A little life update as I have re-joined X after so many years! I have started my PhD in February @UniTrento in Mansy lab, Italy. Looking forward to this journey, especially in Astrobiology where I have come a long way working at @IiserMohali , @ELSI_origins and @UNSWScience.

Our platypus research took centre stage in Dubbo with @abcnews Western Plains interviewing CEWH Dr Simon Banks and @UNSWScience platypus researcher Associate Professor Gilad Bino. Read the story: abc.net.au/news/2026-04-27/p…

🧬 AI, mRNA, and a dog named Rosie My personal opinion : I love this story 🔥 because it’s just so cool that someone could actually use AI to help their dog like that. It’s not some crazy sci-fi miracle, but it still feels like the future is already here. And honestly, doing all that just to give your dog more time… that hits different. But here is what happened. Sam Altman highlighted a case where Paul Conyngham used AI tools to help design a personalized mRNA cancer vaccine for his dog. ☝🏼 The core story is real—but easy to misread. Rosie had aggressive mast cell cancer. After standard treatments failed, her tumor was sequenced at UNSW. With help from AI tools, Paul worked through the data, explored options, and collaborated with researchers who manufactured and administered a custom mRNA vaccine. The outcome: Not a cure. But a partial response—tumors shrank, and her quality of life improved. What this shows is not “AI curing cancer.” It shows something more grounded: AI can help a capable individual navigate complex science faster, but it doesn’t replace labs, experts, or clinical reality. The heavy lifting—sequencing, validation, manufacturing, treatment—was done by professionals. 👉 Still, the direction is clear. AI lowers the barrier to understanding and participating in advanced research. Not eliminating expertise, but amplifying it. That’s the real shift. 🔗 Resources news.unsw.edu.au/en/meet-the… theverge.com/ai-artificial-i… the-scientist.com/chatgpt-an… fortune.com/2026/03/15/austr… 👥 @sama @OpenAI @paul_conyngham @UNSWScience

Our @UNSW SMaRT Centre has made a detailed submission to the Australian Senate's inquiry into #microplastics - based on our research in this field via the @nespsustainable Communities and Waste Hub @UNSWScience - producing many practical recommendations. smart.unsw.edu.au/news-event…

Our @UNSW SMaRT Centre researchers' have developed a novel carbon material, called "microzonal carbon" synthesized from waste hard rubber as a new type of anode material for next-generation lithium ion batteries (LIBs). @unswscience smart.unsw.edu.au/news-event…

Delighted to have published in @RoySocChem our new "toolkit and report for micro to nanoplastic analysis", building on all of the research the @UNSW SMaRT Centre @unswscience has been doing into the harmful impacts of plastic waste. Deets: smart.unsw.edu.au/news-event…

Congratulations Daphne Lim for being awarded the prestigious Prof Joseph Forgas PhD travel award to visit Prof Javeria Ali Hashmi @netphys1 at @DalhousieU Thanks for the support @SylviaGustin2 @UNSWScience

This ABC News feature is an important example of the environmental impacts of waste tyres but also about their potential as feedstock for remanufacturing, via innovative recycling technologies like those of our very own @UNSW SMaRT Centre smart.unsw.edu.au/news-event… @unswscience

The Royal Society has published a @UNSW SMaRT Centre study into the latest research of metals recycling from e-waste, which shows the circular economy benefits that could be derived from using up-to-date recycling technologies @unswscience Deets: smart.unsw.edu.au/news-event…

We had a special guest with us today, Sir Kostya Novoselov, the @NobelPrize winner for #graphene, my long-term collaborator and Manchester colleague. He also visited the ARC Centre of Excellence for Carbon Science & Innovation @UNSW @UNSWScience

UNSW SMaRT Centre researchers are undertaking new research on on using recycled content for #greeniron and #greensteel production, the @nespsustainable Communities and Waste Hub which SMaRT and I lead. Deets: smart.unsw.edu.au/news-event… @unswscience

