"Darn, they left early"
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The Part-time and Casual Culture
Despite the boom times in Australia which has finally peaked, a significant proportion of working Australians do not have permanent full-time positions. This is because both sides of politics have freed-up the hiring contract between employers and employees.
The claim that bank holiday and annual leave pay is included in the casual rate is rubbish. People are hired for a per hour fee. No moneys are set aside for rest day payment. Part-time employees can be called in to work at any time of the day or night.
Even in management the market is distorted. Tests to find the "ideal" personality to do the job have never been tested in the real world. They have been written by university people who teach and must write a certain number of papers for "respected" journals.
Governments are reducing employment in the public sector. When they have to get the work done in future by the private sector the real cost will become apparent. While contractors offering specific skills do well, many are not making a profit. Many private contractors, for example truck drivers, run at a loss. As they work, their debt to the banks increases. Ultimately they may have to sell their homes to clear their debt. Furthermore, they have to take drugs to stay awake because they drive day and night. In effect they are forced to break the law.
Today, production runs are getting shorter. This is due to improved production-line machinery. If the line is run for a few years the world market can be flooded. Restricting production by monopolies becomes a genuine profit maximizing policy.
The future job market looks spasmodic and uncertain. The forced superannuation policy of government will break down as the newly unemployed take early payments from their retirement fund to survive in the present.
Conservation
Spread of Malaria to Man from Other Apes - Just Theory
Gorillas caused it. Scientists say mosquitoes split into a new form capable of infecting humans when Man and chimpanzees had a common ancestor. This is a myth. It is not based on fact. Bonobos have also been singled out for blame despite no parasites being found in bonobos or western gorillas, though some parasites were found in chimpanzees and eastern gorillas.
Before conclusions can be drawn on such research evidence of this mystery ancestor must be found first. This is all hearsay. How can present day apes be responsible for current malaria infection. Gorillas are only found in very small parts of Africa, not all around the world.
This wreaks of leaps of faith not science. It is no better than religious beliefs based on prophets who probably never existed. It is scientific fact that evil spirits do not cause disease, yet millions of people believe that a man, Jesus, cured illness by casting out spirits. Note, everyone is entitled to follow a religion.
Before conclusions can be drawn on such research evidence of this mystery ancestor must be found first. This is all hearsay. How can present day apes be responsible for current malaria infection. Gorillas are only found in very small parts of Africa, not all around the world.
This wreaks of leaps of faith not science. It is no better than religious beliefs based on prophets who probably never existed. It is scientific fact that evil spirits do not cause disease, yet millions of people believe that a man, Jesus, cured illness by casting out spirits. Note, everyone is entitled to follow a religion.
Conservation
Accident Witnesses May Not Remember the Truth
Witnesses in a trial may reiterate what they believe to be an accurate statement of what happened before their very eyes, but this may be distorted if they were stressed at the time. During a bank robbery or hostage taking they will be stressed if they are the victims.
Certain parts of the brain are known to be affected, when a memory (engram) is created. Once a memory is made and filed, recall of this is the same whether the engram is true or false.
In mice the chemical structure of a memory of a bright flashing light was identified. This chemical "program" was induced in some mice. When electric pulses were applied to the animal's feet for memory recall, those with the program froze in shock, while the others reacted normally. Obviously, the mice deemed the false memory to be absolutely real. Placement of the memory is fixed and immediate.
Human memories tend to improve with age. As time goes by, what actually happened and what really occurred during childhood is rosier. Bad memories affect health. Amnesia could be a safety mechanism to forget a very bad, painful memory.
Conservation
Investment in Clean Energy Production Predicted to Rise
It is predicted that the use of solar and wind power will rapidly increase as costs falls. There has been an improvement in the efficiency of wind turbines. Solar panels also put out more power at a lower cost.
Australians have strongly adopted solar power while governments offer high payments for electricity going back into the system. Making an end date of 2026 of such overpayment was a silly idea. It is too far ahead for future governments to guarantee this "lopsided" subsidy that only helps the wealthy. The financial burden has been pushed onto the elderly.
Solar power has hidden costs. Power surges burn out televisions and computers. New ones must be purchased. Many consumers are saying someone has to fix this. Considering solar power generation will fluctuate throughout the day with this is near impossible.
