# Research & innovation news

**Source**: https://research.anu.edu.au/research-innovation-news
**Parent**: https://research.anu.edu.au/

Learn about The Australian National University's news on research expertise, research study programs, industry partnerships, multi-college collaborations and state-of-the-art research facilities.

NEWS HIGHLIGHT

## **[ANU secures more than $11 million in 2026 ARC DECRA and LIEF grants](https://research.anu.edu.au/research-innovation-news/anu-secures-more-than-11-million-in-2026-arc-decra-and-lief-grants)**

Researchers at The Australian National University (ANU) have been awarded more than $11 million in new funding through the Australian Research Council (ARC) Discovery Early Career Researcher Award (DECRA) and Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment and Facilities (LIEF) schemes. This investment supports emerging research leaders and strengthens collaborative, cross-disciplinary projects spanning social sciences, public policy, humanities and cultural studies, Indigenous studies, advanced biology, chemistry, physics, astronomy, and engineering.

03

Mar

2026

### [Scientists rescue lost song of the critically endangered regent honeyeater](https://reporter.anu.edu.au/all-stories/scientists-rescue-lost-song-of-the-critically-endangered-regent-honeyeater)

Scientists from The Australian National University (ANU) and the Taronga Conservation Society Australia have successfully restored the lost…

26

Feb

2026

### [Record-breaking image uncovers turbulent web of gas at the Milky Way’s centre](https://reporter.anu.edu.au/all-stories/record-breaking-image-uncovers-turbulent-web-of-gas-at-the-milky-ways-centre)

A team of international astronomers including researchers from The Australian National University (ANU) have observed the central region of the Milky…

23

Feb

2026

### [People are overconfident about spotting AI faces, study finds](https://reporter.anu.edu.au/all-stories/people-are-overconfident-about-spotting-ai-faces-study-finds)

Most people believe they can spot AI-generated faces, but advances in technology mean it’s becoming harder to tell what’s real and what’s not,…

16

Feb

2026

### [Discovery of tiny RNA fragments unlock giant potential for new autoimmune disease treatments](https://reporter.anu.edu.au/all-stories/discovery-of-tiny-rna-fragments-unlock-giant-potential-for-new-autoimmune-disease-treatments)

Extremely short, or tiny, fragments of RNA – working copies of our genetic code – play a critical role in keeping the immune system in check,…

## **[$18 million in federal funding to turbocharge ANU research](https://research.anu.edu.au/research-innovation-news/18-million-in-federal-funding-to-turbocharge-anu-research)**

17 ANU researchers have been successful in recent Australian Research Council (ARC) funding rounds.

[Learn More](https://research.anu.edu.au/research-innovation-news/18-million-in-federal-funding-to-turbocharge-anu-research)

10

Feb

2026

### [ADHD prescriptions are up tenfold, with the wealthiest kids most likely to be medicated](https://research.anu.edu.au/research-innovation-news/adhd-prescriptions-are-up-tenfold-with-the-wealthiest-kids-most-likely-to)

The number of young people in Australia prescribed medication for attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) increased more that tenfold in 20…

[Read more](https://research.anu.edu.au/research-innovation-news/adhd-prescriptions-are-up-tenfold-with-the-wealthiest-kids-most-likely-to)

05

Feb

2026

### [In the Australian outback, we’re listening for nuclear tests – and what we hear matters more than ever](https://research.anu.edu.au/research-innovation-news/in-the-australian-outback-were-listening-for-nuclear-tests-and-what-we)

Tyres stick to hot asphalt as I drive the Stuart Highway from Alice Springs northward, leaving the MacDonnell Ranges behind. My destination is the…

[Read more](https://research.anu.edu.au/research-innovation-news/in-the-australian-outback-were-listening-for-nuclear-tests-and-what-we)

27

Jan

2026

### [Scientists develop technique to identify malfunctions in our genetic code](https://reporter.anu.edu.au/all-stories/scientists-develop-technique-to-identify-malfunctions-in-our-genetic-code)

An international team of researchers including scientists from The Australian National University (ANU) have developed a way to reveal the smallest…

[Read more](https://reporter.anu.edu.au/all-stories/scientists-develop-technique-to-identify-malfunctions-in-our-genetic-code)

23

Jan

2026

### [Yes, feral cats and foxes really have driven many Australian mammals to extinction](https://research.anu.edu.au/research-innovation-news/yes-feral-cats-and-foxes-really-have-driven-many-australian-mammals-to)

Millions of years of isolation have shaped Australia’s extraordinary mammal fauna into species unlike anywhere else in the world, from platypus to…

[Read more](https://research.anu.edu.au/research-innovation-news/yes-feral-cats-and-foxes-really-have-driven-many-australian-mammals-to)

23

Jan

2026

### [Why are human penises so large? New evolutionary study finds two main reasons](https://research.anu.edu.au/research-innovation-news/why-are-human-penises-so-large-new-evolutionary-study-finds-two-main)

“Size matters” sounds like a tabloid cliché, but for evolutionary biologists the size of the human penis is truly a puzzle.\
\
Compared…

[Read more](https://research.anu.edu.au/research-innovation-news/why-are-human-penises-so-large-new-evolutionary-study-finds-two-main)

13

Jan

2026

### [Water cycle instability drove global water-related disasters in 2025](https://reporter.anu.edu.au/all-stories/water-cycle-instability-drove-global-water-related-disasters-in-2025)

Ongoing shifts in the global water cycle amplified floods, droughts and heat extremes in 2025, according to a new report involving an international…

[Read more](https://reporter.anu.edu.au/all-stories/water-cycle-instability-drove-global-water-related-disasters-in-2025)

15

Dec

2025

### [AI has entered the chat](https://reporter.anu.edu.au/all-stories/ai-has-entered-the-chat)

Artificial intelligence (AI) is changing every aspect of modern life, and dating is no exception.

[Read more](https://reporter.anu.edu.au/all-stories/ai-has-entered-the-chat)

12

Dec

2025

### [Hundreds of iceberg earthquakes detected at the crumbling end of Antarctica’s Doomsday Glacier](https://research.anu.edu.au/research-innovation-news/hundreds-of-iceberg-earthquakes-detected-at-the-crumbling-end-of)

Glacial earthquakes are a special type of earthquake generated in cold, icy regions. First discovered in the northern hemisphere more than 20 years…

[Read more](https://research.anu.edu.au/research-innovation-news/hundreds-of-iceberg-earthquakes-detected-at-the-crumbling-end-of)

10

Dec

2025

### [Hustle, muscle and grift: how the manosphere has grown into a money-making machine](https://research.anu.edu.au/research-innovation-news/hustle-muscle-and-grift-how-the-manosphere-has-grown-into-a-money-making)

The manosphere is big business today. Once a niche network lurking on the margins of the internet, this diverse community of male supremacist…

[Read more](https://research.anu.edu.au/research-innovation-news/hustle-muscle-and-grift-how-the-manosphere-has-grown-into-a-money-making)

## 

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