Tag Archives: oceania

Regular use of nitrous oxide, also known by the slang name nangs, can cause "devastating" neurologic consequences and lasting nerve damage, a new study outlining the drug's dangers has warned.

The low cost and ease of access to nitrous oxide make it a popular recreational drug, especially among younger Australians.

There is no official data specifically tracking nitrous oxide use in Australia, but the 2021 Global Drug Survey lists it as the 13th most popular recreational drug in the world.

Nitrous oxide cannisters

Chronic use of nitrous oxide can cause functional vitamin B12 deficiency, which can result in long-term health effects, especially neurological consequences, the University of Toronto study found.

The most common effects include degeneration of the cervical spine, and damage to motor nerves and brain function.

The study noted some users suffer disturbances to their gait, because of nerve damage to lower limbs which tend to be more severely affected by loss of sensation.

Some regular users will report symptoms including paranoia, delusions, hallucinations and behavioural changes, the study said.

Upon inhalation, users experience a rapid and short-lived rush of euphoria, happiness or excitement.

The inverted "V" sign as shown in this medical scan is evidence of spinal damage through nitrous oxide use.

Because nitrous oxide is short-acting, some people may underestimate the risks and take large amounts of the drug which can lead to poisoning.

Inexpensive and easily obtainable online, the study said nitrous oxide is growing problem in many countries, particularly Australia and the United Kingdom.

Earlier this month police in Western Australia made a record seizure of the drug, busting a storage facility in Perth which held 180,000 nitrous oxide canisters destined for the black market.

Regular users may go through dozens of cartridges every day, the study said, with one case cited in the study describing their use of more than 500 cartridges daily.

Has your health, or the health of someone you know, been affected by nitrous oxide use? Email

Also known as "laughing gas," nitrous oxide is an anesthetic sometimes used in pediatric and dental procedures.

The toxic effects of nitrous oxide are mainly caused by a deficiency of vitamin B12, an important nutrient which helps keep blood and nerve cells healthy.

Vitamin B12 also helps prevent megaloblastic anemia, a blood condition that makes people tired and weak.

Treatment includes stopping use of nitrous oxide, vitamin B12 supplementation and methionine, an essential amino acid found in meat, fish, and dairy products.

If you or someone you know is suffering from nitrous oxide poisoning or an injury related to nang use, get help fast by calling Triple Zero.

You can get more help for drugs and alcohol from the Alcohol Drug Information Service on 1800 250 015 or Lifeline on 13 11 14.

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Qantas faces class action over COVID-19 pandemic travel credits

2023-08-21 FreeNews

Qantas is facing a class action by customers who say they were left out of pocket after billions of dollars in flights were cancelled during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Echo Law said it lodged the class action in the Federal Court on Monday in regards to how it alleges the airline dealt with travel credits and refunds during the pandemic.

When COVID-19 hit, Qantas alone was forced to cancel some $2 billion in flights.

Qantas

Echo Law alleges Qantas failed to be transparent and immediately issue refunds and then made travel credits hard to use with strict conditions.

The class action will allege Qantas "enjoyed significant financial benefits" from holding onto customer payments including interest and reduced borrowing costs.

The class action also alleges customers were required to pay the airline more than their original booking to use their credits on new fares and were pressured by Qantas to do this or else they would lose the value of their credits.

"We are seeking both refunds of all remaining credits as well as compensation for the time customers have been out of pocket," Echo Law partner Andrew Paull said.

As of June 2023, there are $400 million in COVID-19 credits for the airline remaining.

Qantas has completely rejected the claims made by Echo Law.

"We have already processed well in excess of $1 billion in refunds from COVID credits for customers who were impacted by lockdowns and border closures," an airline spokesperson said.

The airline said "the majority of customers" with COVID-19 credits can get a refund.

"Qantas has one of the most flexible COVID credit policies of any airline, including among our global peers, and we've extended the expiry dates three times," the airline added.

