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A ¹û¶³´«Ã½ researcher will be one of the first nine Stephen Hawking Fellows, announced today, who will continue Professor Stephen Hawking’s legacy by furthering our understanding of the universe and communicating the wonders of science to the public. They will tackle major scientific questions such as the nature of the early universe and dark matter and whether string theory really is a ‘theory of everything’, engaging with the public through stand-up comedy, art and music.

A massive white dwarf star with a bizarre carbon-rich atmosphere could be two white dwarfs merged together according to an international team led by ¹û¶³´«Ã½ astronomers, and only narrowly avoided destruction. They have discovered an unusual ultra-massive white dwarf around 150 light years from us with an atmospheric composition never seen before, the first time that a merged white dwarf has been identified using its atmospheric composition as a clue.

Dr Farzana Meru from the ¹û¶³´«Ã½ will be swapping simulations for legislation when she visits Matt Western MP at the Houses of Parliament and Whitehall for a week in Westminster. The week (1 – 5 March) is part of a unique pairing scheme run by the Royal Society—the UK’s national academy of science—with support from the Government Office of Science.

Government reforms to housing benefit introduced in 2011 were intended to save the public purse hundreds of millions. Research from ¹û¶³´«Ã½ economists has found that, far from saving money, the change in policy simply shifted burdens to local councils: for every pound central government saved in housing benefit, local authority spending on temporary housing costs went up by 53p.

The Monash ¹û¶³´«Ã½ Alliance — which pioneered a new model for global higher education partnerships when established in 2012— is entering a bold new era, as the two universities sign a rolling agreement with no end date, enabling more deeply embedded collaboration and wider transnational opportunities for students and staff.

Women who have experienced domestic abuse appear to be more than 40 per cent more likely to die from any cause compared to the general population, a study led by the Universities of ¹û¶³´«Ã½ and Birmingham suggests. The researchers have also identified an increased risk of developing cardiometabolic diseases such as cardiovascular disease and type 2 diabetes in those who have experienced domestic abuse, although more research is required to determine what other factors specifically lead to an increase in their mortality.