Thomas Crow
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Freelance science writer and research comms in Oz and NZ. He/him.
Articles by Thomas Crow
Does Project Hail Mary find the limits of life?
A scientist wakes up orbiting an alien star 12 light-years from Earth. His crew is dead and his memories are gone. This is how Andy Weir’s book-turned-movie Project Hail Mary begins. We soon learn that the scientist, Ryland Grace, is on a mission to save Earth from a Sun-eating microbe called the astrophage. The (fictional) astrophage baffles scientists by breaking all of life’s known limits. But what are these limits and can they be broken?
The Earth is rearranging history
Credit: Archaeometry (2025). DOI: 10.1111/arcm.70017 Deep below the surface of Murujuga, soil expands and contracts from the passage of water. Each wetting cycle is like a sodden breath from lungs holding fragments of stone and shell. Stone artifacts from millennia of Aboriginal life are pushed up slowly, maybe only a few millimeters each decade. In one final gasp, they break the surface, a thousand-year-old knife lying on the surface, as if dropped yesterday.
The Earth is Rearranging History
Deep below the surface of Murujuga, soil expands and contracts from the passage of water. Each wetting cycle is like a sodden breath from lungs holding fragments of stone and shell. Stone artefacts from millennia of Aboriginal life are pushed up slowly, maybe only a few millimetres each decade. In one final gasp, they break the surface. A thousand-year-old knife lying on the surface, as if dropped yesterday.
Coding | Particle
Coding is used everywhere. Every science fan can benefit from learning how to code, and it’s easy to get started. Coding is simply communicating with a computer. You do this by learning coding languages designed to give instructions to computers. Some of the most cutting-edge science uses coding, like the new ‘Google for DNA’ Metagraph. Code builds video games like Roblox and even the Particle website! A computer uses binary language.
Graphene shows how WA can diversify its economy
Western Australia extracts an abundance of wealth from its ground. Iron ore, gold and nickel have made WA rich, but we need to invest that money in our future. One materials technology company is paving the way. First Graphene manufactures graphene in Henderson. It also holds research offices in Manchester, where graphene was discovered 21 years ago. Graphene is a carbon crystal structure. Carbon atoms bond into a honeycomb structure one atom thick.
Particle 101: The Expansion of the Universe
In 1924, Swedish astronomer Knut Lundmark found evidence that the universe was expanding. This moment transformed how humanity understood the universe. Understanding the evidence of expansion starts with the Doppler effect. It describes how waves change when moving. Put a lamp on a rocket and watch it fly away. As it accelerates away from you, the lamp’s light will become redder. Galaxies undergo a Doppler effect called redshift.
Ontology: when philosophy meets science
A complex web of information exists in science and medicine. To untangle the web, scientists must explain this information to computers. How do they do this and ensure the information represents everyone? Ontologies may hold the answer. In philosophy, ontology is the study of reality and existence. When philosophers such as Descartes and Plato wrote on gods, the universe and life, they were proposing their ontologies. In science, an ontology is a library of descriptions.
Science communication is a conversation, not a script
On 23 January 2020, reports became reality as the first COVID-19 case was detected in Australia. It was a grim foreshadowing of further disaster for a nation experiencing its most intense and catastrophic bushfire season, known as the Black Summer. The COVID-19 years transformed how science was talked about in Australia. Australia's ideas of science changed from "business as usual" to medical skepticism and AI uncertainty.
Science communication is a conversation, not a script
Top 5 MMA fighters from New Zealand ranked including Carlos Ulberg and ‘The Hangman’ Set us as your preferred source For a country that is so small, New Zealand has produced well above its fair share of top MMA fighters who have graced …
Science communication is a conversation, not a script
On 23 January 2020, reports became reality as the first COVID-19 case was detected in Australia. It was a grim foreshadowing of further disaster for a nation experiencing its most intense and catastrophic bushfire season, known as the Black Summer. The COVID-19 years transformed how science was talked about in Australia. Australia’s ideas of science changed from ‘business as usual’ to medical scepticism and AI uncertainty.
Solid-state batteries are big news at the moment: What are they and why are people so excited?
