University of Western Australia

Jetskis are a bit like motorbikes for the water. Hydrofoil boards and boats allow users to cut through and rise above the waves. The WaveFlyer merges the two, and throws in electric propulsion for a cleaner and quieter ride.

Scientists from Australia’s CSIRO have now found a fungus species that mines for gold and even decorates itself with the precious particles. Following the fungus could be a new, environmentally-friendly way to find large underground gold deposits.

​Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) is a common condition that causes bloating, diarrhea and constipation. It's also difficult to diagnose – often a colonoscopy is required in order to do so. Soon, however, it may be possible for doctors to simply use a belt that listens to patients' guts.

Our universe seems to contain a suspiciously perfect amount of "dark energy" to sustain life. But new research suggests that life is still possible even with far more dark energy than we have, and the results have some big implications for the multiverse theory.

Research from the University of Western Australia has shown that plants can learn by association, like Pavlov's dogs. The scientists conditioned seedlings to associate light with the wind from a fan, and found that the plants learned to use the fan to predict where light would next appear.

A new study is throwing further weight behind an old idea of using electrical pulses to scare off sharks by overstimulating their senses, with a comprehensive study finding the Shark Shield can deter attacks 90 percent of the time.​

Current quantum processors were once thought of as only precursors to creating future quantum computers, and too simple to do anything useful on their own. Now researchers have discovered a way to use them to solve very specific tasks much faster than normal computers can today