A @UNSW SMaRT Centre study reveals a novel method to separate glass layering in #waste #solarpanels. Waste PV panels often go to landfill, waste stockpiles or even incinerators due to a lack of effective and affordable recycling solutions smart.unsw.edu.au/news-event… @UNSWScience

Thrilled to today be the 2026 @AustraliaDay Ambassador for @NarrabriShire, attending local events, talking about using #recycling innovations such as our @UNSW SMaRT Centre's #MICROfactorie Technologies  smart.unsw.edu.au/news-event… @unswscience

Delighted to contribute to the CIRCO “Creating business through circular design” training program run by @PlanetArk in conjunction with @UNSW Deets: smart.unsw.edu.au/news-event… @unswscience

#Genomics moves fast—think dog years fast. We’re in an exponential adoption phase, and #AI/#ML will only accelerate it. How do we balance promise with rigour? I spoke with @UNSWScience about the future of #PersonalisedMedicine: open.substack.com/pub/unswsc…

Huge congrats to the awardees & fellow contributing authors - including a stellar set of #writers from the @ABCTV @GuardianAus @smh & more. Happy 15th birthday to Best Australian Science Writing! Thanks to everyone involved. @CopyrightAgency @UNSW @UNSWScience #BASW #BASW2025

The 43rd Eastern Australian #WaterbirdSurvey is now on! 🗓️🔍🦢 It covers major #MurrayDarlingBasin wetlands surveyed by @UNSWScience and @CSIRO: 💧 2,000 wetlands ✈️ 100 hours flying 🦢 50 waterbird species 📊 2,697,000 km2 sampled. 👉 Follow here: unsw.edu.au/research/ecosyst…

Spoke at @wef's First Movers Coalition conf about my vision for a #sustainable future using #wasteasaresource via innovative #technologies like our @UNSW SMaRT Centre's very own #MICROfactories and #GreenSteel Polymer Injection Technology lnkd.in/gyBJX2JQ @unswscience

We have an opinion: Singlet fission solar cells potentially have distinct advantages!w/ Marc Baldo, @EkinsNed @MJYTayebjee Phoebe Pearce @MIT @UNSW @UNSWEngineering @UNSWScience pubs.acs.org/doi/pdf/10.1021…

Afternoon tea break. The afternoon medal ceremony is coming up at 3.15pm AEST – don't miss many remarkable scientific achievements being recognised. Medal Presentation Ceremony for 2025 Awardees Anton Hales Medal: – Associate Professor Stijn Glorie (@UniofAdelaide) Christopher Heyde Medal: – Associate Professor Anita Liebenau (@UNSWScience) Dorothy Hill Medal: – Dr Linda Armbrecht (@IMASUTAS) Fenner Medal: – Associate Professor Katherine Moseby (@UNSWScience) – Associate Professor Daniel Noble (@ScienceANU) Gottschalk Medal: – Associate Professor Amy Cain (@flamycain @MQnatSci) – Associate Professor Shom Goel (@PeterMacC @shomgoel) John Booker Medal: – Associate Professor Qianbing Zhang (@MonashEngineers) Le Fèvre Medal: – Dr Fengwang Li (@Sydney_Science) Moran Medal: – Professor Margarita Moreno-Betancur (@CEBU_Melbourne @_MargaritaMB) Pawsey Medal: – Associate Professor Claudia Lagos (@UWAnews) – Dr Daria Smirnova (ScienceANU) Ruth Stephens Gani Medal: – Dr Ira Deveson (@GarvanInstitute) –––––––––– Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Scientist Award: – Dr Mitchell Gibbs (@UNSWscience) – Associate Professor Shannon Kilmartin-Lynch (@MonashUni) Max Day Environmental Science Fellowship Award – Ms Rebecca Greening @UniofAdelaide) – Dr Nina Wootton (@UniofAdelaide)