BLab Coats

In December 2019, India’s parliament passed the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) which provides citizenship to immigrants from religious minorities from Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan. While the CAA provides sanctuary to people from various religious minorities, it systematically excludes Muslims from the legislation. India’s government does not consider Muslims a persecuted community as all three countries are Muslim majority nations.

The implementation of the CAA has divided India with widespread protests nationally and has also sparked an international debate on India’s position as a secular state. Critics have highlighted that the CAA is a strategic agenda of a Hindu nationalist government that threatens to turn India into a majoritarian state. We spoke to Dr Malini Sur from the Institute for Culture and Society at Western Sydney University who sheds light on the CAA and its consequences for India and its position in the world. Dr Sur is anthropologist who has conducted extensive research on India’s borderlands, issues of environment, mobility and politics. She has also recently published an article on how the CAA will “un-make” India which is available here: https://thewire.in/communalism/citizenship-amendment-act-trust-religion-india

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As of February 13th, the Corona virus has infected more than 60 000 and has killed over 1300 people. In this episode we talk to Associate Professor Adam Kamradt-Scott to understand: What is the Corona virus? How is it spreading so fast? Is it as deadly as it is being reported to be? What can we do to stay safe?

Apostasy in Islam is described as the conscious abandonment of faith in Islam by a Muslim in word or through deed. More than 20 Muslim-majority states of the world declare apostasy by Muslims to be a crime with some treating it as a capital offence. While several studies have revealed that Atheism is rising across the world, Ex-Muslims are perhaps one of the most ostracised groups within this changing global landscape on religion.

This episode sheds light on the Ex-Muslim position, particularly Ex-Muslim women and how they navigate the fear, shame and stigma attached to apostasy in Islam. Zara Kay, an Ex-Muslim activist and founder of an online story-telling platform: Faithless Hijabi, speaks to us about the Ex-Muslim movement and the complex gendered aspects of leaving Islam.

Faithless Hijabi Website: https://www.faithlesshijabi.org/

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We attended research week at Western Sydney University and presented a live podcast from the Research Impact Competition. We also talked with undergrads excited about a future in research and Masters students who are about to begin a 30 thousand word thesis.

In this episode we explore what it's like to be a researcher and some of the paths open to become a researcher.

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This is a video podcast, you can access it here: https://youtu.be/xD1d2fAPIww

Recently we were invited to ResBaz. ResBaz is a conference and festival that brings researchers from different fields together to up-skill in next generation digital tools. We had learnt a lot and had fun hanging out at UNSW ResBaz.

If you weren't at this years event, you should definitely make it next year!

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Recently, KFC in the UK released a plant-based chicken replacement, they called it the Imposter Burger. Not to be left out, Burger King have just released the Impossible Whopper, a Whopper with a plant-based burger patty that bleeds heme like a beef burger. Subway are also introducing a plant-based alternative to the meatball sub, and Oporto in Australia is trialling a vegan burger.

What’s behind all these new products? Is veganism driving capitalism, or is capitalism driving veganism? In this episode we explore these issues and ask the question, can capitalism drive social change?

Here’s a link to write a letter to your favourite junk food merchant :). If you take some extra time to personalise the letter to the company or staff it will have more impact.

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1mHFKr4yu851kMTxc-qilWrDpOEpuxht7l73wS4VFS0A/edit?usp=sharing

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Pain from endometriosis is said to be worse than giving birth. 1 in 10 women suffer from this condition, but few are aware. In this episode we learn about what makes endo so painful, why most people aren't aware of this condition, and what we can do to help those who are suffering.

Dr Mike Armour Email: [email protected]

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We recently were invited to perform at Splendour in the Grass, Australia's biggest music festival, in Byron Bay. We had to show the difference in scale between the cell nucleus and the DNA that is packed inside it. We also extracted DNA from 30kg of strawberries. Listen to this episode to hear how we did it.

To watch this episode https://youtu.be/aLdZHNHb_H4

To contact Yinghua about her research, [email protected] or 0402 528 006

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Vaccine skeptics are typically vilified. People resort to mocking them and not actually engage in a conversation. In this episode we explore reasons why some people think vaccines are dangerous, and why we should engage with these people.

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