Australia

Obesity, type 2 diabetes, and some cancer rates are on the rise in humans. While sperm count and fertility is on a downward slide in some populations. What if chemical exposure was partly responsible for these trends?

One hypothesis is that a group of chemicals — known as 'endocrine disrupting chemicals' (EDCSs) — could affect human reproduction, puberty, metabolism and other functions controlled by hormones in our endocrine system.

Many suspected EDCs are already in your home — but how much risk do they really pose? At what exposure level do they become unsafe?

Colour Doesn't Matter was painted by Darwin artist Megan Adams as a response to the racial abuse of her friend's Indigenous son, a Year 6 student.

"He's just the kindest, happy-go-lucky kid so it was really hard to see him so upset," Ms Adams said.

"Adam Goodes is a fantastic AFL player but he's also a great speaker, speaking against racism; the troubles he went through also related to experiences my friend's son had."

The 17-year-old girl had been brought to Sydney in early April by a man who offered her work as a cleaner, New South Wales Police said.

She was allegedly taken to a house and sexually assaulted by "a number of men" until her escape on 27 April.

Police officers from human trafficking and sex crime squads are investigating.

The teenager told police she fled the unknown location before being picked up by a woman who drove her to a community centre.

She was taken to hospital for medical treatment.

The technology, which was pioneered in the Netherlands, dramatically extends the shelf life of blood components for up to 10 years.

The blood service said it was critical to have a constant supply in field hospitals, but the technique also has huge benefits for rural and remote communities.

In Australia one in three people need blood, but only one in 30 donate it.

It's not just birthdays, anniversaries or significant days of the calendar.

Consider also the ubiquitous counters on social media sites; the use of biometric technology in personal exercise regimes; the goal-oriented logic of structured weight-loss programs; the steady stream of statistics and sporting records published each week; the significance that accrues around the first 100 days of the US presidency.

In these and a multitude of other ways, we impose a kind of order on the passage of time.

The inaugural Polyfest Australia was set for February 2018 and school registrations have officially opened.

The festival would be held in Sydney and the Polyfest Australia team was expecting more than 20,000 spectators.

Event director Sy Laga'aia said that Polyfest Australia shares the same vision as the New Zealand event which has run for 42 years.

RNZI reports t would aim to increase public awareness of the indigenous and Pacific cultures.

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Can you attempt a rescue operation by cutting off the mould or should the whole lot go in the bin?

The answer to some extent depends on how you balance your approach to a potential health risk versus your desire to avoid wasting food.

If the cheese is a hard cheese, it's probably safe just to cut the bad bit off, says Dr Ailsa Hocking, of CSIRO Agriculture and Food.

The bread though, is probably better off thrown away, she believes.

Assessing the risk

It's not just an awful taste you're risking if you eat mouldy food.

Nick Power has been a "B*boy" for 25 years and is the choreographer for a new theatre production, Cypher, which will run at the Melbourne Arts Centre.

"A hip-hop jam is mostly improvised and you're reacting to the music and the moment," he told News Breakfast.

"As I've choreographed Cypher, I've used that style and feeling and taken it into a more traditional theatre context, but still keeping it true to the culture of hip hop."

Mr Power said most breakdancers were self-taught and honed their craft by practising with their "crew".

Professor Geoff Tofler, from the University of Sydney and the Royal North Shore Hospital, said the increased risk was not just at the beginning of respiratory symptoms.

"It peaks in the first seven days and gradually reduces but remains elevated for one month," he said.

"This is the first study to report an association between respiratory infections such as pneumonia, influenza and bronchitis and increased risk of heart attack in patients confirmed by coronary angiography (a special x-ray to detect heart artery blockages)."

Security camera footage shows children breaking into the remote Elcho Island Airport and siphoning fuel from planes.

Petrol sniffing is not a new challenge to hit remote communities, but aviation fuel is even more dangerous because it contains lead, local officials said.

Lead exposure can badly damage the brain and nervous system.