Crocodile Hunter Steve Irwin, dead at 44

Crikey!

The Earth, and it's fauna, lost a friend today, September 4, 2006, Australian time when Steve Irwin, the Australian conservationist, known internationally as "The Crocodile Hunter", was killed while doing what he loved best, filiming his beloved animals.

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Steve "The Crocodile Hunter" Irwin has been killed by a stingray on the Great Barrier Reef during the filming of a new TV series. The stingray's barb pierced the 44-year-old's chest, causing a heart seizure.

Wildlife warrior Steve Irwin was a daredevil who loved flirting with danger around deadly animals. But after years of close shaves it was a normally harmless stingray which finally claimed his life on Monday, plunging a barb into the Crocodile Hunter's chest as he snorkelled in shallow water on the Great Barrier Reef.

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The 44-year-old TV personality may have died instantly when struck by the stingray while filming a sequence for his eight-year-old daughter Bindi's new TV series, friends believe.

full story and pictures Ninemsn

STINGRAY

Members of the Dasyatidae family of cartilaginous fish, with about 70 species worldwide

Mostly found in tropical seas, but exist in freshwater too

Feed primarily on molluscs and crustaceans on sea floor

Swim with flying motion using large pectoral wings

Usually docile, not known to attack aggressively

Equipped with venom-coated razor-sharp barbed or serrated tail, up to 20cm long

Stingray photo and information BBC NEWS

National Resources Management

Fostering A Sustainable Future

The S E Natural Resources Management Board (SE NRM) of South Australia is the body that now helps manage and protect these vital assets by:

• Protecting water resources
• Fighting pest plants & animals
• Caring for our soils and coastline
• Monitoring our resources
• Involving the community
• Enhancing our biodiversity

If you would like more information, you can find them on the internet at: www.senrmb.com.au

