The Australian Ambassador's residence in Washington, known as White Oaks, is a Heritage-listed brick mansion built in 1923. It was once the home of George Patton, one of the most significant and controversial military figures in US history. It has a lawn tennis court that had fallen into disrepair. Joe Hockey, Australia's Ambassador to the US, thought this was a waste, since it's the only lawn tennis court in Washington, and one of only a handful in the US north-east, so had it restored with the help of Westfield CEO Peter Lowy. Playing on grass is a dream of many tennis lovers and senior members of Congress, military leaders and foreign diplomats have all played on the court over the past year.  

Facett is a geometric, faceted hearing aid that won Australia's 2018 Good Design Award. It's both beautiful and user-friendly: instead of requiring tiny batteries that can be difficult to replace, it is rechargeable and clicks together with magnets. www.facett.com.au

A key part of diagnosing blood cancers is done by detecting abnormal chromosomes inside leukaemia cells. Now a new technique, pioneered by Wendy Erber, Kathy Fuller and Henry Hui from the University of Western Australia, will allow these diagnoses to be made more efficiently. The method is the first of its kind and can detect one leukaemia cell in a population of 10,000 normal cells. The trio won the Innovative Use of Technology Eureka Prize due to the sophisticated nature of their work. It will help in predicting the best treatment for a patient and the likely outcome." http://www.abc.net.au/news/science/2018-08-29/eureka-prizes-2018-five-awesome-innovations-australian-research/10179328?

WORK180 pre-screens employers to ensure they support women's careers. They only list jobs from businesses that are pre-screened against a set of 35 criteria, including pay equity, flexible working, women in leadership and paid parental leave. Starting in Australia, they are now expanding to the UK and US. While their focus is on empowering women in the workplace, they are aiming to achieve equality for all employees. https://www.work180.com.au/about-us

Nuro?s idea is battery-powered robotic van models about half the size of passenger cars that only haul goods. They operate at lower speed and only on urban and residential streets. Customers in the test city?can place same-day delivery orders using an online system and Nuro?s app, When a delivery arrives, the Nuro vehicle?s container compartments can be opened using the app. Unmanned delivery is expected to be a game-changer for local commerce. https://www.forbes.com/sites/alanohnsman/2018/06/28/grocery-kroger-nuro-with-tech-startup-nuro-for-robo-delivery-service/#3bbdd66d517a