AQ 96.1 - New Jan-Mar 2024 Edition - Out January 1st

The lesson of the US isn’t simply that money buys elections – it’s that a 2-party system is an inexorable race to the bottom.

Not to mention that, any legislation that Labor and the Liberals agree on that noticeably diminish their potential electoral war-chests, needs to be considered through the lens of self-interest. This is a fig-leaf of concern for the integrity of the Australian electoral process, attempting to mask their denial of their falling primary vote because they are unable to meaningfully engage with the structural issues facing Australians.

Overlay these dynamics with vastly powerful new technologies emerging largely unregulated, the continuing concentration of media interests setting the national narrative, turbulent geopolitical winds on the horizon, a government frantically peddling to achieve as little as possible so as not to rock the boat, we are set for our own panic-inducing election campaign of our own.

All this and more in the new edition of AQ!

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We See You: AI Facial Recognition Software and your Privacy

Imagine walking your dog. AI-enabled cameras in the park scan your face and identify who you are, who you associate with, and whether you have a HECS debt. At a protest, police software identifies everyone in the crowd, logging where they work and where they live, building case files on your activities. This might sound dystopian but already facial recognition software is being used on Australians without their knowledge. What are our rights to privacy, or has that ship already sailed?

Niusha Shafiabady

Mouth Matters (or does it?)

In 2024, it is estimated that the world will spend almost a trillion dollars (AUD) on the beauty and cosmetic industry. If we spent half as much money on preventing disease as we do on trying to prevent ageing, then our communities would be healthier, happier, and better off financially – oral health is the perfect example. So much of our health starts in our mouths, and not investing in prevention can be fatal.

Margie Steffens OAM

Investing in the Future: Kids and the Neuroscience of Pain

New research shows that 20.8% of children are challenged by chronic pain – resulting in these children missing ~22% of school days. In addition it often lead to long-term physical, emotional, and social issues. Yet this doesn’t have to be the case! By raising awareness, empathy, and arming kids with a language to describe their pain we can dramatically change children’s experience and outcomes of pain.

Joshua W Pate

Subsidising Destruction: The Wasteful Logging of Native Forests in Australia

The World Economic Forum recently argued that approximately 50% of the world's economy is at risk from ecosystem changes such as biodiversity loss. Yet states such as Tasmania, New South Wales and Victoria have for decades subsidised native forest logging despite massive losses. In Tasmania alone, the state government has lost more than $1.3 billion since 1997. The economics of these subsides are broken, the industry is declining – and if done properly smart policy can kill this dying industry, transition workers with little financial cost, and ultimately create net jobs. So why not? 

Bruce Chapman, David Lindenmayer AO, and John Mitchell

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