Qantas also said it has improved its credit system over the past three years to make it easier for customers to access a refund or credits.

In response to allegations the airline made significant financial benefits from the credits, the airline said it lost more than $25 billion in revenue and had $7 billion in statutory losses during the pandemic.

The airline also said it has always made it clear to customers that they were entitled to a refund through the relevant process.

"Thousands of customers have already done just that," Qantas said.

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Mysterious glowing question mark spotted in space

2023-08-21 FreeNews

A cosmic object in the shape of a glowing question mark has photobombed one of the latest images captured by NASA's James Webb Space Telescope – and scientists think they know what it might be.

The original near-infrared image, released July 26, depicted a pair of young stars named Herbig-Haro 46/47.

Found 1470 light-years away in the Vela constellation within the Milky Way galaxy, the stars are still actively forming and closely orbiting each other.

Cosmic question mark spotted in space by NASA's James Webb Space Telescope.

The two have been observed and studied by space and ground-based telescopes since the 1950s, but the highly sensitive Webb telescope allowed for the highest-resolution and most detailed image yet.

It has the capacity to observe the universe with longer wavelengths of light than other space telescopes.

The Webb telescope illuminates information about the origins of our universe, but the appearance of this mysterious object in the background of this image leaves more questions than answers.

The cosmic question mark hasn't been closely observed or studied, so scientists aren't exactly sure about the object's origins and makeup.

But they do have a few ideas based on its shape and location.

"The very first thing you can rule out is that it's a star in the Milky Way," Matt Caplan, assistant professor of physics at Illinois State University, said.

"Stars always have these really big spikes, and that's because stars are point-like. It's called diffraction from basically the edges of the mirrors and the struts that support the sort of camera in the middle."

The Webb telescope usually allows you to see six or eight stellar "prongs" if you look closely, Caplan added.

"It tells you immediately that it's not a star," he said of the question-mark-shaped phenomenon.

Cosmic question mark spotted in space by NASA's James Webb Space Telescope.

It could be a merger of two galaxies that, at probably billions of light-years away, are much farther away than Herbig-Haro 46/47, Christopher Britt said, education and outreach scientist in the office of public outreach at the Space Telescope Science Institute, which manages the Webb telescope's science operations.

There are "many, many galaxies outside of our own Milky Way," Britt said.

"This looks like the kind of thing that you get fairly frequently – as galaxies grow and evolve over cosmic time – which is that they sometimes collide with their near neighbours.

"And when that happens, they can get distorted into all kinds of different shapes – including a question mark, apparently."

Cosmic questions

It is likely the first time this specific object has been seen, experts said, but the merging of galaxies into a question mark-like shape has happened before – including a backward version formed by the Antennae Galaxies in the Corvus constellation.

Additionally, most galaxies have had multiple interactions such as this over the course of their history, Britt said, but they don't last very long.

"There's no way to nail anything down (in) space," Caplan said.

"The sun is moving as it orbits the galaxy, and the galaxy, being made of stars, is moving whichever direction gravity pulls it."

This integration is also the eventual destiny of our own galaxy, which will merge with the Andromeda galaxy in about 4 billion years, Britt said – but the shape they'll take is unknown.

The question mark shape could also be "indicative of a merger where these two galaxies are interacting gravitationally," Britt said.

"That hook of the question mark on the top looks a lot, to me, like what we call a tidal tail, where the stream of stars and gas has been kind of ripped off and has flown out into space."

Gathering more spectroscopic data about the object would reveal more details such as its distance and chemical compositions, Britt and Caplan said.

"Nobody's going to do this, though, because this is very much 'a local man finds a chicken tender that looks like George Washington,'" Caplan said.

"But there (are) observations you could make if you were motivated enough."

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Unassuming family home scoops weekend record with $6.8 million secret

2023-08-21 FreeNews

The nation's top-selling properties of the weekend have been revealed, with this Roseville stunner taking home the top prize for sellers.