original information from Government of South Australia

Conserve Energy. Save the Planet

65 Ways to Save Energy at Home

Cooking

1. Keep the oven door closed. Each time you open it the temperature drops about 20C (68F).

2. Cook several meals at the one time.

3. Use stackable saucepans or ones with dividers for small amounts.

4. Keep food warm at 70-80C (158-176F).

5. Use the oven heat to warm plates.

6. Use utensils with flat bottoms and well fitting lids.

7. Vegetables will cook in a gentle simmer.

8. Fan ovens reduce energy use.

9. Keep the hotplate reflectors clean and bright to reflect heat upwards.

10. Pressure cookers can save about 25% of energy.

11. Use small appliances whenever possible.

12. Thawing frozen food before cooking saves about 15 minutes cooking time per 500g (1lb).

13. Microwave ovens are economical for suitable functions.

14. Use the appropriate sized hotplate for the size of the utensil.

15. Use an electric kettle to boil water, not a hotplate.

16. Ensure oven door seals are in good order.

    Heating & Cooling

17. Insulate ceiling with at least 50mm ( 2 inches) of fibrous or foam insulation.

18. Insulate cavity walls. Block off unused chimneys.

19. Keep rooms closed if heating or cooling ( except for full house air conditioning).

20. Keep air conditioner filters and condenser coils clean.

21. Reverse cycle air conditioners are more efficient than element heaters.

22. Close doors of rooms not in use to conserve energy.

23. Shade windows outside during summer.

24. Turn off appliances if rooms unoccupied.

25. Use personal fans, multi speed fans & ceiling fans where possible.

26. Set air conditioner to 18-19C (64-66F) in summer or 24-25C (75-77F) in winter).

27. Close airconditioner exhaust and fresh air vents until needed.

28. Air conditioner fans are more efficient on high speed.

29. A student may be kept warm with a low wattage heater in a study. e.g. 500 watts.

30. Use evaporative cooling appliances where possible.

31. Two speed swimming pool pumps save about 60% energy imput.

32. Aim to heat the people rather than space heating. Use small radiators rather than space heating.

33. Electric blankets are the cheapest bedroom heating.

    
    Refrigeration
    

34. Select a refrigerator which uses waste heat for defrosting.

35. Only buy a refrigerator appropriate. Do not buy one too large.

36. If you already own a freezer buy a refrigerator without a freezer section.

37. Defrost before ice build up is 1cm ( 3/8 inch) thick.

38. Open the door only when necessary.

39. Ensure door seals are in good condition.

40. Keep the coils at the rear free of dust and fluff.

41. Locate the refrigerator in a well ventilated postion.

42. Do not position refrigerator in direct sunlight or near any heat source.

    Washing Clothes

43. Buy a washing machine suitable. Do an extra load rather than have one too big.

44. Use water level appropriate to the amount of washing.

45. Use soak and sud saver features.

46. Cold or tepid water will wash effectively. Use correct type of detergent.

47. Do not use lights too large for the needs.

48. Use translucent shades. Dark shades require bigger lamps.

49. Place lights locally near the task, not a central light.

50. Use fluorescent tubes and save about 75% energy. Use modern long life lamps.

    Drying Clothes

51. Use solar energy to dry clothes. A clothes line.

52. Operate a dryer using the fan only. Use heater only when absolutely necessary.

53. Never over or under load the dryer.

54. Switch off as soon as clothes are dry enough.

55. Tumble dryers are more effective than cabinet dryers.

    Heating Water

56. Solar hot water heating is cheaper.

57. Don't allow taps to drip. Sixty drips a minute wastes about 400 litres per month.

58. Water restrictors & low flow showers save energy.

59. Ensure hot water pipes and the heater are insulated.

60. Install a storage heater of at least 125 litres to run off peak tariff ( where available).

61. Normal showers use less water than a bath.

62. Fill kettles from the cold tap.

63. Set hot water temperature at about 70C (158F)

    Accessories

64. Lighting dimmers save energy and provide mood surroundings.

65. Use plug in timers where possible.

Adapted from a brochure (1985) prepared by The Electricity Trust of South Australia ( ETSA).

Etsa retail is now AGL. Cost guide Here!

e&oe

Mount Gambier Trek

Mountainhigh ... but what's below?

By GRETEL SNEATH 11feb06

Source The Advertiser

WHEN Mount Gambier was named the nation's tidiest town for 2005, judges said the key to its popularity lay in its broad appeal. But for the real dirt on what makes the heartland of the Limestone Coast the perfect destination, visitors need to delve well beneath the soil. Limestone foundations formed millions of years ago have helped create a spectacular range of attractions in South Australia's second-largest city.
Rainwater seeping through the sponge-like rock has formed a series of sinkholes, lakes, and mysterious underground waterways, giving a whole new meaning to the concept of heading "down under".
Engelbrecht Cave offers one of the best examples of the filtration process, and is a popular spot for experienced divers who literally swim beneath the city streets. Daily walking tours also take visitors into two large chambers which expose the water table, and maps produced by divers show the full extent of this complex underground cave system.
Engelbrecht Cave is also the home of Bats Bike Hire, and pedal power is the perfect way to experience most of Mount Gambier attractions.
Less than 10 minutes' cycling will take you to Umpherston Sinkhole at the opposite end of town, where a sunken garden has formed from the collapsed roof of a cave.
Spectacular by day, it is the perfect picnic spot with masses of hydrangeas growing on a series of terraces.
But it's also a big attraction after dark, when friendly possums come out to feed.
The famous Blue Lake has a 3.6km road and walking track around its circumference providing access to a range of viewing points.
The lake is the city's chief water supply, and you can also take a tour through the pumping station, which includes a journey down the original dolomite well shaft in a glass-panelled lift. Tours lasting 45 minutes depart from the new, ultra-modern reception centre at the main entrance to the Lake, complete with a cafe and toilet facilities.
The steep walk to nearby Centenary Tower also pays off, with the 360-degree views of farmland, forestry and distant shores, while nearby Valley Lake is popular year-round thanks to an excellent adventure playground and recreational area containing 16 free gas barbecues. Be sure to take the children along the boardwalk over the Valley Lake surface, which leads to a wildlife park containing an abundance of water birds and even the odd koala.
Heading back to the heart of the city, the Cave Garden sinkhole was the original source of water for the early settlers and visitors are able to walk down into the cave and venture out on to a suspended platform for a closer view.
And while you're in the area, a visit to Sorrentos opposite the Cave Garden is a must. The cafe has mastered the al fresco dining experience and serves Mediterranean and Asian cuisine as well as irresistible cakes and coffee.
The Cave Gardens precinct is also home to a well-supported Farmers Market which offers a range of produce direct from the growers on the third Sunday of every month. You can also sample some distinctly local flavours at the award-wining Sage and Muntries Cafe on Commercial St, which specialises in regional produce and seafood and serves crayfish all year round. Commercial St is also an ideal shopping destination, with seven-day trading proving popular with visitors.
While national fashion, sporting and electrical retailers have a strong presence in Mount Gambier, the city also has a large range of boutique businesses selling everything from clothing to craft and homewares.
History buffs will appreciate a fine set of 19th century commercial and public buildings, none better than the old town hall and two institute buildings.
Sporting enthusiasts are also spoilt for choice in this city, with everything from world-class hockey and baseball facilities at Blue Lake Sports Park to a 50m heated outdoor pool. And there is accommodation for every budget and taste, from standard tent sites to luxury spa retreats.
Or, for a truly memorable experience, you can curl up in a cell at the original Mt Gambier Gaol.

