2021

30 March 2021

Two thirds of farmland at risk of pesticide pollution

A global map of agricultural land across 168 countries has revealed that 64 percent of land used for agriculture and food crops is at risk of pesticide pollution. Almost a third of these areas are considered to be at high-risk.

30 March 2021

New deal for Uber drivers in UK, but Australia's gig workers must wait

Uber has been forced by the UK courts to treat its British drivers as workers. It will probably require legislative change for Uber's Australian drivers to be treated as employees, write Drs Alex Veen, Tom Barratt and Caleb Goods.

30 March 2021

Study reveals how face masks hinder communication

Researchers from the University's Voice Research Laboratory have uncovered how the voice changes when wearing a mask and the impact this has on how people are understood.

30 March 2021

An improved safety standard for pacemakers and cochlear implants

As technology improves, bionic devices in humans will become more common. Professor David McKenzie working with the National Measurement Institute has developed a standard test for leaks in such devices like cochlear implants and pacemakers.

26 March 2021

After the Ever Given: what the ship wedged in the Suez Canal means for global trade

A container vessel is completely blocking traffic in the Suez Canal. This event highlights the fragility of global supply chains and is likely to accelerate changes in the world economy already under way, writes Professor Michael Bell from the Sydney University Business School.

26 March 2021

Affordable rentals out of reach for low-income workers

Low-income households are critical to the workforce but are increasingly struggling to find affordable rental housing near suitable jobs in Australia's major cities and regions, according to new research led by the Sydney School of Architecture, Design and Planning.

25 March 2021

Australian team gets to the heart of COVID-19

In a study completed in just 10 months, University of Sydney researchers have uncovered some of the ways COVID-19 affects the heart and identified potential drug treatments which have progressed to clinical trials.

25 March 2021

Consent laws aren't the reason for low sexual assault conviction rates

An app won't fix issues associated with consent in sexual encounters, writes rape law expert and Dean, Sydney Law School, Professor Simon Bronitt.

24 March 2021

COVID fails to slow academic collaboration

Academic collaboration has continued to thrive in the absence of international travel, with the University of Sydney signing a new strategic partner and organising high-profile virtual conferences, including one that attracted more than 28,000 researchers.

23 March 2021

Lift the curtains!

In response to COVID effectively shutting down live performance, the Sydney Conservatorium of Music was forced to rethink how opera in a time of a global pandemic could look. They took a traditionally staged opera, Cendrillon, and produced it as an opera film.