Dr Karl Kruszelnicki

EXPERT REACTION: mRNA flu vaccine is up to 34.5% more effective than c EXPERT REACTION: mRNA flu vaccine is up to 34.5% more effective than current flu vaccines An mRNA based flu vaccine, which has been developed by Pfizer, is 34.5% more effective against inf

"An mRNA based flu vaccine is 34.5% more effective against influenza-like illness compared to current flu vaccines. The study included over 18,000 people, half of whom were given the mRNA vaccine and half of whom were given a conventional flu vaccine."
www.scimex.org/newsfeed/exp...

Kissing Has Existed for at Least 16 Million Years, Scientists Say

"Centrifugal motion. Perpetual bliss. The thrill of the moment. Unstoppable. In technical terms, it is “non-agonistic interaction involving directed, intraspecific, oral-oral contact with some movement of the lips/mouthparts and no food transfer.”"
www.nytimes.com/2025/11/19/s...

NASA Releases Images of Comet 3I/ATLAS: It ‘Doesn’t Look Like a Spacecraft’

"“This object is a comet. It looks and behaves like a comet.”
NASA officials presented a series of images taken by the fleet of spacecraft, including the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter, the Lucy mission, and the Solar and Heliospheric Observatory."
www.nytimes.com/2025/11/19/s...

Man With Tick-Borne Meat Allergy Dies after Eating Burger Lone star tick bites are the most common cause of alpha-gal syndrome, which causes severe allergic reactions to red meat

" first death linked to a severe meat allergy caused by a tick bite. The man, who died in 2024 after eating a burger, had alpha-gal syndrome, a disease triggered by tick bites→ develop anaphylactic reactions to red meat and other animal-based products."
www.scientificamerican.com/article/man-...

The Americas Are No Longer Officially Measles-Free Canada lost its official measles elimination status after a year of continuous transmission

"Canada has lost its measles-free status following a year of ongoing measles transmission.
The Americas became the first region in the world to be declared free of the disease in 2016, following a 22-year regional campaign."
www.scientificamerican.com/article/cana...

YouTube video by Nutrition Science Bites Do food marketers target children? What can we do about it? Listen - we said 'brands off our kids'!

Do food marketers target #children? What can we do about it? I talk with Jane Martin from Food for Health Alliance for #NutritionScienceBites podcast @nmnteatwell.bsky.social @hmriaustralia.bsky.social 📺 youtu.be/dAcHzj5zKr8 🎧 shorturl.at/MJ0tk

Two people seated at a table in front of a colorful background featuring the text “Shirtloads of Science” in bold yellow letters and “Dr Karl” in white in the top corner. One person is wearing a patterned shirt, and the other is in a dark blazer with a light shirt.

Our very own Professor Leszek Lisowski was chosen to star on Dr Karl Kruszelnicki podcast Shirtloads of Science to talk about his extraordinary work with viral vectors. Learn more about his lab at CMRI by listening here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=10e2VcSmIRA

a woman is holding a cell phone in her hands and says `` wait til i tell you this '' . ALT: a woman is holding a cell phone in her hands and says `` wait til i tell you this '' .

One more 😴 till I catch up with @abcaustralia.bsky.social
#ScienceHour on #TripleJ with @doctorkarl.bsky.social and Lucy Smith! Get your #Nutrition #Science questions ready!

Shirtloads of Science: Science Under Siege with Prof. Michael Mann & Prof. Peter Hotez (443) In this episode, we sit down with two of today’s most prominent defenders of science: Professor Michael Mann, world-renowned climate scientist, and Professor Peter Hotez, vaccine researcher and advoca...

"Science Under Siege with Prof. Michael Mann & Prof. Peter Hotez" | @peterhotezmdphd.bsky.social & I discussed our new book #ScienceUnderSiege with the great @doctorkarl.bsky.social on the #ShirtloadsOfScience podcast: shirtloadsofscience.libsyn.com/science-unde...

A Simple Guide to Spotting Pseudoscience Learn what pseudoscience is, why it’s persuasive, and how to recognize it so that you can stay open-minded without being misled.

