Wilson da Silva

At the dawn of the computer age, Australians developed a 2.5 tonne behemoth named CSIRAC — now recognised as one of the grandfathers of modern computers. By Wilson da Silva IN NOVEMBER 1949, CSIRO scientists in Sydney independently created what is…

Quantum computing has the potential to revolutionise the world — in things both small, and very large. By Wilson da Silva FEW PROBLEMS in transport engineering are as complex as managing a busy port. Take Fremantle Ports in Western Australia: it…

At the dawn of the computer age, Australia was among the world leaders, with a 2.5 tonne behemoth named CSIRAC that broke new ground. By Wilson da Silva IN NOVEMBER 1949, CSIRO scientists in Sydney independently created what is now recognised as only…

For innovation, overnight success is often decades in the making: a keystone of which almost always comes from basic science at universities. By Wilson da Silva JUST ABOUT EVERY technology that becomes a global success, triggering disruptive changes…

Universities are the hubs of transformative innovation, where every year, countless new ideas take flight. By Wilson da Silva THE LAST 50 YEARS have seen an explosion of technologies borne out of the complex interchange between basic university…

Australia has a front row seat in one of the hottest, most competitive frontiers of innovation: quantum computing. Unlike prior occasions, it may retain its lead this time. By Wilson da Silva FEW PROBLEMS in transport engineering are as complex as…

A confluence of government, academia and industry has emerged, determined that Australia does not miss out on quantum technologies. By Wilson da Silva AUSTRALIA’S BURGEONING quantum industry is booming, thanks to decades of investment in basic…

Previously unknown effect makes compact, ultra-fast control of spin qubits in quantum computers possible. By Wilson da Silva AUSTRALIAN ENGINEERS have discovered a new way of precisely controlling single electrons nestled in quantum dots that run…

Processed foods lack protein, so the body compensates by overeating, study shows. By Wilson da Silva A YEAR-LONG STUDY study of the dietary habits of 9,341 Australians has backed growing evidence that highly processed and refined foods are the…

Fewer links to frontal lobes than expected, but more links to visual networks. By Wilson da Silva THE MOST DETAILED map ever made of the communication links between the hippocampus — the brain’s memory control centre — and the rest of the human brain…

New technique developed by geoscientists can determine the health of coral reefs from space. By Wilson da Silva HOW HEALTHY are coral reefs? And how are they responding to climate change? After more than 10 years of monitoring the Great Barrier Reef,…

The Lord Howe Island wood-feeding cockroach — long thought extinct — has been rediscovered. By Wilson da Silva A LARGE WINGLESS wood-eating cockroach, unique to Australia’s Lord Howe Island and thought extinct since the 1930s, has been rediscovered…

The Milky Way is girdled by a gargantuan necropolis of ancient dead stars bigger than the galaxy itself. By Wilson da Silva BILLIONS OF black holes and neutron stars must have formed since our galaxy was born — but where they ended up is a mystery. A…

A puzzling image from the James Webb Space Telescope, which had astronomers stumped for months, has finally been explained. By Wilson da Silva A BIZARRE IMAGE of the distant star surrounded by concentric squarish ripples, captured by the James Webb…

A boom in the global space industry will eventually see people flying anywhere on Earth in less than an hour. And that’s just the beginning. By Wilson da Silva IN THE 1930s, the notion that, within decades, people would be flying to any point on the…

The search for extraterrestrial intelligence was begun 60 years ago by a young American astronomer named Frank Drake; he’s still confident extraterrestrials abound. LESS THAN A MONTH before turning 30, Frank Drake flipped a switch and started…

Robots are becoming increasingly useful. And they’re arriving just in time to save us from an ageing workforce, experts say. By Wilson da Silva RATHER THAN be worried that robots will take our jobs over the next 20 years, we should be more afraid…

We need to expand beyond Earth, but not abandon it — just stop relying on Earth as our only quarry and only site for factories. By Wilson da Silva FEEL ANGUISHED about the state of our planet? Care about the future of human civilisation? Then you…

Our brains are wired for collective delusions, but simple tools can combat these frailties. VISITING STONEHENGE is a magical experience: you can’t help but be influenced by its iconic status as one of the world’s most recognisable ancient monuments.…

Our brains are wired for collective delusions, and false beliefs can arise spontaneously. But simple tools can combat these frailties. By Wilson da Silva VISITING STONEHENGE is a magical experience: you can’t help but be influenced by its iconic…