Wilson da Silva

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…

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…

It took courage to defy the certainties of life and his own faith: but Darwin did it because he knew he had found a greater truth. by Wilson da Silva IT’S ONE of the greatest stories in science: how an inquisitive 22 year-old sails around the world,…

A decade ago, when the first man to walk the Moon called for a new age of space exploration, it was inspiring but fanciful. That’s no longer the case. WHAT DO YOU ask a man who walked on the Moon, and has never been able to live it down? All…

By Wilson da Silva IT CAME SUDDENLY and without warning: on Thursday 18 February 2021, Australians woke up to find news stories gone from Facebook; not just links to Australian news, but news as a category. From anywhere. Links to news content were…

The lack of diversity in Australian newsrooms is not academic to me: it is lived experience. And for the first time, I’ve written about it. By Wilson da SilvaHOW’S DIVERSITY coming along in the Australian news media? Not so much. A study by the…

by Wilson da SilvaTHE FIRST HINT that a deadly disease outbreak had arrived in Seoul was the rolling coverage on the TV screen in the airport bus from Incheon International. I didn’t understand the Korean newscast, but could see from the coloured…

Wilson da Silva looks at some innovative ideas in energy storage. NOT ENOUGH, AND TOO much: that’s the core problem we face globally when it comes to energy and climate change. Demand for energy is booming: it’s forecast to rise 56% by 2040 from 2010…

I’m devastated for the pilots and the families of those involved in the Mojave tragedy. But I will still take my place as one of the first 100 to fly with Virgin Galactic.By Wilson da SilvaI WANT to walk on the Moon, kick up the fine dust and…

By Wilson da SilvaCOMMUNICATIONS Minister Malcolm Turnbull's legislation for a mandatory data retention scheme - which would allow companies to store customer records for two years - could be a boon for us all. Seriously.Don't remember when you…

Here’s what I think is going to happen over the next 50 years.By Wilson da SilvaANY DAY NOW, I will become a father. And like any new parent, and many people who are already parents, I find myself thinking more acutely about the future. Mostly, it’s…

Medical researchers overwhelmed by the profusion of diagnostic and scientific data may find that artificial intelligence and personalised medicine are a match made in heaven.By Wilson da SilvaDO YOU REMEMBER IBM’s Watson? It’s the computer cluster…

Hurricane Sandy did more than cripple New York and kill hundreds – it brought climate change out of the political closet, where some had thought it safely hidden away.By Wilson da Silva YOU’VE PROBABLY HEARD the ‘boiling frog’ anecdote, based on…

By Wilson da SilvaSPACE IS HIP AGAIN. Whether it's a Felix Baumgartner skydiving his way past the sound barrier – setting Twitter and YouTube on fire – or the space shuttle Endeavour pulling big crowds in the streets of Los Angeles, the final…

 When science meets parliament, you’d expect clashes in areas where political stances and rational evidence don’t intersect. But it’s a meeting of the minds that both sides enjoy – and they have one very important thing in common.By Wilson da…

Simply presenting people with evidence does not alter beliefs, especially those that are deeply held. But that doesn’t mean you have to tolerate quackery.By Wilson da SilvaFACTS DON’T WIN. Ideas are more powerful than facts, especially ideas that…

Are we approaching a tipping point in world history, when the power and pre-eminence of the West, which began with the Age of Enlightenment in the 1600s, is finally slipping away? Many experts think so.By Wilson da Silva AT THE UNIVERSITIES…

A solar superflare may come any day, bringing our modern, hyper-wired world to a standstill. We could easily take precautions to avoid this – so why aren’t we?By Wilson da SilvaIT’S NOW CLEAR that the solar storm of 1859 was the most powerful in…

Australia has unparalleled opportunity to leapfrog the painful boom-bust cycles by investing in our intellectual capital to ensure prosperity. But will we?By Wilson da Silva GOLD RUSHES can make a city: the feverish migration of fortune seekers…

There’s so much we can achieve, if we just put our minds to it.By Wilson da SilvaWHAT DO YOU ask a man who walked on the Moon 42 years ago, and has never been able to live it down? All because he happened to be the first human being to set foot on…