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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As technology has become more prevalent and pornography consumption has increased, more attention is being directed towards the harms that the industry causes towards women and girls. Sexual violence is being perpetrated at alarming rates, and addressing the structures that fuel misogynistic frameworks has become increasingly important. This can be seen in a recent decision […]
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GOMA’s newest exhibition, Wonderstruck, is a presentation of artworks by major Australian and international artists as a journey through six themes of wonder. Officially opened with a vibrant two-day festival (June 28–29), the show is perfectly timed for school holidays. Curators Tamsin Cull and Laura Mudge describe it as a call to notice the awe […]
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Semper Floreat was invited to attend the screening of the Oscar-winning documentary on May 12th ‘No Other Land’ held by the Towards International Medical Equity Club (TIME). Following the screening of the film, a Q&A session took place with Dr Bushra Othman and Dr Ahmad Abou Sweid. Dr Bushra had risked their life to volunteer […]
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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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