Across many states and territories, the coronavirus restrictions keeping people at home are finally being relaxed. Here are the things allowed as the country slowly opens back up.

To really understand how this pandemic is impacting all of us, and what we can do about it, we should look to social sciences and the humanities. They have a lot to offer — in ways that might surprise you.

The Prime Minister weighs into the debate on a tweet by Victoria's Deputy Chief Health Officer while the state's Premier says there are "far more important matters to talk about".

Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews responds to the state's Deputy Chief Health Officer's tweet comparing coronavirus to Captain Cook's arrival in Australia at a press conference on May 1, 2020.

Supreme Court Justice Timothy Ginnane orders a COVID-19 risk assessment be undertaken at Port Phillip Prison after finding there was a prima facie case prison authorities breached their duty of care.

The number of coronavirus cases in Victoria continues to inch up as a paramedic tests positive to the virus and health authorities investigate a cluster at a meat processing plant.

Health Minister Jenny Mikakos announces that Epping's Meadowglen Primary School will be closed for three days as the state confirms 13 new coronavirus cases.

For now, Australia appears to have kept the virus in check and avoided a full-blown coronavirus crisis. This data shows how we did it.

Victoria's COVID-19 tally continues on its steepest climb in a fortnight, as Premier Daniel Andrews reveals 13,000 people were screened for the virus in the state's testing blitz on Sunday.

There have been 22 new confirmed cases of the coronavirus in Victoria overnight bringing the states total to 1406

Victoria records 17 new coronavirus cases including 11 linked to a cluster at a Melbourne meat processing plant. It comes as Treasurer Tim Pallas announces $491 million in tax relief for Victorian businesses.

Victorian Treasurer Tim Pallas says Victoria has recorded 17 new cases of coronavirus overnight with 11 of them linked to meat processing plant Cedar Meats in Broolyn, May 5, 2020.

New COVID-19 testing clinics have opened in Warrnambool and Ballarat as the Victorian Government continues its push to surpass 200,000 tests by May 11.

Victorian Treasurer Tim Pallas also announced additional tax relief for families and businesses impacted by pandemic lockdown measures, May 5, 2020.

Melbourne tea shop manager Jennifer Li recorded a stranger hurling racially charged taunts at her when she tried to defend herself and customers who were wearing facemasks.

The busiest airport in regional Victoria has laid off more than half its workforce and has lost 95 per cent of its revenue — but says it isn't eligible for government programs like the JobKeeper allowance.

A cluster of coronavirus cases at a Melbourne meatworks rises to 49, as two Victorian aged care homes go into lockdown after workers test positive to the virus.

Victorian Treasurer Tim Pallas says casual public sector workers who have lost their jobs due to coronavirus will receive fortnightly payments if $1500, May 6, 2020.

If you thought there were a lot more people around lately, you're not wrong. More and more people are out on the streets in Melbourne, anticipating an easing of coronavirus restrictions once the State of Emergency ends on May 11.

Police investigating the death of 26-year-old Ellie Price in South Melbourne are calling for help from the public to find Ricardo Barbaro, who they want to speak with about the death.

Residents at a Victorian aged care facility where a staff member tested positive for coronavirus earlier this week have been given the all-clear.

Prime Minister Scott Morrison announced the National Cabinet's plan to reopen Australia, but it will be up to each state and territory to decide how to roll it out. Here's what will change (or not) where you live.

A Lifeline volunteer counts her work as a privilege and urges more people to volunteer, as calls to the support line jump to record highs.

There are plenty of ways to celebrate Mother's Day without even leaving the house, even if your family is spread across the country. Here's how some families are celebrating.

A teacher having just returned from China still holds lessons while in precautionary quarantine by using technology that's educating in more ways than one.

The small West Australian town of Donnybrook is celebrating its reinvention more than 25 years after it was named the ugliest in Australia.

Have you ever picked up a stick to walk with through a park or reserve? Well, here's why you shouldn't.

What would you reach for in the midst of a pandemic? A cursory look at what the world is googling tells vastly disparate stories about how people are coping with the coronavirus outbreak.

Sorell farmer Shane Newitt put six months of love into his giant pumpkin to compete at the Bream Creek Show, but its cancellation hasn't stopped him showing it off.

Queensland law enforcement are undergoing a close shave of their own after being directed to shave for potential close-fitting masks to protect against coronavirus.

You'd think you need to go outside for plane spotting, but enthusiasts are adapting to coronavirus in surprising ways.

Captain Tom Moore, the British Army veteran who raised more than $55 million for Britain's National Health Service, tops the UK music charts with a cover of You'll Never Walk Alone.

Floodwaters are swelling rivers in drought-ravaged outback Queensland and lifting the spirits of graziers.

A man who assaulted a South Australian paramedic while she attempted to help him while he was having a mental episode has avoided jail time.

The Cordillo Downs woolshed is the biggest of its kind in the world and a reminder of when Australia rode on the sheep's back. Now help is being sought to guarantee its future.

Koala chlamydia has had devastating effects in Queensland and New South Wales, but a population believed to entirely free of the disease on Kangaroo Island is being heralded as a potential lifeline.

Despite breaking his back in several places in a light plane crash in outback SA that also injured his wife, experienced Perth pilot Jamie McAlindon is determined to get back into the cockpit.

Ecologists say kangaroos are eating the stomach contents of dead roos and toilet paper in national parks to survive the drought.

A young mother left with third-degree burns is urging others not to make the same mistake as her, and says to never fill a hot water bottle with boiling water.

Children of post-war European migrants call for permanent monument at Greta Migrant Camp in the NSW Hunter Valley.

Former rugby league star Jarryd Hayne is committed to stand trial on charges of aggravated sexual assault of a woman in the NSW Hunter region.

The death in custody of Wiradjuri woman Rebecca Maher is ruled accidental but the inquest finds police failed to conduct a proper body search over unfounded concerns of HIV.

A champion surf lifesaver who was paralysed in a surfing accident while on holidays with friends last year has taken her first steps with the aid of a sci-fi-like robotic suit.

The Federal Government has applauded a decision by the energy giant, but environmental groups say the move is "risky and irresponsible."

Newcastle Knights coach Nathan Brown to leave the NRL club after four seasons.