Contact magazine

Contact magazine

You might have even seen eyebrow-raising headlines about just how much plastic we consume, including a popular claim that the average person now consumes a credit card worth of plastic each week. But is there any truth to it?
  • This year’s Oscars ceremony will take place on Sunday 10 March and, since almost every individual on the planet has now seen Barbie and Oppenheimer, film critic and UQ alum Matt Toomey thought he would recommend a few of the lesser-known titles that are equally worthy of your attention.
  • A team of scientists on location with a film crew in the remote Amazon has uncovered a previously undocumented species of giant anaconda.
  • Western Australia has introduced a limit on ham in school canteens. Find out what has changed and the evidence it’s based on, plus what are some healthier alternatives for kids’ lunches?
  • We're back with another edition of Love at UQ. From bench seats in Forgan Smith, to years spent on Heron Island, join us as we celebrate the special bonds that university life creates.
  • Emma Johnson was in the global top 0.5% of Taylor Swift’s listeners in 2023. 'Contact' asked the UQ alum to explain the level of unbridled dedication and devotion Swifties have for the pop icon, why the Era’s Tour means everything, and why being a ‘Swiftie’ will never go out of style.
  • On an average day, you’ll find Ellie Sursara outdoors. Planting native trees, trying to attract more blue banded bees to her garden, or playing ‘frogmum’ to a Tawny Frogmouth bird. It’s part of everyday life for the keen environmentalist, who shares these moments with her community of more than 115,000 followers on social media.
  • Have you ever wondered why some people are mosquito magnets, while others go unbitten? Is it your blood type, or are they attracted to the food and drinks you consume? We spoke to a UQ mosquito expert to find out.
  • UQ Vice-Chancellor Professor Deborah Terry and leading criminologist and educator Professor Lorraine Mazerolle are among the UQ community recognised with 2024 Australia Day Honours.
  • UQ Cricket Club players will get to follow in their heroes’ footsteps this year when the club embarks on a tour of India – its first international tour in 3 decades.

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  • Almost every aspect of our lives depends on nature, yet some of us are much more “into” spending time in nature than others. To try to understand why, researchers studied how much of our connection to nature might depend on our DNA.
  • Cases of the SARS-CoV-2 variant Omicron have escalated globally over the past two months, with many countries experiencing peaks higher than previous variants. Now we’re seeing cases of a sub-variant of Omicron, known as BA.2, emerge.
  • After saving millions lives around the world from cervical cancer, the UQ inventors of the HPV vaccine are investing in the next generation of researchers to fuel future discoveries.
  • Listen to the most engaging and inspiring stories from across the UQ community while you're on the go.
  • The UQ lecturer who grew up in a safe house for Chile's most-wanted political fugitives, and the graphic novel her life inspired.
  • UQ disability rights legal academic and 2022 Blind Australian of the Year, Associate Professor Paul Harpur, explains why universities are in a unique position to create meaningful change when it comes to disability inclusion in the workplace.
  • After almost two years of snap lockdowns, travel bans and restricted freedoms, Australia is meeting the vaccination levels required to finally begin living with the COVID-19 virus. But now one burning question consumes people’s minds: what does ‘living with the virus’ actually mean, and just how ‘free’ will we be in the future?
  • There's a resurgence of the great Australian road trip, but it's a new generation of happy campers who are hitting the highway. Contact speaks to the UQ experts about the latest off-track travel trend.
  • How four dictionaries and two grammars of traditional Indigenous languages were co-compiled.

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About Contact magazine

Contact magazine is your pocket guide to navigating our changing world. Landing in email inboxes monthly, with added special editions covering timely topics, our features keep you informed and entertained. Contact brings together the best insights from UQ’s alumni, researchers and community, connecting our global network of ChangeMakers through storytelling.