For more details, phone au 1800 087 087 or visit
Limestone Coast Tourism

Booklet looks to improve bat protection

A new booklet designed to help preserve the [South Australian] Limestone Coast's bat population will be unveiled tonight at the Naracoorte Caves.

The south-east of South Australia is home to as many as 16 different bat species.

Naracoorte Caves' manager Steve Bourne says the publication will help shed some light on the mysterious nocturnal creatures.

"There's a key to identification of all of the 16 species of bats that are found within the region, but also important information on where bats live, important habitats for them, how to make your place bat-friendly and what to do if you've perhaps got unwanted bats in the roof of your house or if you find an injured bat," he said.

ABC South East

Naracoorte Caves

Australian Bird Flu Alert

Rangers on flu alert as birds arrive from Asia

RANGERS across the [South Australian] state's South-East are on high alert for an outbreak of the deadly bird flu strain in hundreds of thousands of wild migratory birds.In wetlands across the Limestone Coast, particularly the pristine Bool Lagoon and Coorong, wild bird populations are being monitored closely by the 12 Environment Department Rangers on patrol as the birds start arriving from Asia, where the H5N1 strain of avian influenza has killed more than 60 people.
Primary Industries and Resources South Australia director of animal health Robin Vandegraaff said rangers and ecologists across South Australia had been put "on alert".
"They are particularly monitoring migratory waterbirds," Mr Vandegraaff said.

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The Limestone Coast's Meet the Waders Festival, which has run for the whole of November, encourages tourists to bring the binoculars and watch the thousands of migratory and nomadic birds. Bird flocks are concentrated in the Bool Lagoon and Coorong areas, with the festival officially finishing on November 30, although the birds remain until the start of February.

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Hundreds of thousands of migratory birds start arriving [in the South East of South Australia] in November after flying thousands of kilometres from distant breeding grounds in Siberia, Asia and the Arctic Circle.

Original complete story by: KARA PHILLIPS 26nov05

Advertiser Newspaper

Timber workers lose jobs

TIMBER workers in Mt Gambier face an uncertain future, with 90 to lose jobs - nearly a third of the industry's workforce in the South East.

On Monday, Carter Holt Harvey told staff at its three sawmills in Mount Gambier and western Victoria it would cut 150 jobs with the Mt Gambier mill on the Jubilee Highway, with a workforce of 300, facing the biggest cut. ......

Cheap imports and a building industry slowdown have contributed to a fall of about 15 per cent in timber prices in the past 18 months.........

South Australian state Local MP and Minister for Forests Rory McEwen said he was concerned about job losses but employment in the region was buoyant overall. "With the downturn in the housing industry, this is not unexpected," he said. "It's important to ensure that anyone losing a job is assisted in finding another one as soon as possible.

"With blue gums coming on stream, we are expecting an increased demand for labour," he said.

Read the complete article at:
News Limited Australia

edited by TWRT

How to stop a terrorist hurricane like Rita / Katrina?

A desperate situation requires desperate measures.

The USA is regularly hit by tornados or hurricanes and it seems
it should be possible with existing technology to stop them, especially hurricanes.
Basically they are fuelled by warm air rising up rapidly to the colder atmosphere.
Perhaps the military could explode incendiary devices / missiles / bombs
in the atmosphere which could
warm the air & interupt the cycle.
I am NOT suggesting brute nuclear force is necessary, merely HEAT, applied in the correct location, perhaps around the circumference at regular distances, at its narrowest point.

Some hurricanes are hundreds of miles across so the target area is important.

Just a thought...... anyone else have a solution?

