Home About Articles Contact

Velentina Boulter

Velentina is a freelance journalist, having just finished studying journalism at The University of Melbourne. When she's not typing away at her laptop, she can usually be found overanalysing movies or making terrible jokes.

check out some of my favourite pieces below!

Remains - Season 3 Uncurated

Between the 1800s to1950s, anthropologists at the University of Melbourne were digging up burial sites of First Nations ancestors who had been laid to rest and collecting, rather stealing, their bodies. And while some of these human remains were returned to land and reburied, one collection remained hidden away at the university in a storage room until 2003.

Uncover the true story of The University of Melbourne’s troubled past of grave robbing and the efforts to repatriate the hundreds of Indig...
ConnectSci •

8000 years of Indigenous history revealed on Peninsula

Archaeologists are filling in gaps about Indigenous populations on coastal and island sites of Yorke Peninsula, west of South Australia’s capital Adelaide, putting likely habitation there 8000 years ago.
A new study, published in The Journal of Island and Coastal Archaeology, focussing on Point Pearce Peninsula/Burgiyana and Wardang Island/Waraldi, was done in collaboration with the Narungga Nation Aboriginal Corporation and Point Pearce Aboriginal Corporation. The Narungga people are the Aborig...
ConnectSci •

Many women unprepared for the pain of medical abortions

A British survey has found that many women choosing medical abortions at home are unprepared for the severity of the pain, having been told it would be no more painful than period cramps.
But the survey from the British Pregnancy Advisory Service (BPAS) an independent healthcare and abortion advice charity, revealed more than 40% of women reported the pain score at 8 or higher out of 10.
The results of the surveyed are mirrored elsewhere, with an Australian sexual health researcher saying: "...i...
ConnectSci •

Reduction in use of opioids for back pain deemed successful

A recent trial in Sydney has resulted in a significant reduction of the number of opioids used in emergency rooms for lower back pain.
Two-thirds of Australians who end up in emergency departments with lower back pain are given  opioids. In the US, opioids are administered to approximately 40% of lower-back pain patients in emergency rooms.
Opioids are a group of pain-relieving drugs that works by blocking pain messages between the body and the brain and include morphine, oxycodone, fentanyl and...
ConnectSci •

Doubts raised over AFL response to players’ concussion

As the Australian rules football seasons draws to a close with tomorrow’s grand final between Sydney Swans and the Brisbane Lions, questions are being asked about what managing concussions “conservatively“ should look like at an elite level.
The sport - among the most popular in Australia - is run by the Australian Football League (AFL). It is a physical contact game but players rarely use protective body equipment. Multiple serious concussions have resulted in the AFL peak body issuing rules fo...
Cosmos •

National breast density policy review close

BreastScreen Australia is to update its position on breast density reporting early in the new year.


Advocates for breast cancer awareness are calling for a change in the National BreastScreen Australia program, saying breast density should be included in mammogram reporting in the upcoming policy and funding review.


A spokesperson for the Department of Health and Aged Care told Cosmos:


“The report is expected to be submitted to Government in early 2025.”


BreastScreen Australia is the...
Cosmos •

Behind the door - subtracting the myths out of maths

Across the world, there are thousands of public universities that are open for members of the public to explore, to just walk in and experience firsthand the breathtaking scientific developments that are happening in their city. 


But how often do we take up this opportunity, to just simply walk into a building that we know nothing about and speak to the faculty members who are fuelled by a passion for innovation. 


Over the last few weeks, I’ve been lucky enough to do just that. For the fiv...

WHY AM I CRYING OVER 18 YOUNG MEN?

But just like that. After 20 years of nothing but constant support. This is how the North Melbourne Football Club treats me.

You enter my room and there I am. Star-fished on my bed, staring blankly up at the ceiling. I’ve given up on refreshing my phone. But it continues to flash open with messages from my friends anyway.

“It hurts now, but one day it will get better”

“Omg I just saw, are you okay?”

“Thinking of you during these trying times. Here if you need xx”

There are a bunch of feelin
The Yarn •

Dark Matters: The Mind - The Yarn

When we imagine great mysteries we think of distant galaxies or unexplorable ocean depths. But one of the greatest mysteries is a lot closer to home. It’s in our heads.

The human brain is the most complex data processor in the known universe. But we still have very little idea how our own consciousness actually works.

This week, we’re bringing you three stories that shed light on the intricacies of our minds.

It’s the first episode of Dark Matters. Our new series about the fundamental essence

Really, this is how we’re ending things? A Guide to Series Finales

It’s no surprise that when our beloved TV shows come to an end, we’re left bereft. We’re left standing there, more awkward than a contestant on The Bachelor who didn’t receive a rose, unsure of what happens next and trying not to make a scene. But what’s the best way to end a show? How can you call off the relationship but still stay friends without the stressful will-they-won’t-they of Ross and Rachel?

Some things are constant in our lives. The sun rises each morning as I write up my to-do lis

down with capitalism

over the past few years, i’ve witnessed friends, family and now even myself fall victim to a sickening trend. what started (i can only assume) as a simple grammatical mistake, has since taken over the entire internet. but maybe, this disturbing phenomenon is actually for the best.

over the past few years, i’ve witnessed friends, family and now even myself fall victim to a sickening trend.

what started (i can only assume) as a simple grammatical mistake, has since taken over the entire internet
LADbible •

Aussies are being called on to register to be organ donors to help those in need

Only one-third of the population has signed up to the initiative but it's hoped that statistic will change during Donate Life Week.

Aussies are being called on to sign up to be organ donors and help out those who are critically in need.

Only one in 10 young Australians aged 14-16 have registered, but the team at Donate Life are determined to flip that statistic during their campaign this week.

Despite the fact that 80 per cent of Australians support organ tissue donation, only around one-thir

Contact Me

My inbox is always open for tips,