Bog-standard batteries consist of electrochemical cells sandwiched together. A single electrochemical cell may have a positive plate (cathode), a negative plate (anode) and an electrolyte. Many car batteries are lead-acid batteries. This means the positive plate is a lead oxide, the negative plate is pure lead and the electrolyte is a mixture of sulfuric acid and water.
Particle 101: Solid state batteries
Bog-standard batteries consist of electrochemical cells sandwiched together. A single electrochemical cell may have a positive plate (cathode), a negative plate (anode) and an electrolyte. Many car batteries are lead-acid batteries. This means the positive plate is a lead oxide, the negative plate is pure lead and the electrolyte is a mixture of sulfuric acid and water.
Zinc-air batteries show commercial promise
Our electronic world is full of batteries, and WA's renewable future may rely on them too. And with great reliance there comes a need for great quality. So how do we make batteries better? Researchers from the Edith Cowan University may just have the answer—in the form of a new zinc-air battery. It's cheap, safe and sustainable. Zincredible comeback Currently, lithium-ion batteries are the most common battery type powering our devices. They took over from the older zinc batteries during the 1990s.
Powering the Future – Tech News | Particle
Our electronic world is full of batteries, and WA’s renewable future may rely on them too. And with great reliance there comes a need for great quality. So how do we make batteries better? Researchers from the Edith Cowan University may just have the answer – in the form of a new zinc-air battery. It’s cheap, safe and sustainable. ZINCREDIBLE COMEBACK Currently, lithium-ion batteries are the most common battery type powering our devices. They took over from the older zinc batteries during the 1990s.
New gene discovery gives hope to MS fight – Health News | Particle
Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a chronic disease of the central nervous system. The body attacks a nerve coating called myelin that protects the nervous system. Symptoms include vision impairment, sensory symptoms, dizziness, memory and psychological problems, pain, tingling and tremors, among others. In 2021, there were over 33,335 Australians living with MS – a 30% increase since 2017. There is no single known cause for MS or a cure.
Particle 101: Batteries – Tech News | Particle
Batteries are a big deal for our electronic era and our renewable future. Australia’s investing tens of millions in battery technology. The aim? Discovering safer and better batteries. But what exactly makes a ‘battery’ and how do they work? Spoiler, there’s a lot of chemistry involved. GO WITH THE FLOW Batteries have a few basic components: Two electrodes: The positively charged ‘anode’ and the negatively charged ‘cathode’.
According to the algorithm, it's a heart attack – Health News | Particle
Researchers from ECU and UWA were part of an international collaboration that has developed an artificial intelligence program that acts as an early warning sign for heart disease. How? Each day, it checks for calcium build-up in your aorta by scanning 60,000 images from bone density machines. The aorta is the main blood vessel that pumps oxygen-rich blood from the heart to the body. Calcium and reduce blood flow to your organs, causing health problems later in life.
How artificial intelligence is transforming WA – Tech News | Particle
Well, a lot. But before we get to that, what does AI mean? AI is a machine’s ability to process information. Machine learning is the process of training an AI machine. HOW DOES IT WORK? “Both humans and AI essentially interpret data based on what they have learned from experience,” says Dr Naveed Akhtar, a senior lecturer of machine learning, AI and data sciecne at the University of Western Australia. Naveed is also a Senior Research Fellow with the Australian Office of National Intelligence.
Did the 'devil's element' kickstart complex life? – Space News | Particle
Phosphorus is . to build DNA and store energy. But phosphorus is rare. It only makes up that constitute most of the Earth’s crust. In fact, its rarity means phosphorus is at the centre of a cycle that regulates how much ocean life can grow. Phosphorus might even have created a bottleneck in the evolution of life, according to a team of Western Australian scientists. Go with the flow Phosphorus has a huge influence on how much life can grow in the ocean.
Space makes astronauts blind, but we can see how – Tech News | Particle
“You then put a pressure sensor in the hole.” It’s as unpleasant as it sounds. But Danail and researchers at the Lions Eye Institute in WA have found an indirect way to measure brain fluid pressure by using imaging techniques for mapping space on the eye. The group designed a lab in a box that points a camera at the inside of the eye. By filming blood vessels, they can calculate the pressure acting on the eye. The camera uses light to monitor blood flow within the veins of the retina.
