Jacinta Bowler

The ABC and ABC Friends Victoria announce Science Journalist Fellowship Program - About the ABC The ABC is delighted to announce the establishment of the ABC Science Journalist Fellowship Program, a new initiative within the ABC Radio National Science Unit.

Fantastic news from ABC Science today: a wonderful donor - former librarian Ms Margaret Bales - has given $1 million to establish a Science Journalist Fellowship Program.
www.abc.net.au/about/the-ab...

Science quiz: Can you put the 'fun' back into fungi? Mushrooms hit the headlines this year, but not for the best reasons. It's time to change that — take our quiz to see how many fun fungi facts you know.

Reckon you know mushrooms?!

The CSIRO cuts are just the tip of the iceberg for Australia's science funding Australia is known as a country of innovators, but with a combination of brain drain, continuous cuts, and a loss of critical science projects, is Australia losing its edge?

www.abc.net.au/news/science...

Thanks for the pick up!!

For everyone in my real life, this is why I disappeared for a month. Wrecked my sleep schedule, had a brilliant time.

Are Australians really paying more for electricity than other countries? Australia’s electricity prices have gone up a long way over the past decade or so, but global energy trends have also pushed up bills in other countries

www.theguardian.com/australia-ne...

The short answer is no. We’re around the middle of the pack, and a little further down the list after accounting for our relatively high incomes.

Potential for big auroras tonight. Worth getting out for if you can!!

The secret history of Melbourne’s particle accelerators With names like the Neutron Howitzer, MUVEC, and the Pelletron, the University of Melbourne’s particle accelerators have been the hidden engines driving research for almost a century

This is a really fun piece from Adam with so many good pictures!

Surprise ‘tail’ found on an iconic galaxy may rewrite its history First image from Vera C. Rubin telescope reveals a previously unnoticed feature of galaxy M61 that may explain its mysterious properties.

Rubin Observatory Discovers Surprise ‘Tail’ on Iconic Galaxy www.nature.com/articles/d41...

An aside: journalism exists in an attention economy where demand drives editorial decision making. If you find something you enjoyed, learned from and that moved you, share and share widely -- even four days late. I, and others, don't get to keep doing this stuff if no one reads it.

Bearded dragons in backpacks reveal speed can be a killer Ecologist Kristoffer Wild spent a year in the Australian outback fitting bearded dragons with hand-sewn jackets with GPS trackers to track every second of the lizards' lives.

Cutest little lizards in cute little science backpacks.

Elective surgeries paused at major Queensland hospitals 'overwhelmed' by flu cases Elective surgeries have been paused for 48 hours while resources are diverted to emergency departments.

Go and get your flu vaccines (plus your Covid one while you’re there). It’s not too late!!

Climate change an "existential threat to humanity" but Australia law offers no recourse to Torres Strait islanders in class action against the government for negligence.

My report on today's decision in @reneweconomy.com.au:

Post mushroom trial, experts suggest changes to location sharing on iNaturalist Experts are weighing up whether to continue posting the locations of poisonous mushrooms on public databases like iNaturalist in the wake of the Erin Patterson trial.

Until the Erin Patterson case, posting the locations of death cap mushrooms was seen as a public good…

And congratulations also to @angusdalton.bsky.social for being highly commended in that category, and to @jacintabowler.bsky.social and @petrastock.bsky.social, whose podcast 'Cosmos Debunks' won Best Audio Program.
Hooray for Australian #ScienceJournalism!

Congrats Fleur!!

I’ve never been much of a tweeter, more of a lurker, but I love the people who just post non-stop. I’ve missed all you!

My favourite part of this app so far is that there’s a feed exclusively for fungi pictures. Big (fungi) fan.

I was not expecting this paper today when I was reading the ArXiv 😮

Giving up control of your air conditioner may reduce blackouts: experts Queensland’s power companies can force thousands of air conditioners in homes into low-power mode on the hottest days of the year. Experts say systems like this need to be part of the energy solution.

This week I took a look at statewide central cooling, with a technology that can turn down air conditioners remotely and stop blackouts.

I’m a science journo and this is so spot on. I’ve been banging on about the google maps thing for years! Great video