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University enrolments in IT halve in Australia John Harvey says while information technology is ubiquitous its role in industry is not widely appreciated. Unlike law and medicine, education in IT can be used for employment anywhere in the world. Traditional Indian farming encourages biodiversity Tropical forests used to cover large parts of India, especially along the Malabar Coast in Karnataka State. Modern tropical agriculture doesnīt support biodiversity. The human population is predicted to grow to 9 or 10 billion people. So how can food be supplied while maintaining biological life suppo

Supernovae and the fusing of elements Researchers at The University of Sydney have discovered an extremely young supernova, the corpse of a star that exploded around 1,000 years ago. Supernovae are the result of stars like our sun exploding at the end of their life. When they do, light is emitted equivalent to half a trillion stars. The last supernova in our galaxy was in 1604. Records exist of an extremely bright sky at that time. But itīs a mystery as to why weīve not seen one since. All elements heavier than iron were made in supernovae. Bryan Gaensler describes the fusing of elements in the

Daylight saving and energy consumption Nicky Phillips reports on the results of a United States survey on changes in energy consumption as daylight saving is introduced. Worms help remediate soils Earthworms can eat thirty times their body weight of soil each day. Metals in the soil are taken in and change in form, often becoming inert. Mark Hodson is investigating the use of earthworms to help remediate sites degraded by metal contamination. Carbon dioxide in New Zealand waters The waters around New Zealand are cold, and carbon dioxide dissolves in cold water more readily than warm water.

Science in the United States as Barack Obama is elected President Excerpts from the Horizon television documentary The Presidentīs Guide to Science, plus comments from Freeman Dyson and Paul Ehrlich. The fat gene In the past 10 years, people have become heavier. Carrying more weight causes disease later in life. The best advice is to eat less and run more. But achieving this is difficult. So work is underway to find a pill which controls a recently discovered gene which controls weight. Presently it is unknown how the gene controls body weight. Bad Science - Ben Goldacre part 2 Ben Goldacre

Bad Science - Ben Goldacre Ben Goldacre discusses stories from his book, Bad Science. He cites examples of the media overplaying stories which can scare the public, before data has been published in scientific and medical journals. Patenting fraud Korean scientist Hwang Woo Suk was found to have submitted fraudulent research, claiming a series of remarkable breakthroughs in the field of stem cell research. Now he is applying for patents in Australia. Nicky Phillips reports. Primate communication Gillian Sebestyen-Forrester has developed a novel method of recording, coding and analysing beha

New record for silicon solar cell energy conversion efficiency to UNSW Martin Green A milestone of 25% energy conversion efficiency has been set by researchers at the University of NSW using silicon solar cells. 25% of incoming energy is converted to electricity. Of the remaining 75%, some is reflected and some is lost in heat. Appointment of the first NSW Chief Scientist Mary OīKane has been appointed the first NSW Chief Scientist. OīKane is a former vice-chancellor of the University of Adelaide and a former member of the Australian Research Council, the CRC Committee and the board of the CS

Prime Ministerīs Prizes for Science 2008 Ian Frazer was awarded the Prime Ministerīs Prize for Science 2008. He created four vaccines to fight cervical cancer. Two of them-Gardasil and Cervarix-are now on the market. Both prevent infection with the virus responsible for most cervical cancers. The other two vaccines are in clinical trials and are designed to treat women who have already been infected. Electric cars on the move Developments in batteries mean the heavy lead batteries of the past are being replaced by lighter lithium batteries. These supply power and speed, seen as essential for

Galaxy Zoo Galaxy Zoo uses the power of the internet and allows interested amateurs to assist in classifying the millions of galaxies in the universe. So far around 900,000 galaxies have been identified. Nobel Prizes 2008 Wendy Barnaby reports on the Nobel Prizes for chemistry, physics and medicine announced this week. Light used to monitor nerves of flies Gero Miesenböck studies the nervous system of flies by using light as a tool rather than the more cumbersome electrode. The optical signals record the activity of neurons. The neurons being studied are those which react to smell. The