Unravelling an extragalactic enigma – Space News | Particle
Fast radio bursts (FRBs) are one of the biggest unsolved mysteries in astronomy. Astronomers categorise them as intense bursts of radio waves that last for milliseconds. Through a radio telescope, they look a bit like pulses from super-dense and energetic stars called pulsars. Theories about their origins range from alien spacecraft to cosmic strings. Currently, the most widely accepted theories use observable evidence about the galaxy they come from.
Preventing a deadly virus via passive immunisation – Health News | Particle
“This is called passive immunisation.” FUSION CONFUSION The vaccine doesn’t have a commercial name yet. It’s currently referred to as the RSVpreF vaccine. The name describes how the vaccine training the body to target the fusion protein on RSV particles. ICYMI, fusion proteins allow the virus to fuse with the membrane of human cells. But the same protein that allows the virus to infect human cells also becomes its greatest weakness. How?
PARTICLE 101: SOLAR ECLIPSES – Space News | Particle
An eclipse is an incredible natural phenomenon to witness (). It also offers scientists a chance to study the structure and activity of the Sun’s corona – a jacket of super-hot gases that surround the fiery planet. The magnetic fields that influence the behaviour of these gases can cause solar flares and solar winds. These events can mess up communications equipment and satellites, so it’s valuable to measure the corona to predict when they may occur. WHAT IS A SOLAR ECLIPSE?
Understanding ancient Antarctica via octopus genes – Environment News | Particle
In March 2022, a floating ice shelf in East Antarctica the size of Rome totally disintegrated in 2 weeks. Events like this contribute to rising sea levels. Between 1979 and 2017, the Antarctic Ice Sheet lost an average of 31 gigatonnes of ice per year. Main culprit? Warmer, deep salty water eroding its glaciers. For scale, 1 gigatonne of water . THE OCTOPUS GENES HAVE IT The West Antarctic Ice Sheet (WAIS) contains . Its complete collapse would raise sea levels by at least 3.2 metres.
Particle 101: How do plants grow? – Environment News | Particle
Let’s talk about the green machines that rule the world – plants! Over is made up of plants. From tiny mosses to towering trees, plants come in all shapes and sizes. But have you ever wondered how they know what form to take? Like animals, plants begin life as a single cell – the smallest living particle. Once the first cell divides, it kickstarts the plant’s growth. ZYGOTTA BE KIDDING ME All plants start from a single cell called a zygote.
How climate change messes with microbes – Earth News | Particle
Now and then: How climate change messes with microbes During the early Eocene period of Earth’s history, the climate changed. Despite taking centuries to occur, it’s considered a fast event. And it triggered massive ecosystem changes. Kenny Travouillon is the Curator of Mammalogy at the WA Museum. “The early Eocene is roughly 10 million years after the dinosaurs went extinct,” says Kenny.
Living inside a cannibal – Space News | Particle
Galaxies don’t just hang around, motionless in space. They rotate around their dense cores and attract nearby galaxies . Sometimes these galaxies get so close they collide. Galactic cannibalism is a version of this collision where the bigger galaxy absorbs the smaller one. When cannibals collide Around 25% of the galaxies within the observable universe are merging with each other. In fact, the Milky Way ripped its five most distant stars from another galaxy during an ancient merger event.
Harnessing the brain's ability to self-heal – Health News | Particle
Harnessing the brain’s ability to self-heal About 200 years ago, a railway foreman named had a very bad day. While clearing up large rocks with the aid of explosives, misfortune struck and a 6kg metal rod, known as a tamping iron, shot up at Phineas and went straight through his head. Miraculously, Phineas survived the event. However, it’s alleged that his personality changed drastically. To make his story even more incredible, this sudden change in personality only lasted a few years.
Poo-dunnit? A 300-million-year-old mystery – Earth News | Particle
The Carboniferous era spanned 359–200 million years ago. Its name comes from the large deposits of coal that formed during this time. It was the era of the first amphibians, two metre-long millipedes and massive dragonflies. The Western Australian Organic and Isotope Geochemistry Centre (WA-OIG) analysed the fossils’ molecular make-up. “What we do is use the molecules that are preserved in rock to study fossils,” says Madison Tripp, a chemistry researcher at the WA-OIG.
