Life Matters

Recent research from Monash University found up to one in five new paramedics are at high risk of shift work disorder, a mix of insomnia and daytime sleepiness linked to on-the-job errors. Researcher Laura Hirello and sleep psychologist Sara Winter explore what it would take to make shift work safer for both health care workers and the patients they care for.

Californian start-up Reflect Orbital wants to launch giant orbital mirrors that beam sunlight back to Earth on demand, powering solar farms after dark or lighting up search-and-rescue missions. Space archaeologist Alice Gorman explains what manufactured sunlight could do to people, wildlife, and space itself.

Real estate agents have always found creative ways to gloss over the unappealing features of a property, but AI has taken things to a new level. NSW has introduced laws forcing agents to disclose when images have been digitally altered, but does a disclaimer make it any easier for prospective clients to see what they're actually getting? 

NSW is the first Australian state to legalise terramation, also known as human composting. Cultural anthropologist Hannah Gould and Aria Kapaniris, who runs a company providing the service, explore whether eco-burial is about to shake up a centuries-old industry.

From the mighty Swan in the west, to the Brown Snake in the east, rivers have long been the lifeblood of our communities. But after years of industrialisation, the idea of going for a dip in your city river is probably a distant memory. Melbourne's bringing it back, working on a plan to make the Yarra River swimmable by 2050. 

As Australia nears a year under its world-first social media ban, new research has found kids still aren’t equipped to question what they see online. Researcher Susan Grantham and Digital Readiness Lab founder Rinat Strahlhofer explain what it actually takes to raise sceptical, savvy young minds.

Australian men are more likely to be more socially disconnected than Australian women, and are less likely to form strong connections with people beyond their partners. So what's going on? Sociologist Roger Patulny and psychologist Chris Cheers break down the male friendship recession — and how you can turn it around. 

This week, Aunties Kat Feeney and Suren Jayemanne give listener Lenny some advice on how to deal with a fibbing friend. Marcus has been telling tall tales since they were kids, but now they're middle aged, is it time for Lenny to call out his friend's white lies? 

A new Everybody’s Home survey of more than 1,100 Australians has found most households could not absorb a $20-per-week rise in rent or mortgage repayments without cutting back, and one in four fear becoming homeless within the year. Everybody's Home spokesperson Maiy Azize joins researcher Shaun Bond to discuss the changes that could go some way to helping those on the brink. 

With more than 400 accredited visitor information centres around the country seeing fewer visitors through the door, councils from Sunbury to the Adelaide Hills are closing them in favour of going digital. Albury City service leader Ambrose Glass, accreditation program manager Wayne Clift and volunteer Wendy Cutting explore what’s lost when the local information booth disappears.

After the attack on MP Helen Haines reignited calls to turn down the heat of political debate, resident Life Matters ethicist Patrick Stokes explores what centuries-old philosophy can teach us about disagreeing well, without the comment-section shouting match.

Hitchhiking used to be an Australian rite of passage, until cases like the Milat backpacker murders made it feel unthinkable. But some people still swear by the spontaneous connection and adventure it brings. Aston Brown shares what he learned hitchhiking from Sydney to Perth. 

It's estimated more than 5 million Australians have grown up as the sibling of someone with a disability or chronic illness, quietly becoming the "easy kid" who doesn’t need extra attention. Churchill Fellow Sam Hellams has just returned from researching how we can better support these so-called "glass children". 

From Eastern Rosella ear-jams to NRL players revealing their inner twitcher, birds have quietly taken over the zeitgeist. Conservation biologist Chritina Zdenek and Aussie Bird Count ambassador Cesar Peuchmarin explore why our love for birds runs so deep, and what 20 minutes of counting can actually do.

Last night, independent MP Helen Haines was the victim of an attack that has left her hospitalised in a critical condition, and Prime Minister Anthony Albanese described the incident as "a deliberate act". Although we don't yet know the motivation of the attack, the Prime Minister has called for every Australian to turn down the heat of our political discourse. Today, politicians from across the aisle have echoed the same sentiment. Hannah Ferguson and Ed Coper unpack whether it's possible to put this genie back in the bottle. 

Everyday adventurer Beau Miles wants to challenge the way we view adventure — not as a huge, risky undertaking months in the making, but something you can squeeze into regular life. What advice does he have for bringing a little more adventure to your everyday life?

In Head and Heart, psychologist Christine Bagley-Jones asks when your teenagers HSC stress feels contagious, how can you guard the household from catching it? 

An estimated 2.43 million Australians between the ages of 35 and 70 are caring for a parent at least once a week, while juggling the day-to-day demands of life. While the sandwich generation is a sizeable group, almost half of them don't identify as a carer themselves. Advocate Melissa Reader and researcher Michelle O'Shea explain why the way we define caring is so important in providing the right kind of support.

As year 12 students across the country prepare for their HSC exams, the number sitting to complete senior level drama is dwindling. Since 2015, senior drama enrolments have fallen by 43 per cent. Drama Australia president Jo Raphael and researcher John Nicholas Saunders explore why it matters — and not just for the creative industry.

From today, the first genetically modified whole food to be grown and sold in Australia will start hitting shelves in Victoria. The industry regulator's latest consumer survey suggests about half of us are open to the idea of genetically modified foods. So will the purple tomato shift the mood? 

From your beloved family dog to a bollard-bashing elephant seal, all creatures IRL and online can be man's best friend. But for all the beauty that relationship can bring it's not without its downsides or risk. So how can you invite animals into your life in a way that is beneficial for you, and them?

This week, the Aunties scale dilemma mountain with listener Anton, who's unsure about sharing his favourite hobby with the kid next door. 

Since Dr Spock in the 1940s, parenting "experts" have had us convinced we're all one wrong move away from ruining our kids. Richard Glover's latest book digs into generations of parenting advice to ask what we actually need to worry about, and what we can finally let go of. He joins Maggie Dent to share the wisdom worth paying attention to.

A hot-pink shower chair has just scooped a Good Design Award for ditching the usual beige, boring look of mobility aids. So why have walking frames, wheelchairs and other accessibility products traditionally been so joyless? And could we find a way to design these items with function, aesthetics and affordability in mind?

In step with France's deep history of protest, students across the nation have been marching in the street for weeks, demanding better quality education. Closer to home, strikes and walkouts seem to be popping up more than ever. So how does that sense of identity form, and where does Australia actually sit on protest culture?

From the milk in your coffee to the phone in your pocket, so many things we use every day come off the back of a truck. But Australia is short around 28,000 truck drivers, and that number is forecast to grow. A new report from UNSW suggests women are an untapped talent pool. Researcher Catherine Deen and truck driver Kathy Graham discuss how to get more women behind the wheel. 

South Australian restaurants are about to find out if they've cracked the coveted Michelin Guide for the first time. But with New Zealand reportedly paying $6.3 million for the honour, is chasing those is actually worth it? Food and travel writer Ben Groundwater joins Adelaide-based chef Duncan Welgemoed to chew the fat.

We spend around 2,000 hours a year hunched at a screen, and it's leaving plenty of us with what's now been dubbed "tech neck". This Working Life host Lisa Leong explains what you can do to protect yourself at the desk.