Our ability to manufacture minerals could transform the gem market, medical industries and even help suck carbon from the air

By Anita Parbhakar-Fox, Senior Research Fellow in Geometallurgy/Applied Geochemistry, The University of Queensland and Paul Gow, Principal Research Fellow, The University of Queensland Last month, scientists uncovered a mineral called Edscottite. Minerals are solid, naturally occurring substances that are not living, such as quartz or haematite. This new mineral was discovered after an examination of the…

Canberra-esque madness kills the SME-focused innovation patent system

Comment by Peter Roberts Parliament has passed legislation killing the low cost innovation patent system, bowing to arguments from the Productivity Commission. Legislation killing the patent was passed by the Senate last week and followed an essentially economically-focused review that lacked transparency. This is yet another victory in a long list of destructive wins by…