Boston Tea Party

The Boston tea party involved about 150 men who went aboard
East India Company ships in Boston harbor, on December 16th, 1773,
ripped open tea chests and threw them into the ocean, in protest at the
attempt to monopolize the tea trade in the colony, which we now know as
the United States of America. Bless 'em.

The company had tried to bypass local merchants and import directly
into the colony itself.

Other colonies had persuaded local agents of the East India company to
resign and tea imports were returned to England or stored in warehouses.

The Boston locals would have none of that and simply dumped the product
in the
ocean thereby becoming some of the first ENVIRONMENT VANDALS in the USA.

Australians would have handled the same circumstances differently
had they happened here.

It is likely that the Australians would have engaged in a game of cat
and mouse
with the authorities. The tea would have been stolen and hidden in
various places
to give the British police and military a sporting chance to look for it.

Aussies would have also camped by a billabong* and waited until their billy*
boiled and then enjoyed a nice hot cup of tea, compliments of the
British establishment.

A goodly portion of the booty beverage would have been sold on street
corners to the local tea-addicts of the era for quite a few dollars per
ounce.

Consider this:

By dumping the tea, the American colonists only deprived themselves of the
drink and from then on had to drink that horrible stuff, instant coffee.

My goodness! Look what that has done to them. They walk around in a zombie
like half asleep state and don't know if they are Arthur or Martha.

They are obsessed with the "market economy" whereas Australians love
their sport.

Australians, on the other hand, have a wide selection of beverages,
including
tea, coffee, wines, spirits and beer and are still alert to a good freebie
when one is available.
lol

* A Billy ( from Scottish bally : a milk pail) is a
metal container for boiling water.
*Billabong : a lake isolated from the main river.

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Australian government Water Fund Grants

Community Water Grants
Call for Applications

The Australian Federal Government is calling for applications from Indigenous organisations, conservation groups and other community organisations for water grants up to AU$50,000 each to help save, reuse or improve the health of local water sources.

The Community Water Fund totals AU$2 billion with AU$200 million being allocated over the next five years to assist communities play a positive role in alleviating Australia's water crises.

Australia has large tracts of desert, however it is also known to have massive sub-terranean water reserves, especially in South Australia, the driest state in the driest continent on earth when annual rainfall is tallied.

Grants' are available for projects related to:

1. Water saving & efficiency
2. Water reuse & recycling
3. Improving surface & groundwater health

Applications close October 4th, 2005 and may be made by calling
Freecall 1800 780 730 within Australia or access the water grants website Here!

Earliest songbirds had an Aussie twang

Republished

Judy Skatssoon
ABC Science Online

The world's songbirds, including this tree sparrow, originated in Australia, then spread throughout the globe (Image: Science/Tommy Holden/BTO)

Nightingales, mockingbirds and songbirds around the world originated in Australia then populated the rest of the globe, a new DNA study suggests.

Until relatively recently, researchers had believed the opposite, that sparrows, finches, wrens, crows, canaries, ravens and sparrows originated in Europe and north America, then had populated Australia.

The U.S. and Swiss study was reported online today by the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

Research led by Dr Keith Barker from the Bell Museum of Natural History in Minnesota looked at the passerines, or perching birds, which make up half the world's birds. Three-quarters of passerines are songbirds.

The scientists conducted the largest ever analysis of passerine DNA to trace the origins of perching birds back to the super-continent Gondwana.

The study showed passerines originated in Western Gondwana, which split into Australia, New Zealand and Antarctica, with the sub-species of songbirds evolving in what is now Australia.

Assistant director of the Australian Museum in Sydney, Associate Professor Les Christidis said the study built on research by Australian authors, including himself, in the late 1980s.

He said the suggestion that songbirds originated in Australia was considered "ludicrous" when it was first published.

"When we first suggested this ...we got laughed at by the Americans," he said.

"Australia doesn't have that many birds relative to the rest of the world, so how could it be the centre of everything?

"It turns out that lowly Australia really is the centre. Australia can lay claim to the songbirds without a shadow of a doubt."

He said passerine birds found along the east coast of Australia, such as lyre birds, bower birds, tree creepers and honey eaters were living examples of tens of millions of years of evolution.

Australian ornithologist Wayne Longmore from Museum Victoria said the hypothesis challenged 200 years of thinking.

"Up until the last four or five years it's always been thought that the passerine birds originated in the northern hemisphere and spread south and that's been the gospel for the last 200 years," he said.

The oldest passerine fossil was also found in Australia, dating back to the early Eocene period about 55 million years ago.