"Pseudoscience Red Flags
1. Unfalsifiable Claims.
2. Reversing the Burden of Proof
3. Special Pleading (Explaining Away Negative Findings)
4. Cherry-Picking Data
5. Misusing Science Jargon
6. Overconfidence and Absolute Language
and so on ..."

www.psychologytoday.com/au/blog/crit...

Can an AI chatbot of Dr Karl change climate sceptics’ minds? He’s willing to give it a try The famous science communicator is planning to release a chatbot designed to answer questions about the climate crisis. Can it work?

Can an AI chatbot of @doctorkarl.bsky.social change climate sceptics’ minds? He’s willing to give it a try www.theguardian.com/technology/2...

After using ChatGPT, man swaps his salt for sodium bromide—and suffers psychosis Literal “hallucinations” were the result.

"the man's bromide level was eventually measured at a whopping 1,700 mg/L, while the "reference range" for healthy people is 0.9 to 7.3 mg/L.
... a terrifying psychosis and kept in the hospital for 3 full weeks over an entirely preventable condition."
arstechnica.com/health/2025/...

China Shows Off Armed Attack Robots The Chinese state broadcasting group recently released footage of its newly developed "robot wolves" in simulated combat drills.

"the wolves are said to be distinct from robot combat dogs, according to a previous release. While the agile and lightweight robot dogs specialize in reconnaissance, these robot wolves are specifically meant for combat."
futurism.com/china-armed-...

AI Industry Nervous About Small Detail: They're Not Making Any Real Money The AI industry is struggling to make a dent in its expenditures, as the vast majority of users remain content to use its free model.

"OpenAI burns through $2.50 for every dollar it brings in.
OpenAI — 6 years on — won't reach a positive cash flow until 2029 at the earliest.
Microsoft — backing OpenAI — expect to spend upwards of $400 billion to keep the AI dream alive in 2025 alone."
futurism.com/ai-industry-...

The lethal legacy of Aukus nuclear submarines will remain for millennia – and there’s no plan to deal with it Australia’s future nuclear submarines will produce highly radioactive waste, and allies in the UK and the US still don’t have a safe place to store their own

"For decades the UK has sought a solution to the nuclear waste its fleet of submarines generates. After decades of fruitless search there are “ongoing discussions” but still no place for radioactive waste to be permanently stored.
Similarly, in the US..."
www.theguardian.com/world/2025/a...

Wind output smashes through 10 GW barrier for first time on Australia’s main grid Wind and big batteries pass significant milestones on Australia’s main grid, and new output records also set for wind in South Australia and wind and solar in Queensland.

" nearly 100 wind farms operating on Australia’s main grid set a new peak of 10.16 gigawatts (GW).
Battery storage hit a new peak of 2,045 megawatts (2 GW) in the evening peak at 5.55pm on June 20."
reneweconomy.com.au/wind-output-...

How clear and simple data visualizations bring the climate crisis home Climate change is a slow-moving disaster. We need graphics that capture both its pace and its impact.

"there is growing evidence that more intuitive visualizations, informed by psychological research, can help people make better sense of climate data."
thebulletin.org/2025/07/how-...

French nuclear weapons, 2025 France’s nuclear weapons arsenal has remained stable in recent years at approximately 290 warheads, but the country is modernizing its ballistic missiles, cruise missiles, submarines, aircraft, and nu...

"France currently has a nuclear weapons stockpile of approximately 290 warheads. In addition, approximately 80 retired warheads are awaiting dismantlement, giving a total inventory of approximately 370 nuclear warheads."
thebulletin.org/premium/2025...

Wood heater smoke is a silent killer but one city tops the list Wood heaters are estimated to be responsible for more pollution-related deaths than all the cars on our roads. This national map shows which areas are affected the most.

" long-term exposure to wood-heater smoke causes 729 premature deaths every year in Australia, which is more than the deaths attributable to emissions from the national fleet of 20 million vehicles, or from energy generation, or even bushfires."
www.abc.net.au/news/science...

