Australia has dropped a spot on Bloomberg’s Annual Innovation Index and sits at #19, marking the first time that China has finished ahead of Australia.

The list, in its seventh year, analyses dozens of criteria using seven metrics, including research and development spending, manufacturing capability and concentration of high-tech public companies.

South Korea topped the list again, and received a boost from fresh investments in strategic technologies and a regulatory program that encourages startups.

Anti-government protests have taken place across Sudan which has been noted as the biggest in living memory.

Riot police have used tear gas to try and stop protesting and large rallies to little success.

The protest began a month over the rising concerns over the economy, but now protestors are focused on removing President Omar al-Bashir from office.

Amnesty International claims Iran has arrested 7,000 people last year in a rampant campaign to repress dissentients.

Hundreds were sentenced to prison or flogging which included journalists, lawyers, trade unionists, and women and environmental rights activists.

The crackdown was a response to unrest over corruption, poverty and a lack of freedoms in the country.

Canberra is ramping up pressure on Beijing to release Chinese-Australian writer Yang Hengjun form “arbitrary detention”.

Liberal backbencher and chair of parliaments powerful intelligence agency, Andrew Hastie, accused Beijing of coercion and suggested the detainment of Mr. Yang was designed to deter members of the Chinese immigrants from speaking out against the Communist Party.

Mr Hastie has warned that “this action generates uncertainty in our friendship with China”

Three watercolor paintings which are said to have been painted by former Nazi leader Adolf Hitler, have been seized by German police.

The paintings were up for sale at Berlin’s Kloss auction House but were taken by police on suspicions of forgery.

Prior to his days as a political leader, Hitler was an aspiring artist. If the paintings are authenticated, they are expected to attract large bids from the US, Scandinavia, and Russia. 

A group of Polly Waffle lovers has won a battle to bring back the beloved chocolate bar.

The bar was invented in 1947 by Hoadley’s chocolate and since then many have made a ‘sweet’ connection to the 50-gram treat.

Since its removal from the shelves more than 10 years ago, a Facebook group with more than 55000 likes called ‘bring back the Polly Waffle’ have been successful in their venture for its return.

Victoria is expected to experience its hottest day since 2009 Black Saturday bushfires, with its main power stations at reduced capacity after a third of coal-fired generator shut down overnight.

Temperatures in Melbourne reached 35 degrees by 8am this morning and hovered at 30 degrees overnight.

Melbourne was forecast to reach 44 by mid-afternoon, approaching the all-time hottest day of 46.4 degrees for 7 February 2009.

FIfty first-year medical students have begun a new chapter in their lives after attending the inaugural orientation of Griffith University's new Doctor of medicine program at the Sunshine Coast.

Students will be the first ever to experience their medical degree at the new Campus at Kawana, with Griffith’s Gold Coast campus previously being the closest Griffith campus which offered the medical degree.

A low-pressure system is expected to bring heavy rain to Queensland’s far north and could develop into a cycle according to forecasters.

The weather system is currently over Cape York Peninsula and is expected to develop further over the next 24 hours.

The system has a 20-50% chance of becoming a cycle with communities warned to expect heavy rain that could cause flash floods.