First Americans may have been Aussies

Ancient Worlds News - First Americans may have been Aussies - 07/09/2004

Find ABC article HERE! Inhabitants of what is now Australia travelled by canoe to settle in the Americans more than 30,000 years ago, say anthropologists in light of new research.

They would have island hopped via Japan and Polynesia to the Pacific coast of the Americas at a time when sea levels were lower than they are today, Dr Silvia Gonzalez fromJohn Moores University in Liverpool told this week's annual meeting of the British Association for the Advancement of Science in Exeter.

The claim will be unwelcome to today's native Americans who came overland from Siberia and say they were there first.

Most researchers say they came across the Bering Straits from Russia to Alaska at the end of the Ice Age, up to 15,000 years ago.

But Gonzalez said skeletal evidence pointed strongly to Australian origins and hinted that recovered DNA would corroborate it.

"This is very contentious," said Gonzalez. "[Native Americans] cannot claim to have been the first people there."

She said there was very strong evidence that the first migration came from Australia to the Pacific coast of America.

Skulls of a people with distinctively long and narrow heads discovered in Mexico and California predated by several thousand years the more rounded features of the skulls of native Americans.

One particularly well preserved skull of a long-face woman had been carbon dated to 12,700 years ago, whereas the oldest accurately dated native American skull was only about 9000 years old.

"We have extracted her DNA. It is going to be a bomb," she said, declining to give details but adding that the tests carried out so far were being replicated to make sure they were accurate.

She said there were tales from Spanish missionaries of an isolated coastal community of long-face people in Baja California, known as the Pericues, who were of a completely different race and rituals from other communities in America at the time.

"They appear more similar to southern Asians and the populations of the Pacific Rim than they do to northern Asians," she said. "You cannot have two face shapes coming from the same place."

The last survivors were wiped out by diseases imported by the Spanish conquerors, Gonzalez said.

with AFP and ABC Science Online

International Domain Names Registration

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TODAY: Earthquake near the North of Australia

An earthquake measuring about 7.1 on the richter scale has been reported a little over 500 kms north of Darwin the the capital of the Northern Territory of Australia in the BANDA SEA near Indonesia.

The quake was strongly felt in Darwin

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Earthquakes occur more often than many people realise.

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CLICK on this link and create an earthquake map for past quakes.

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HAS THERE BEEN AN EARTHQUAKE NEAR YOU LATELY?

As the COCKY flies

AS THE COCKY FLIES STRAIGHT LINE CALCULATOR

'Cocky' is the abbreviated generic name for one of Australia's most loved birds, the Sulphur Crested Cockatoo, however it is also applied to any parrot. The Australianism, "as the cocky flies" is equivalent to "how the crow flies" and refers to the distance along a theoretical straight line between two points on the earth.Cick here for a distance calculator

Find the straight line distance between geographical features, towns and cities within Australia. The road distances will vary greatly from those, sometimes a great as 50%, further depending on the terrain.

Cockatoo and other beautiful, unique, Australian fauna is in here

The same website has:
Place Name Search
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Place Name Search

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Online Databases
Many of our databases are available online for your convenience.
Search our online databases

Sunrise, Sunset Times
Compute Sunrise/Sunset, Moonrise/Moonset, Sun/Moon Azimuth & Elevation, Moon phase & planet data for Australian Place Names or any latitude/longitude around the world!
Make a calculation

Product Search
The Product Search is an online interface to our products database "GeoCat". Use a mapping interface or a place name search to specify your area of interest. A text search is also available.

Archive of Aerial Photography
By clicking on the area of interest on the accompanying map you will be given a list of available Flight Line Diagrams for that area.
Browse the archive

The Day The Earth Stood Still

Scientists tell us that whenever a satellite is sent into orbit some of the earth's energy goes with it. They boast how they can sling shot or "gravity assist" a spacecraft around the moon to capture some if its energy to shoot the craft off into space, a kind of free gas station, as it were. Satellites orbiting the earth use the energy from the earth to stay aloft. QUESTIONS: If so much of earth's energy has been exported into space what effect does this have on our environment. Are the extreme weather conditions experienced in recent years caused by earth losing some of its energy? Are these weather conditions caused by a slowing down or speeding up of the moon caused by spacecraft absorbing or fueling lunar energy? Has Earth slowed down and will it eventually stop altogether from exporting of these vital forces?