Martian rock winds back the clock
Almost 10 million years ago, a meteorite crashed into Earth. Hidden inside were 23 microscopic grains which tell the story of how Mars evolved. Using one of WA's most powerful supercomputers, astronomers have now uncovered the meteorite's life story. A chemical clock Around 5–10 million years ago, a meteorite containing zircon crashed into Africa. When scientists discovered it in 2011, they named it NWA 7034. It was also nicknamed Black Beauty because of its color. The meteorite contained .
Martian rock winds back the clock
Almost 10 million years ago, a meteorite crashed into Earth. Hidden inside were 23 microscopic grains which tell the story of how Mars evolved. Using one of WA’s most powerful supercomputers, astronomers have now uncovered the meteorite’s life story. A CHEMICAL CLOCK Around 5–10 million years ago, a meteorite containing zircon crashed into Africa. When scientists discovered it in 2011, they named it NWA 7034. It was also nicknamed Black Beauty because of its colour. The meteorite contained .
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The dark side of LEDs: Suppression of melatonin by blue light
You may have heard that exposure to blue light can disrupt your sleep. As it turns, out it's also harmful to wildlife. At an inner-city university, mobs of wallabies are helping researchers understand how artificial light affects nocturnal marsupials. La Trobe University graduate researcher Alicia Dimovski is studying how exposure to light affects tammar wallabies. In one enclosure, they were exposed to light-emitting diodes (aka LEDs).
The dark side of LEDs
The dark side of LEDs At an inner-city university, mobs of wallabies are helping researchers understand how artificial light affects nocturnal marsupials. La Trobe University graduate researcher Alicia Dimovski is studying how exposure to light affects tammar wallabies. In one enclosure, they were exposed to light-emitting diodes (aka LEDs). A second enclosure had blue-shielded LEDs much like the ‘night mode’ setting on your phone or laptop.
The tiny killer in your gut – Health News | Particle
While some governments are trying to remove cephalosporins from livestock medicine, the damage has been done. Most strains of C. diff . “C. difficile is listed in the [United States Centre for Disease Control] top five urgent threats to public health,” Tom says. “Australians haven’t quite woken up to that fact yet.” So what can we do? STOPPING THE SPREAD Recent data suggests that fewer Australian GPs are prescribing broad-spectrum antibiotics.
The mission to make longer-lasting space drugs Original
How do we make medicine last the extreme conditions of space exploration? How would you manage a headache while flying to Mars? You might try the Earth remedy of taking a painkiller. But on a 2-year round trip, how long would they last? And could you trust them? Martian migraine Access to medical supplies is a major concern for astronauts. Sleep issues, pain, congestion and allergies are all common complaints from those on extra-terrestrial missions.
The mission to make longer-lasting space drugs – Health News | Particle
Volker says the chemical structure of two of these additives might explain why they help ibuprofen last longer in space. “They basically make radical function groups non-reactive … Each of the three flavours has a different mechanism to do this,” says Volker. Malty-biscuity contains myrcene, which is a terpene. Meanwhile, 4-ethyl phenol has a methylene group. Volker says the structures of these two groups make them free radical scavengers.
The cost of loneliness – People News | Particle
So, have we placed modern emotions into ancient tales or did communal cultures suffer from loneliness too? The gender gap in loneliness In Australia, the economic cost of loneliness is greater for women than men. Curtin University’s Associate Professor of Economics Astghik Mavisakalyan reports on the economic impacts of loneliness. She says it’s difficult to pinpoint why women feel lonelier than men.
Homecoming of the wallabies – Earth News | Particle
Saul says they’re still learning about the ecological role of the two hare-wallaby species. “But we know that rufous hare-wallabies are grazers and banded hare-wallabies are browsers,” says Saul. “They also seem to prefer quite different habitats. The rufous are found in open grassland habitats, while the bandeds prefer taller, thicker scrub.” The team captured wild wallabies where possible and relocated them to Wirruwana.
Ancient Pilbara rocks provide a glimpse into cradle of life on Earth
How did life begin? The answer may lie in the hot springs of WA's arid northwest. The vast Ngarla country, also known as the Pilbara, has a long memory. Ancient jade, basalt and granite boiled up from the Earth's crust more than 3.5 billion years ago. Today, this rock remains perfectly preserved—allowing geologists to dig into one of science's most profound questions.
