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Two Australian mathematicians have called into question an old adage, that if given an infinite amount of time, a monkey pressing keys on a typewriter would eventually write the complete works of William Shakespeare. Known as the "infinite monkey theorem", the thought-experiment has long been used to explain the principles of probability and randomness. However, a new peer-reviewed study led by Sydney-based researchers Stephen Woodcock and Jay Falletta has found that the time it would take for a typing monkey to replicate Shakespeare's plays, sonnets and poems would be longer than the lifespan of our universe. Which means that while...

When Fatima Payman crossed the Senate floor to vote against her government she knew it would come with consequences. The Australian Labor party has strict penalties for those who undermine its collective positions, and acts of defiance can lead to expulsion - a precedent with a 130-year history. The last time one of its politicians tested the waters while in power was before Ms Payman was born. But last Tuesday, the 29-year-old did just that - joining the Green party and independent senators to support a motion on Palestinian statehood. Officially the Australian government supports a two-state solution, but did...

For the second time in a month, men who say they are with a mobilized Russian unit deployed to Ukraine have complained about their treatment and commanders. The men are from regiment 1439, which comes from Irkutsk in Siberia. A group from the same regiment issued a similar protest in January. It's unclear whether the new video includes men involved in the previous complaint. In the latest video, published Saturday, the group claimed they had been given “unlawful and criminal orders” from their command and sent to battle without “any support.” “We are the mobilized from Irkutsk oblast (region), regiment...