I’m not sure I remember all that much about my late 90s undergrad education, but I have no difficulty recalling a lecture on the evils of Barbie. Complete with slideshow.So, the rhetoric goes, Barbie – in all her thinness, her whiteness, her youth and her...
Australians’ national wellbeing shows a glass half full, reports Michelle Grattan Australia presents a mixed picture of national wellbeing, according to the government’s Measuring What Matters report released by Treasurer Jim Chalmers. On the positive side, over the past two decades life expectancy has increased, income and...
Sneaky Supermarket Tricks: How to Outsmart Consumer Manipulation As the cost-of-living soars, supermarkets are employing subtle strategies to entice consumers into spending more money without them even realizing it. In Australia, where the impact of inflation and rising costs is keenly felt, these tactics can have...
There are some basic energy-saving tips that anyone who is conscious of their environmental footprint or looking to save money on bills will have heard time and time again. These are not those. We’ve gone down the unbeaten track to gather six surprising energy hacks that...
After the movie frenzy fades, asks Alan Pears It made headlines around the world when the much-hyped Barbie movie contributed to a world shortage of fluorescent pink paint. But that’s just the tip of the iceberg. When movies or TV shows become cultural phenomena, toymakers jump on...
After a months-long marketing blitz, writes Lauren Gurrieri, the much-hyped Barbie movie is released this week. From a Malibu Barbie dreamhouse listed on Airbnb, an AI tool that transforms selfies into Barbie movie posters and multiple Barbie-themed brand collaborations ranging from nail polish to roller skates,...
Zoë Krupka writes that learned helplessness has entered our vernacular and swallowed up socially accurate explanations for violence The story of how psychology framed women for their own assaults began, as so many of psychology’s stories do, with some trapped animals. In the late 1960s, psychologist...
Anyone with even the most casual interest in cricket will by now be well-versed in the debate over the “spirit of the game”, writes Glen Thomas Alex Carey’s stumping of Johnny Bairstow on the final day of the second Ashes test sparked outrage, condemnation and ugly...
A new study of Warlpiri language shows how, reports researchers. Parents and other caregivers typically modify their speech when they talk to babies and young children. They use simple sentences and special words, like “nana” for banana. They also speak slowly, use a higher pitch, and exaggerate...
Rachael Sharman looks at ways to have this conversation without freaking them out? I was a teenager during Australia’s 1990s “recession we had to have”, and I remember clearly a friend asking his dad for some money to go to the movies. With equal parts frustration and...
