The Cosmos Podcast

Australia’s farmers and agricultural industries are at the front line when it comes to dealing with the impacts of climate change. Agriculture also contributes 14% of the country’s emissions. The recently established Zero Net Emissions Agriculture Cooperative Research Centre (ZNE-Ag CRC) aims to help the agriculture industry transition to net zero by 2040 by bringing academic knowledge and agriculture experience together. In this episode of Cosmos Country, hosts Glenn Morrison and Jamie Seidel speak with Dr Deb Cousins and Professor Matthew Morell from the ZNE-Ag CRC’s Establishment Committee about the role of the CRC, the challenges facing our farmers and the integrated systems approach needed to make the transition.

The Science Detectives are on another case. This week, Olivia Henry wants to know why animals come in so many different colours and patterns. The detectives talk to Devi Stuart-Fox, a professor of evolution and ecology at the University of Melbourne, to find out. This episode was hosted and produced by Imma Perfetto and edited by Andrew Wyrill. For more science news, visit cosmosmagazine.com and follow us on Instagram @cosmosmagazine Love the show? Let us know by rating and leaving a review on Spotify or Apple Podcasts.

Regional communities looking for ways to diversify income and employment under climate change often turn to tourism. Recently, the Australian Tourism Commission created a data hub to help. It shows the value of Australian tourism by region; and the scale of incomes and number of people in the industry to be staggering. The Cosmos Country podcast speaks with two people involved in tourism about how events can contribute to a diversified economy. Archaeologist Dr James Hunter is curator of Naval Heritage and Archaeology at the Australian National Maritime Museum. He recently highlighted the wreck called The South Australia, just offshore in Victor Harbour. Despite its size and importance to the history of South Australia, the wreck was only discovered less than a decade ago. Hunter is also exploring the southern SA coast in search of shipwrecks offshore of Robe. And Carolyn Grant is Director of Engagement at the Ocean Lovers Festival in Sydney, a blend of ideas, arts and music. They spoke to Cosmos Country’s podcast hosts Glenn Morrison and Marie Low.

It doesn’t rain at the South Pole. Why not? Will global warming change that? This question from a Cosmos reader was a task for The Science Detectives. Cosmos journalism intern Tyler Fisher was asked to investigate, to find out what’s going on.

We learn in school that the Sun rises in the east and sets in the west. But we also know the Sun doesn’t stay in the same part of the sky the whole year round – it’s higher at some points and lower at others. So what’s going on? What about the Moon? How does its path change across the sky? On the latest episode of Science Detectives, a new podcast series from Cosmos, Ellen Phiddian gazes at the sky to figure out how its two biggest hits change their appearance. She’s joined by Mary Adam, an astronomy educator from the Adelaide Planetarium at the University of South Australia.

Series one ep: 14 When coral reefs disappear more is lost than animals and evonomic benefits. Dr Tommy Fellowes at the USyd’s School of Geosciences Geocoastal Research Group talkas to Cosmos Country reporter Glenn Morrison.

Cosmos Science regional reporters Jamie Seidel and Glenn Morrison find out how quolls were transported across the country to help re-wild an arid reserve in outback WA.

At the beginning of 2023, scientists made a surprise finding. The pygmy right whale, which is the smallest of the baleen whales, didn’t move far from waters in the Southern Ocean. It’s surprising because long-distance migration is a behaviour practised by most other baleen whales. Knowledge of this enigmatic species, which is a filter-feeder using baleen to sift tasty but tiny marine life from seawater, is slowly, but surely, on the rise. But is this baleen like having a set of teeth? Or is it something altogether separate? Do whales even have teeth to chow down on prey that is so small? On the latest episode of Science Detectives, a new podcast series from Cosmos, Matthew Ward Agius goes diving into what baleen is, whether whales have (or need) teeth, and how much food a whale really needs with whale researchers Dr Adelaide Dedden and Dr Catherine Kemper.

If marine microbes are Earth's unsung heroes, year 12 student Emelia is singing their praises. They produce 50% of our oxygen, are a crucial part of the food pyramid and they can even help us understand the ancient world. In this episode of Podcast Next Gen, join Emelia as she unpacks marine microbes in all their fabulous forms. Podcast Next Gen is a collaboration between Cosmos Magazine and the National Youth Science Forum. The reporters are year 12 students from across Australia – the next generation of scientists, science journalists and podcasters. These ‘shortcast’ episodes have been written and recorded by the students, giving them the opportunity to work with real science journalists and editors to make their science concept come to life.

Science can answer most of life’s big and little questions – but you don’t always have scientist on hand to explain their reasoning. Now you do, with a new Cosmos Science Detectives podcast finding the experts and interrogating them to help answer your burning inquiries. The crack Cosmos team of newsroom science journalists will leave no stone unturned. They’ll open a case file; find evidence and witnesses; and give you the detail you need to close a case of “uncertainty.” In this episode, they explain why mangroves are thought to be important.

While for most of us, maths might conjure up equations and stuffy professors, for year 12 student Matilda, she thinks of poetry. From weird and wonderful mathematical sequences popping up in traditional verse structures, to the mathematics of metre and rhythm, and even completely numerical poems, maths is everywhere. In this episode of Podcast Next Gen, join Matilda as she dives into poetic mathematics and mathematical poetry. Podcast Next Gen is a collaboration between Cosmos magazine and the National Youth Science Forum. The reporters are year 12 students from across Australia – the next generation of scientists, science journalists and podcasters. These ‘shortcast’ episodes have been written and recorded by the students, giving them the opportunity to work with real science journalists and editors to make their science concept come to life.

For those lucky enough to have been able to experience it, an aurora is an incredible sight. But year 12 student Hajara wanted to know what was happening behind the scenes to cause these gorgeous hues. In this episode of Podcast Next Gen, she investigates how it occurs, where the colours come from, and exactly when and where you can find the auroras. Podcast Next Gen is a collaboration between Cosmos magazine and the National Youth Science Forum. The reporters are year 12 students from across Australia – the next generation of scientists, science journalists and podcasters. These ‘shortcast’ episodes have been written and recorded by the students, giving them the opportunity to work with real science journalists and editors to make their science concept come to life.

Have you ever been trying to study and turn on some music, but discover that what you’ve picked is just too good? Instead of focusing on your work, you end up vibing with the song. Jorja, a year 12 student and robotics enthusiast wanted to know why, and so she hooked up her own brain to find out. Explore Jorja’s brain on music, why jazz might be the most meditative, and why you need to keep an eye on those gamma waves. Podcast Next Gen is a collaboration between Cosmos magazine and the National Youth Science Forum. The reporters are year 12 students from across Australia – the next generation of scientists, science journalists and podcasters. These ‘shortcast’ episodes have been written and recorded by the students, giving them the opportunity to work with real science journalists and editors to make their science concept come to life.