The August 9 Edition
It’s long been recognised that placebo treatments, such as a sugar pill, can result in a real reduction in symptoms for some patients. So it’s fascinating to read in Fenella Souter’s cover story today that most Australian GPs have, at some point, prescribed a placebo for a patient they can’t help. Scientists have long struggled to understand precisely how the placebo effect works: is it simply dopamine firing up in heady expectation of a relief from pain? And the bigger question: could the placebo effect be used to help further reduce pain in some patients, sparing them unnecessary drug use? Like pain itself, it’s fiendishly complicated. – Greg Callaghan, acting editor.
Sometimes, a fake pill can make us feel better. Science is starting to reveal why
How can sham treatments make us feel better or worse? Fascinating research is studying the placebo effect and its negative cousin, the nocebo.
- by Fenella Souter
The number of knee replacements is soaring – just don’t expect to run marathons after
Knee replacement operations are booming – and restoring mobility for millions. But many are questioning whether the scalpel is always the best option.
- by Stephanie Wood
From Mr Puss on the First Fleet to Sergeant Smokey the feline digger: Tales from a ‘cat historian’
Revered or reviled, feral or emotional-support essentials ... Cats have a “complicated” history in Australia, says researcher Jodie Stewart.
- by Sue Williams
‘They’re going to see who I am’: Top shots from the National Photographic Portrait Prize
From a stoic camel carer to the “intimate chaos” of a childhood bedroom … Our pick of 2025’s National Photographic Portrait Prize finalists.
Two of Us
For subscribers
‘She knows the younger version of me’: When two friends reunite after 50 years
Workmates in the 1960s, Iris and Moira met in the same aged-care home in Melbourne – happy to have a friend they knew before they were “old ladies”.
- by Susan Horsburgh
![“We legalised weed in a lot of [US] states and I think that’s correct. Has there ever been a serial killer on weed?”](https://static.ffx.io/images/$zoom_0.403752489381576%2C$multiply_1.1931%2C$ratio_1.5%2C$width_756%2C$x_103%2C$y_111/t_crop_custom/q_62%2Cf_auto/a3f10aafecefd3d83db532b22423c21d51250f95)
Dicey Topics
For subscribers
Comedy was just a hobby for Atsuko – then three years ago, ‘things happened’
The Japanese-Taiwanese-American comedian Atsuko Okatsuka on her family history, her husband’s vasectomy – and a buffet strategy.
- by Benjamin Law
Modern Guru
Modern Guru
My mate offloads his unhealthy food to me. How to tell him I can’t stomach it?
Start with “nah”, writes our Modern Guru.
- by Danny Katz
As a Sydney councillor, he wanted to DNA-test dog poo. Now he’s a MAGA darling
Self-described “alpha male” Nick Adams is awaiting a decision on his nomination to become the US ambassador to the Muslim-majority nation of Malaysia.
- by Tim Elliott
‘It paid in the end’: The family that bankrolled AC/DC – and still owns their catalogue
When a low-key Sydney family sold Albert Productions to music giant BMG nine years ago, it retained ownership of its prize jewel: AC/DC’s music catalogue.
- by Andrew Hornery
The chocolate addiction you don’t need to quit this winter
Pantone has identified “Hot Chocolate” as one of the standout colours at London Fashion Week.
- by Damien Woolnough
This speedy rice dish has all the flavours of spanakopita but none of the fuss
An easy, vegetarian, midweek dinner with all the flavours of spanakopita.
- by Danielle Alvarez
Does red wine take longer to age under screw cap or cork? The jury is out
Those who use screw caps will likely tell you cork is rubbish, while those who’ve stuck with cork will tell you it’s the best.
- by Huon Hooke