New wave technology a potential major source of energy The CETO process consists of hundreds of underwater buoys, each attached to a pump. Movement of the buoys sends pressurised water to shore for use in generators or desalination plants. Tim Sawyer estimates 35% of Australiaīs energy needs is practically and economically extractable now. Ketone bodies - an important new fuel source for the human body Kieran Clarke is working on a new fuel source for the human body, ketone bodies. These chemical are present in our bodies already, made by the liver from fat when glucose is in short supply. B

Lawrence Krauss - The LHC, going to Mars, and the US Presidential campaign Studying the fundamental structure of the universe wonīt replace studying climate change and other important areas as has been suggested recently. Lawrence Krauss says sending people to Mars is crazy as so much of the venture is spent on keeping the astronauts alive rather than from doing science. Too little of the US presidential campaign mentions science, says Krauss, considering its importance. Measuring sea level and the Earth The Earth isnīt a sphere. It is flattened at the poles. These days, the Earth is measured

Chimps consol each other after fighting Orlaith Fraser has studied post-conflict behaviour in chimpanzees, looking at how friendly interactions after a conflict can mitigate the costs of aggression. Hugging and embracing by chimps after fighting reduces their stress levels and calms them down. In chimps, this is indicated by the degree of scratching and grooming. Her research was conducted at Chester Zoo. The behaviour also occurs in the wild. The next 50 years The next 50 years, next 100 years and beyond will be unique in history in that one species, us, will have the power to affect the fut

Living with Aspergerīs What do Einstein, Beethoven, Andy Warhol, Bill Gates, Bob Dylan, Peter Sellers, Woody Allen, Van Gogh, Mozart and Thomas Jefferson have in common? They all have suffered from Aspergerīs syndrome. How is it that so many brilliant people are successful while suffering from this form of autism? Filmmaker Stephen Ramsay applied the test to himself and with a positive result, went in search of others who live their lives with Aspergerīs syndrome. Today's Science Show presents the soundtrack to Stephen Ramsay's film, Oops, wrong planet.  Green at work - Aunty Jack Aunty Jack

A punt on the Cam This week on The Science Show Cambridge virologist Chris Smith takes us punting along the Cam River. As he weaves around the old stone colleges, scientists jump on and off the punt, discussing their work as they go. A local guide describes the intriguing history of Cambridge, its colleges and the beautiful bridges across the river. The punt traverses The Backs, a one-mile stretch of river that supports some of finest examples of architecture in England. Eruption of Sumatraīs Mt Toba Martin Williams found volcanic ash in India. It came from Mt Toba in Sumatra 73,000 years ago

Primates - threats and research Most primates are under extreme threat. Some from hunting, as in bonobos, while the Ebola virus threatens most primates. At the Adelaide Zoo, Carla Litchfield is planning a program where primate trainers and others stay for long periods in cages with their animals. There are some comforts, but other environmental factors are a challenge, like extreme ranges in temperature. Attacking chytrid, the killer frog fungus Of 6,300 amphibians in the world, New Zealandīs Archey's Frog Leiopelma archeyi is recognised as the most endangered. The main threat is chytrid fung

Eureka Prizes 2008 Nicky Phillips reports on the Australian Museumīs Eureka Science Prizes awarded this week. Hagfish Hagfish are blind, like big slimy eels. They predate fish and clean up the ocean bottom. Rebecca McLeod has looked at energy flows in New Zealandīs Fiordland ecosystems and discovered that hagfish actually derive energy from forests. Rain washes forest material into the water and, through bacterial decomposition, makes its way through the food chain to hagfish. Rebecca McLeod is New Zealandīs Young Scientist for 2008. Runoff affects waters of the Great Barrier Reef The body