An Ancient Law Could Shape the Modern Future of America’s Beaches. Here’s How.

"Most beaches have a natural defense against rising seas: The sandy area simply moves landward.
Geologists call it coastal squeeze.
“Are you going to save the beach house, or do you want to save the beach?” “Because you cannot save them both.”"
www.nytimes.com/2025/07/19/c...

"rotor diameter of 262 metres, 68 million kWh of clean electricity each year – = 40,000 households – the turbine blades, will have a swept area of 53,000 square metres.
The playing surface of the Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG) ~ 20,000 square metres."
reneweconomy.com.au/worlds-most-...

In 1907, Parisian Waiters Went on Strike for the Right to Grow Mustaches You gotta fight for your right to whiskers.

" regulation of facial hair in France had its roots in the era of colonialist expansion/Industrial Revolution. Less wealthy people had acquired more access to what had traditionally been luxury goods, so the elite turned to something money couldn’t buy "
www.atlasobscura.com/articles/fre...

Solar becomes EU’s largest electricity source for the first time The Netherlands and Greece were the top solar record setters, while wind power also hit new highs in May and June.

"Solar power generated more electricity than any other source in the EU last month.
New data shows that solar accounted for 22.1 % of the EU’s electricity mix in June 2025, narrowly overtaking nuclear – and, notably, far outpacing fossil fuels."
www.euronews.com/green/2025/0...

Infographic: Climate Change Tripled Heat Deaths in European Heatwave This chart shows the estimated number of excess heat-related deaths in the June/July 2025 European heatwave and the impact of climate change on excess deaths.

"increases in extreme temperatures due to climate change varied 2-4 degrees Celsius, making a huge difference in how the heat is experienced and,... nearly tripling the estimated number of excess deaths across the 12 cities in the recent heatwave."
www.statista.com/chart/34783/...

EVs are already 73 pct cleaner than ICE vehicles, and getting cleaner faster than thought Full battery EVs are 73 pct cleaner than internal combustion cars, and even more so when powered only with renewables. The benefits of hybrids are much lower.

"BEVs produce 73% less life-cycle greenhouse gas emissions than equivalent gasoline-powered counterpart – factoring in production of vehicle.
Using renewable electricity to charge a BEV, car’s life-cycle emissions fell 78 % lower than ICE vehicles."
thedriven.io/2025/07/09/e...

Tons of Invisible Plastic Pieces Lurk in Ocean Water

"A study in the journal Nature estimates the volume of nanoplastics, which are even smaller than microplastics and invisible to the naked eye, to be at least 27 million metric tons in North Atlantic seas — more than the weight of all wild land mammals."
www.nytimes.com/2025/07/09/c...

Umbrellas Optional? East Asia’s Monsoon Rains Are No Longer a Sure Thing

"East Asia’s rainy season has traditionally run from middle of June -July, when a stationary weather front brings prolonged rainfall to the region. But annual rains have become less predictable since the late 1990s, ... climate change is a major factor."
www.nytimes.com/2025/07/09/w...

Just How Harmful Is Vaping? More Evidence Is Emerging.

" a team of scientists analyzed the mist from popular vapes and found such high levels of heavy metals that one researcher thought their machine had malfunctioned. Other studies have suggested that vaping can affect the heart, lungs and brain."
www.nytimes.com/2025/07/09/w...

4.6 Billion Years On, the Sun Is Having a Moment In the past two years, without much notice, solar power has begun to truly transform the world’s energy system.

"1954-2022 for the world to install a terawatt of solar power; the second terawatt in 2024, and the third will arrive either late 2025/early 2026
We now install a gigawatt’s worth of solar panels (~ one coal-fired plant), every fifteen hours."
www.newyorker.com/news/annals-...

Sharks freeze when you turn them upside down – and there’s no good reason why Rather than a clever survival tactic, tonic immobility might just be ‘evolutionary baggage’.

"tonic immobility is triggered when the animal is turned upside down – it stops moving, its muscles relax, and it enters a trance-like state. Some scientists even use tonic immobility as a technique to safely handle certain shark species."
theconversation.com/sharks-freez...