Semper Floreat is the University of Queensland Union's free & independent student newspaper.
Generative AI has been a hot topic, with many conversations about how it is impacting different communities. A recent example is the generators that power the supercomputers (named Colossus) that train Grok, Twitter’s AI bot, and how they’re slowly poisoning a small, historically Black community in South Memphis, Tennessee called Boxtown. What is happening in […]
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When I was younger, I connected to writing and reading more than to speech. Despite loving to socialise, at times speaking was more tiring than rewarding. This sparked my desire to learn Auslan. It came from curiosity of how it would be to speak a language that was visual-spatial rather than verbal. Returning to UQ […]
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This past July marked the 35th anniversary of the passing of the Americans with Disabilities Act in 1990 and subsequent Disability Pride Month. During this month, the disability community celebrates Disabled identity and continues the fight against ableism (discrimination against Disabled people). This battle is increasingly crucial in a world of acute disability social welfare […]
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I’m me, everything good and bad that comes with that. I’m autistic, that’s who I am, and I’m proud of that now. I won’t say I’ve always been proud; it’s been a hard journey to get to where I am, a lot of self-hatred and self-doubt, but now I’ve accepted that my autism has always […]
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That’s a question I’ve pondered myself. It’s a concept that’s pretty foreign to me and my view of myself. We were taught from a young age to downplay our disabilities, to ignore them, to change our behaviour and to do anything we can to act like everyone around us. I’ve been in psychology for a […]
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Content warning: This piece includes mentions of ableism and derogatory terms for disabled people. If you’ve been involved with the UQ Union at all, you may have heard of the UQU Disability Collective. As stated on the Union’s website, the collective is a branch of the union, ‘concerned with the advocacy, support and social connectedness […]
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International students have expressed concerns about rising rental prices, anticipating having to study abroad elsewhere. According to Property Council of Australia, international student visas have dropped 13 percent in conjunction with a 30 percent rent increase between 2019 and 2023. Summer Ren is an international student from China, studying at UQ. Ren is struggling to […]
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What does it mean to be Australian? A contentious question to put it slightly. For a country of twenty-six million, the question of an Australian identity is blurred. Some argue the very fabric of our establishment is flawed – built on the dispossession of Indigenous people. Others argue that Australia has lost touch with its […]
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Welcome to the UQU Environmental Collective Column! At UQU Environment, we are proud to be a collective driven by students, for students. Through this column, we hope to create a space to spotlight the incredible environmental work happening across campus, from cutting-edge research to clubs and individuals that are making a real impact. Our goal […]
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Pilates is the hot new thing! Literally. Hot Pilates, reformer Pilates, chair Pilates…there are dozens of versions of this practice popping up every day. But there is more to this new fitness trend than initially meets the eye. Beneath the spandex-covered surface, Pilates reinforces the regulation of women’s bodies to align with shifting beauty standards. […]
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