Media Releases

Torture and the responsibility of lawyers in the spotlight at Melbourne Law School
Professor Philippe Sands QC will lay out the story behind the human-rights abuses sanctioned by the most senior lawyers in the Bush Administration and the terrible consequences of their actions in a lecture at Melbourne Law School on Thursday, August 21.

Melbourne University vets say don’t kill your pets with kindness, choose safe toys
Dogs love to play, whether it’s chasing sticks and balls or wrestling on the floor with squeaky toys but, as Zoran Zovankic learnt the hard way, playing can prove dangerous – even deadly – unless owners ensure their pet is using suitable toys.

The original ‘information revolution’ – Pratt Oration to explore the printing press, the book and the Jewish world
The invention of the printing press around 1439 transformed Jewish education, broke down regional barriers between communities, challenged rabbis to deal with an information explosion, and changed Jewish-Christian relations. This profound change to the way the Jewish world communicated is the subject of the University of Melbourne’s 2008 Pratt Oration* this Thursday 14 August.

White Collar Crime, Smarter Schools, Water Saving Technology, Climate Change, Food Costs and Problem Gambling – University of Melbourne releases Research Review ‘08
The University of Melbourne has released its pinnacle publication of research stories - Research Review 2008.

University of Melbourne welcomes Victoria’s Innovation statement
The University of Melbourne has welcomed the Victorian Government’s strong support for science and innovation outlined in today’s Innovation Statement, Innovation: Victoria’s Future, launched by Premier John Brumby.

Melbourne jumps six spots in world university rankings
The University of Melbourne has leapt six places to No 73 in the authoritative Shanghai Jiao Tong University (SJTU) Academic Rankings of World Universities 2008, according to the ARWU website http://www.arwu.org/rank2008/en2008.htm. The University was in 79th spot in 2007.

Essendon’s Beverly Knight to describe her life in football in free lecture at Melbourne Uni
Beverly Knight, the first woman ever elected to an AFL Board, will describe her life in football in the first in a new lecture series on ‘Cultural Difference in Sport’ tomorrow, Wednesday 6 August, at 6.30pm in the Elisabeth Murdoch Theatre, University of Melbourne.

University of Melbourne Vet Clinic offers free dental check for pets
To celebrate pet dental month, pets are being offered a free dental check as part of their consultation throughout the month of August at the University of Melbourne’s Veterinary Clinic and Hospital based in Werribee.

Dr Who? UFO study earns University of Melbourne researcher a PhD
A researcher who investigated the mysterious world of UFO sightings, ufology and ufologists will be awarded a PhD at the University of Melbourne this week.

Climate change expert David Karoly to give first Vice-Chancellor’s Research Lecture
University of Melbourne climate change expert, Professor David Karoly will examine how climate change brought on by human activities has affected plants and animals when he gives the first of the Vice-Chancellor’s Research Lecture Series.

Learn from Australian experience on cartel law, say competition law experts
The University of Melbourne’s Brent Fisse and Caron Beaton-Wells, leading commentators on the regulation of business cartels in Australia, will be urging the New Zealand Government and Commerce Commission not to repeat the problems in Australia’s model for identifying and prosecuting business cartel behaviour.

Fangs for the memories: new study reveals evolution of snake fangs and venom
Researchers have revealed a new model of snake evolution to explain how fangs specialized from early teeth to introduce venom into prey or attackers; their new weaponry may have enabled the massive expansion of snake species across all continents (except Antarctica) approximately 60 million years ago.

Transport infrastructure and governance under the spotlight at public forum
The University of Melbourne’s Centre for the Governance and Management of Urban Transport (GAMUT) will explore the key issues relating to Australia’s transport infrastructure and related governance at a free public forum on Friday.

The Future of Cities: world urban planning expert to give free public lecture at University of Melbourne
One of the world’s foremost experts on urban and environmental planning, Cassio Taniguchi, will give a free public lecture on ‘The Future of Cities’ at the University of Melbourne on July 29.

Funding and economic policy key to tertiary education future
At a time of major review in the tertiary education sector, Australia’s education leaders, policy makers and thinkers will discuss what the country needs from its tertiary institutions, now and in the future, in a seminar series at the University of Melbourne.

Don’t blame fast food, obesity is in the genes, or is it?
Experts gather to debate how to treat and understand obesity at the University of Melbourne public lecture

Melbourne School of Design officially ‘open for business’
The University of Melbourne’s Faculty of Architecture Building and Planning will officially open its new graduate school, the Melbourne School of Design, on Monday July 28, the first day of teaching of Semester Two.

Big Brother versus a fair go: is workplace surveillance coercive or does it guarantee our rights at work?
Professor Graham Sewell from the University of Melbourne will host a free public lecture on Tuesday, July 29 on the issue of whether workplace surveillance is a guarantor of fairness.

No sex please, we’re insect pests
A new study has found that agricultural environments drive insects to reproduce without sex - a trait that is uncommon in most of the animal kingdom - but may provide methods for controlling their damaging effects.

Melbourne vet students partake in Australia’s first White Coat Ceremony
A group of third-year veterinary students from the Faculty of Veterinary Science at the University of Melbourne made history on Sunday 20 July, as they took part in Australia’s first White Coat Ceremony, an important step in becoming a qualified veterinarian.