The incredible power of ignoring everything and other top stories.

• The incredible power of ignoring everything

  

  Can we actually succeed in ignoring certain information, and improve our focus on everything else? Photo: Getty Fyodor Dostoevsky, the 19th Century Russian author, once famously challenged his brother to try out a strange task: Don't think about a polar bear right now. "Try to pose for yourself this task: not to think of a polar bear, and you will see that the cursed thing will come to mind every minute," Dostoevsky writes in "Winter Notes on Summer Impressio..

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• Impact of climate change by 2050

  Study by researcher from the University of Oxford says it could have a significant impact on life, food production and health worldwide. A new study has revealed that climate change could cause significant changes to global diets, leading to more than half a million extra deaths by 2050.The research is the strongest evidence yet that climate change could have damaging consequences for food production and health worldwide and is the first of its kind to assess the impact of climate change on di..

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• The five most addictive substances on Earth – and what they do to your brain

  

  What are the most addictive drugs? This question seems simple, but the answer depends on whom you ask. From the points of view different researchers, the potential for a drug to be addictive can be judged in terms of the harm it causes. These include the street value of the drug, the extent to which the drug activates the brain’s dopamine system, how pleasurable people report the drug to be, the degree to which the drug causes withdrawal symptoms, and how easily a person trying the drug will b..

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• Melbourne woman blames severe sunburn on faulty Banana Boat sunscreen

  

  Taryn Hawken’s sunburn was so bad she might need skin grafts.Megan BaileyBerwick LeaderA NINETEEN-year-old Melbourne woman may have to have skin grafts after what she said was a severe sunburn caused by faulty sunblock. Taryn Hawken, of Pakenham, who has multiple sclerosis, went to an event with her friends last month where she spent most of the day in the sun.Ms Hawken said she applied Banana Boat Sport SPF 30 sunblock 45 minutes before getting out of the car and said she reapplied “every hour,..

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• Crowe was self-medicating with liquid marijuana

  

  Video will begin in 5 seconds. Cricket legend Martin Crowe dies aged 53 Considered one of the greatest cricketers to ever play the game, New Zealand legend Martin Crowe has died, aged 53. Vision: Stuff.co.nz PT3M14S 620 349 A close friend of Martin Crowe claims the cricket star was self-medicating with liquid marijuana to ease his pain.Crowe died at the age of 53 on Thursday after a long battle with cancer. New Zealand cricket great Martin Crow..

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• Innovative Drug Delivery Method Targets Pancreatic Cancer

  

  The overall five-year survival rate for people with pancreatic cancer is just 6 percent, and there is an urgent need for new treatment options. More than 80 percent of pancreatic cancer diagnoses occur too late for surgery, making chemotherapy the only possible treatment. Scientists from the California NanoSystems Institute at UCLA and UCLA’s Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center have developed a delivery system for one chemotherapy drug that greatly reduces the occurrence of serious side effects ..

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• Coffee Could Lower Risk for MS—But Only if Your Drink Excessive Amounts of the Stuff

  

  Many health experts warn people to watch their coffee intake, since too much of the stuff is well known to produce unpleasant side effects such as heart palpitations, jitteriness, anxiety and sleep problems. But recent research also shows that the beverage—even when consumed excessively—does have a number of health benefits. So, feel free to grab another cup. A new study finds drinking generous amounts of coffee—more than four cups a day—may reduce a person’s risk for multiple sclerosis, an aut..

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• NZ experts assure and caution on Zika

  

  NZ experts assure and caution on ZikaThere's good news and bad news about the implications of the Zika virus for New Zealand.Scientists are assuring people that cases of it being sexually transmitted are rare but they're also saying don't assume the 15 mosquito species in New Zealand aren't potential carriers.Dr Jose Derraik, senior research fellow at the University of Auckland's Liggins Institute, says there simply hasn't been enough research about the potential of mosquitoes in New Zealand to ..

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• Monkeys master thought-controlled wheelchair

  

  Science Monkeys master thought-controlled wheelchair Nick Lavars March 3, 2016 Mind-controlled machines have been the subject of intense research in recent years, with a focus on improving the lives of people with disabilities. At this fascinating juncture between neuroscience and robotics we have seen experimental brain-machine interfaces (BMIs) used to fly drones, control telepresence robots and even switch channels on a TV. Now scie..

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Sales of homes set for takeoff .	Model murdered and has eyes gouged out by 'jealous older sister' .
Negative rainfall in Darwin during unusually dry and hot February ... .	'Free' Darwin house snapped up - but there's a catch .