues-apple-over-facetimes-role-fatal-car-crash?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/tech/social-gadgets/article/2058859/family-sues-apple-over-facetimes-role-fatal-car-crash?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 03 Jan 2017 04:23:09 +0000 By Bridie Smith Opportunistic whales have forced researchers to reconsider whether long-line fishing in Australia’s southern waters is as eco-friendly as first thought. Scientists have found that clever killer and sperm whales have discovered the convenience of take-away meals - namely learning how to suck trapped fish off commercial fishing lines. “I was pretty amazed,” Deakin University marine biologist Paul Tixier said. “We thought whales were highly specialised animals... But here we have a... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/2058699/australian-whales-losing-killer-instinct-marine-giants-have?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/2058699/australian-whales-losing-killer-instinct-marine-giants-have?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 02 Jan 2017 07:30:22 +0000 By Paul Wallace “Rogue One,” the latest in the Star Wars franchise, has had mixed reviews but features one undisputed star: K-2SO, a gangly robot with the best lines. Movies of the distant future always tap into current anxieties, and the latest alarm is that the robots are coming. Droids may not conquer the world, but they will take over its work - white-collar as well as blue-collar. Could these filmmakers know something we don’t? Previous scares, such as when Time magazine reported on “the... https://www.scmp.com/tech/article/2058178/dont-fear-robots-they-wont-kill-jobs?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/tech/article/2058178/dont-fear-robots-they-wont-kill-jobs?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 30 Dec 2016 06:30:30 +0000 By Georgina Mitchell A large seal has been captured by wildlife authorities after it wandered up a suburban street and climbed on a car, smashing the windscreen and denting the roof. The Australian fur seal, dubbed “Lou-Seal” by Tasmanian police, was discovered on a street in the city of Launceston’s suburb of Newstead. There are small waterways dotted around Newstead, however the suburb is about 50 kilometres inland - suggesting the seal had a long trek from its usual habitat. Photographs... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/2057378/large-fur-seal-climbs-car-smashes-windscreen-australia?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/2057378/large-fur-seal-climbs-car-smashes-windscreen-australia?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 27 Dec 2016 03:30:00 +0000 By Marcus Strom   It doesn’t have a brain or any neurons, it is just one single cell but somehow by fusing with others of its kind this slime mould can pass on learnt behaviour. France-based scientists David Vogel and Audrey Dussutour have previously shown that the slime mould Physarum polycephalum can learn from experience. Now, in a study published this month, they have shown that the slime mould can pass on what it learns to “naive” members of its own species by fusing with them. In April,... https://www.scmp.com/tech/science-research/article/2057225/brainless-slime-mould-can-solve-problems-and-teach-what-it-has?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/tech/science-research/article/2057225/brainless-slime-mould-can-solve-problems-and-teach-what-it-has?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 26 Dec 2016 03:45:45 +0000 By Anna Patty There is nothing unlawful about a consensual relationship with a co-worker. But it may not be the best thing for your career, human resources professionals warn. Almost one in two workers end up in a sexual relationship with a colleague. The problems escalate when there is a power imbalance such as the one between former Seven West Media - Australia’s multiple platform media company - executive assistant Amber Harrison and her boss,Tim Worner. In cases of sexual harassment, there... https://www.scmp.com/business/article/2056827/how-handle-office-relationships-case-they-go-wrong?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/business/article/2056827/how-handle-office-relationships-case-they-go-wrong?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 23 Dec 2016 04:00:00 +0000 Families of passengers who were on board missing flight MH370 say a government decision to end the search for the plane and ignore game-changing new evidence of its location is “another kick in the guts”. Danica Weeks, whose husband Paul was one of 238 passengers and crew on the doomed Malaysia Airlines jet, told Fairfax Media that new analysis showing the plane likely crashed in a stretch of the Indian Ocean north of the existing search zone should trigger an extension of the operation. The... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/2056597/hope-has-been-washed-away-mh370-families-condemn-decision-halt?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/2056597/hope-has-been-washed-away-mh370-families-condemn-decision-halt?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 22 Dec 2016 09:00:45 +0000 By Alex Kidman Most of the time we go about our day-to-day life giving scant thought to our data usage. It’s just the regular day-to-day usage, boring and predictable. However, when we’re on holidays, the way we use smartphones and tablets changes dramatically, and that can lead to unpleasant surprises when the mobile bill arrives. You’re just getting over the sunburn and that final night party when the real shock sets in and you’re left weeping over your credit card. That’s because when we go... https://www.scmp.com/tech/social-gadgets/article/2056523/dont-get-sucked-down-data-drain-these-holidays?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/tech/social-gadgets/article/2056523/dont-get-sucked-down-data-drain-these-holidays?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 22 Dec 2016 04:00:45 +0000 By Alexandra Cain Almost every time I open an email I’m dismayed by the lack of understanding many people have about what constitutes good communication. In particular, I have a high disdain for business buzzwords. For me, expressions such as going forward, circle back and reach out are among the most loathsome in the lexicon. “Going forward” is a completely unnecessary phrase and can always be scratched from a sentence. The correct term to replace “circle back” is revisit. And the right word... https://www.scmp.com/business/article/2056278/worst-business-buzzwords-2016?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/business/article/2056278/worst-business-buzzwords-2016?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 21 Dec 2016 03:45:15 +0000 By Miki Perkins Are you a busy, juggling, occasionally guilt-stricken working mama? Good news! Going back to work early is not going to harm your child’s development, according to new research spanning three industrialised countries, including Australia. Researchers found there was little cognitive or behavioural difference in children beginning school whose mothers had returned to work, and those whose mums had not been employed during the two years after childbirth. Based on representative... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/families/article/2056031/guilty-working-mum-relax-your-kids-will-be-fine?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/families/article/2056031/guilty-working-mum-relax-your-kids-will-be-fine?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 20 Dec 2016 07:30:45 +0000 By Clancy Yeates   Getting rid of AU$100 notes may be ineffective in disrupting crime, because AU$50 notes are more commonly used in illegal cash transactions, Australia’s Reserve Bank says in a paper. After an inquiry this week kicked off into the cash economy, including the future of the AU$100 note, RBA researchers on Thursday said there could be legitimate reasons for the strong lift in demand for cash in recent years. Some countries overseas, most recently India, are phasing out... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/2055132/aussie-criminals-prefer-au50-notes-not-au100s?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/2055132/aussie-criminals-prefer-au50-notes-not-au100s?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 16 Dec 2016 04:45:00 +0000