Ancient Pilbara rocks provide a glimpse into cradle of life on Earth
Ancient Pilbara rocks provide a glimpse into cradle of life on Earth The vast Ngarla country, also known as the Pilbara, has a long memory. Ancient jade, basalt and granite boiled up from the Earth’s crust more than 3.5 billion years ago. Today, this rock remains perfectly preserved – allowing geologists to dig into one of science’s most profound questions.
Is regenerative farming an eco wake-up call? The next time you open your pantry or fridge, pick five foods. Do you know where they came from? Who grew that potato? Whose cow produced that milk? How many food miles did they collect on their way from farm to fork? Consumers are asking more and more questions about where their food comes from and how it’s farmed. Many want to understand the impact agriculture has on the environment.
The current state of Western Australia in the face of climate change
Australia is uniquely vulnerable to climate change. Yet, we're doing worse than almost every other nation at mitigating its impact. Where do we go from here? Australia's greenhouse gas emissions are rising and global temperatures are increasing. So where are we at with our pledge to reduce emissions and how is the warmer climate impacting life in Western Australia (WA)? It's not great news. In 2021, Australia ranked last in the Climate Change Performance Index (CCPI).
WA in the face of climate change - Environment News
The annual profits of an average farm in 2000 in comparison to a similar farm in 1950 as a result of a change in climate. The frequency of unprofitable farm years doubled between 2000 and 2020. Aussie farmers now rely on new technology and changing crops to offset the loss. So what can we do? Jatin’s research found one surprising trick for keeping temperatures cooler: crop colour.
Perth 2.0: Creating a greener city - Environment News
Murdoch University sustainability researcher Greg Simpson says it can improve our mental and physical health. “Quality equitable urban green infrastructure keeps our cities cooler, but it’s also good for our spirits,” says Greg. “It makes us feel healthier and happier. It gives us a chance to get into nature to recharge, to reconnect.” Throwing shade – in a good way Green infrastructure can play an important part in combating climate change.
An evolutionary tale: The first true millipede
The leggiest animal on the planet, Eumillipes persephone, from Australia. (A) female with 330 segments and 1,306 legs (paratype specimen, T147124). (B) ventral view of legs (male holotype, T147101). (C) dorsal view of head and ventral view of gonopods (male holotype, T147101). Scale bars, 0.5 mm. Credit: Scientific Reports (2021). DOI: 10.1038/s41598-021-02447-0 Deep beneath the WA outback, a cryptic creepy crawly is expanding the boundaries of evolutionary biology.
The first true millipede - Earth News
Earth No mean feet: an evolutionary tale Sixty metres underground in the Goldfields, hidden aquifers support small subterranean ecosystems. The creatures that dwell here are true troglofauna. They’re blind burrowing insects, fungi and small lifeforms who haven’t seen light for generations. During an ecological survey in 2020, biologist Dr Bruno Buzatto bored deep into the ground and left traps of rotting leaves. When he returned, he made an incredible discovery – a new species of millipede.
Is regenerative farming an eco wake-up call?
Could regenerative farming be the future of WA food production? The next time you open your pantry or fridge, pick five foods. Do you know where they came from? Who grew that potato? Whose cow produced that milk? How many food miles did they collect on their way from farm to fork? Consumers are asking more and more questions about where their food comes from and how it's farmed. Many want to understand the impact agriculture has on the environment.
A new (re)generation of farming? - Food News
Food Food|25 February 2022 Is regenerative farming an eco wake-up call? The next time you open your pantry or fridge, pick five foods. Do you know where they came from? Who grew that potato? Whose cow produced that milk? How many food miles did they collect on their way from farm to fork? Consumers are asking more and more questions about where their food comes from and how it’s farmed. Many want to understand the impact agriculture has on the environment.
How a burn could change your blood
Blair at work in one of the QEII medical research labs. Credit: Thomas Crow UWA scientists have discovered a surprising and significant link between burn injuries and heart disease. If you've ever had a burn injury, you're not alone. There are around 50,000 burn-related hospital admissions in Australia each year, according to the . Even minor burns can lead to chronic pain, scarring and psychological stress.
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