The curse of the black rats Black rats were responsible for the death of 75 million people in the 13th Century during the Black Plague and today cost the US grain industry $19 billion a year. But black rats also happen to be brilliant at adaptation and survival. Feeling squirmish? Well the south Vietnamese arenīt, with their rat meat industry that creates 10, 000 tonnes of rat meat every year. While origins of the black rats come from South East Asia they have spread throughout every continent and if you think there not in your back yard....think again! Plight of the Houting fish The draining

Minke whales - mutual interest Alastair Birtles reports on results of his study of whale-human interaction in the waters off Cairns and Port Douglas. The minke whales are quite curious and can swim around people for many hours. Northern Queensland is the only known area where this interaction takes place. Green turtles in northern Australia These turtles grow as large as one metre. They feed on sea grass and algae. The northern Great Barrier Reef green turtle population is the largest group of its kind, with a population of around 50,000 individuals. Itīs thought global warming is affecting t

Movement of biological hotpots Biological hotspots are areas of high biodiversity. There are more species than in surrounding areas. For coral reefs, Indonesia is a hotspot. The region extends to Papua New Guinea and northern Australia. Over time hotspots move. Itīs thought hotspots develop where tectonic plates collide, slamming into each other. They produce island arcs, volcanism and new habitats. Today, coral reef hotspots are being denuded by human activity. WA biological hotspot reveals new species Over 1,500 flowering plants in Western Australia are undescribed, with 870 of these occurr

EuroScience Open Forum 2008 Wilson da Silva reports from the EuroScience Open Forum meeting in Barcelona. Chinese archaeology and ancient civilisations The Three Gorges Dam project in China has flooded vast areas. Rowan Flad describes some of the thousands of fossil specimens he collected before the waters rose. Now Rowan Flad is using archaeological data to create a picture of an ancient Chinese civilisation. In addition to land lost to flooding, rapid development means lands are being covered and lost for archaeology. Haptics Haptics is the use of a device to relay touch sensations from

Solar power in Europe New technology uses solar energy to super-heat water which is used to drive steam turbines producing electricity. These plants are already in use in Spain. Test plants have been built in north Africa and the Middle East. Naomi Fowler reports on progress in other areas of Europe, including Italy where there is a strong political push for nuclear power. In many countries, current legislation assists existing electricity producers over new technologies. Islands of the sub-Antarctic The sub-Antarctic is passed through when travelling south. It is the area subjected to the A

Mars Phoenix update Jonathan Nally reports on results from the Mars Phoenix mission which is analysing the Martian soil and looking for signs of water on the planet. Malaysian and Indonesian peat swamps drained and burnt for palm oil production Most peat swamps are in the Indo Malaysian region. Peat a spongy wet mass and can support trees up to 70m in height. The environment is water-logged with high acidity, up to pH of 2. Dropped leaves donīt decompose. Cellular contents leak out, but leaf structure remains. Peat swamps are estimated to have formed over 5,000 years. As well as a large range

Music and the brain It has become known as the universal language, but why is it that music—from Chopin to heavy metal—beguiles us so much? Brain scientist Oliver Sacks explores the origins of our love of music through cases he's written about in his latest book Musicophilia. And we hear from brain biologist Alan Harvey, who has also written about what connects our passion for music with our biology.

The DNA Files - Rewriting Heredity: Environment and the Genome The Science Show presents another program in the series, The DNA Files. This week, Rewriting Heredity: Environment and the Genome. Our genomes are constantly at work, directing such vital functions as eating and breathing. Researchers are starting to understand that everything from diet to air pollution to stress has great influence on how our genomes function and what that might mean for our health. Beginning before birth, the environment around us triggers chemical changes to our DNA that influence health issues as complex as obes

The DNA Files - Designing the Garden: Food in the Age of Biotechnology Some say manipulating genes in plants and animals is the solution to world hunger; others say genetically modified organisms are neither safe to eat nor to grow. How do we understand whatīs really on our dinner plate? This program, from Sound Vision Production in the United States, looks at the debates surrounding genetically modified food.