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The Governor, the Great and the Good to make their mark at the Eureka Prizes

Photo opportunity on the red carpet at Town Hall from 6pm

Winners announced through the evening via @eurekaprizes

Her Excellency Professor Marie Bashir AC CVO, Governor of New South Wales, heads the guest list for the 2013 Australian Museum Eureka Prizes Awards Dinner on Wednesday, September 4, at the Sydney Town Hall.

Affectionately known as the Oscars of Australian science, the Australian Museum presents these awards in front of hundreds of guests, including heavyweights from the world of media, science, medicine, industry and defence.

Peak science bodies unite, fish tell climate change stories, fireballs from the desert sky, fossil treasure tourism, crafty communication and science cats

“The value we can have as a group together is far greater than the value of any one of us.”

– Assoc Prof Maryanne Large speaking at the Big Science Communication Summit

Winter is slowly turning into spring, but science engagement is running hot, fired by the events of National Science Week. Many science communicators are also benefiting from the contacts made and lessons learnt at the Big Science Communication Summit, held earlier in the year.

Watching assassin cells at work

L’Oréal Fellow Misty Jenkins and her colleagues at the Peter Mac have a paper published on Sunday that reveals how our immune cells kill damaged damaged, virus-infected or cancerous cells taking between one and two minutes to make the hit. Then these serial killers are free to strike again. And although the killer cells themselves are vulnerable to the poisons they use, they are somehow able to protect themselves from damage.

Chalky teeth: a silent epidemic damaging 1 in 6 children’s teeth

Melbourne researchers call on parents, dentists and other health professionals to act to save children’s teeth.

A recent study has shown that at least one in six children is affected by ‘chalky teeth’, placing them at a heightened risk of tooth decay. Many of the affected children are losing their adult molars and are on a path to years of expensive dentistry and orthodontics.

There’s currently no cure, but with early detection and dental treatment, tooth decay or tooth extraction can often be avoided. However, many cases aren’t getting to the dentist quick enough.

Chalky Teeth Background Information

Overview of main points of research/story

There are a number of causes of dental caries (tooth decay) in children; the most widely known include poor dental hygiene and dietary factors. New evidence from The D3 Group suggests that a condition known popularly as ‘chalky teeth’ is likely to be an overlooked but significant cause of dental caries and toothache in children. As such, regular dental precautions (dental hygiene, fluoride and diet) may not be enough to prevent toothache and cavities.
Chalky teeth, more properly called molar hypomineralisation is a defect where the tooth (usually a molar tooth) forms abnormally before it is ‘born’ into the mouth.
[Read more…] about Chalky Teeth Background Information

D3Group chalky teeth images

HowHypominHappens — The development of chalky teeth begins in the jaw before the tooth’s eruption into the mouth. (Credit: The D3 Group. Size: 800×350, 17KB)

How ankles can save footballers’ knees

Maths meets Carlton, AFL fights ACL

AFL knee injuries could be dramatically reduced if physiotherapists paid more attention to ankles, a Melbourne mechanical engineer has found. He is now trialling the mathematical models to help Carlton Football Club predict and screen for players at most risk of knee injuries.

Hossein Mokhtarzadeh has demonstrated that the ankle is key to preventing knee injuries that cost the Australian football codes tens of millions of dollars a year. As a University of Melbourne post-doctoral fellow at the Australian Institute for Musculoskeletal Science, Hossein is hoping to expand his work into protecting the anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) against injury by developing exercises to strengthen critical muscles supporting the ankle joint. He also has a vision for a mechanical bracing system for those who may not be able to train their muscles to a sufficient level.

The fastest sperm may not be best

Sydney sea squirts show that there’s more to fertilization and IVF than we thought

For sea squirts the key to a long and happy life is to be fertilized not by a fast sperm, but by one that stands the test of time, Dr Angela Crean, from the Evolution and Ecology Research Centre at the University of NSW, has found.

And her discovery, published in PLoS, also shows for the first time that the influence of sperm extends well beyond the moment of conception. If further studies demonstrate the same effects in human sperm, the finding will change some of the assumptions used in IVF practice.

Sticky ear mystery solved

Trial of treatment underway in Perth

Perth researchers are planning to end the sleepless nights that families face when ear infections strike and won’t go away. Their research could reduce the need for antibiotics and surgery, and help tackle hearing loss in indigenous communities.

Dr Ruth Thornton and her research team at the University of Western Australia have discovered that sticky nets of DNA hide the bacteria in the ears of kids with recurrent middle-ear infections, where they evade antibiotic treatment by creating impenetrable slimy biofilms.

A splash, first light for a cicada, a neural dawn

Australian Museum New Scientist Eureka Prize for Science Photography highly commended and finalists announced

Ten stunning images have been selected as highly commended (including three finalists) for the New Scientist Eureka Prize for Science Photography.

The images showcase everything from cicadas to fluid mechanics. They will be published today on the Australian Museum and New Scientist websites, and are also available for publication.

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Photo opportunity on the red carpet at Town Hall from 6pm

Overview of main points of research/story

Australian Museum New Scientist Eureka Prize for Science Photography highly commended and finalists announced

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