Frank Calabria, CEO of Origin Energy, favors the elimination of all subsidies on clean energy. This indicates a probable back down considering Origin is the largest investor in wind farms. Coal remains the cheapest form of power production in Australia. This economic advantage will continue. Whether new calls for nuclear power are supported is unknown are present.
Conservation
New Ways to Repel Sharks
Like South Africa, Australia is known as a region of frequent shark attacks. A lot of research has been done over the years in an attempt to reduce such attacks. Humans are not normal food for sharks. It is when humans behave in a similar way to injured fish that attacks occur.
Electronic pulses and sounds have been tried with limited success. Colored diving suits have also proven to be ineffective, until now. It has been discovered that blue lines on wetsuits disrupts the vision of sharks because they are color-blind.
White stripes also work as a deterrent but in a different way. Poisonous fish have white on their bodies. It tells potential predators that eating them will have dire consequences.
The cryptic wetsuit that "blinds" sharks is aimed at divers, while the white stripped warning suite is for those close to the beach. Diving equipment and surfing gear is also being colored to match the wetsuits.
Though shark attacks cannot be stopped entirely, the number of people injured is certain to fall. Tests at the Oceans Institute in Western Australia has shown that the new suits work very well. The new products will be sold by a company called Radiator.
Conservation
Australian Birds Change Breeding Times to Suite the Harsh Climate
Human beings may be having problems with variable weather in Australia, but animals are coping well. Zebra finches, pelicans and woodswallows seem to know when the weather changes. If the Spring comes early they nest early. If it is too dry to breed they hold off until times are better. They change their breeding point by months either way.
When glaciation was at its peak the woodswallow population actually boomed. In boom times there is a larger pool of gene carriers ideal for genetic selection when times become harder. More of the birds die off. Yet, the survivors have traits that suite the changed environment.
Australia has the harshest of climates with long periods of drought. Consequently, birds such as pelicans live a longtime on a meagre diet so they can wait for good times to breed. Zebra finches seem to do well even when times are very hard.
When glaciation was at its peak the woodswallow population actually boomed. In boom times there is a larger pool of gene carriers ideal for genetic selection when times become harder. More of the birds die off. Yet, the survivors have traits that suite the changed environment.
Australia has the harshest of climates with long periods of drought. Consequently, birds such as pelicans live a longtime on a meagre diet so they can wait for good times to breed. Zebra finches seem to do well even when times are very hard.
Conservation
Changes to Treatment of Young Offenders
The Queensland state government is making drastic changes to the way young people who commit crimes are treated. Young offenders are to be named and shamed. Those punished by being sent to institutions will be transferred to adult prisons when they reach the age of eighteen.
Many of the "young criminals" are victims of crime themselves. Difficult home life has pushed them into crime. Naming them would make their lives intolerable.
The government decision has been made on just one survey. It seems the decision was made before the survey began. Young people are not mature adults. They are growing and learning. Judging them at such a stage in their lives is marking them as bad citizens for life.
Other changes include making fixed penalties for some crimes committed by adults. Judges will not have the discretion to modify the sentences according to prevailing circumstances.
A change that just about everyone agrees on is courts knowing the case histories of adult defendants during a trial. Many offenders get away with crimes simply because their past behavior is not known.
Conservation
Microsoft to Offer VPN
Microsoft is going to offer a way for consumers to get around national firewalls. It is aimed at domestic US consumers to access corporate resources but it will make for a revolution in bypassing national restrictions, particularly for music and television programming.
Of course you will need a Windows mobile phone to access the feature. This is a trump card that Microsoft has played. However, like with cloud services when one enterprise gives something extra all competitors provide it as well.
While it is essentially for business use, VPN access will ultimately be used to access local content in countries that restrict it to their citizens. Just how program providers will react to this is not known. This announcement has been a surprise. However, many users pay a few dollars a month for VPNs already. It makes for easy use of programming supposedly blocked for overseas people.
If business gets "free" use of VPNs, the ordinary consumer will want it too. Soon rivals to Microsoft will take it a step further by giving business and general Internet users automatic VPN access.
Conservation
Too Many Maths and Science Graduates
For many years it has been said that Australia lacks maths and science graduates. Maths teachers are in short supply we are told. Professor Ian Chubb, a chief scientist, certainly pushes this case.
Unfortunately, data does not support this premise. Like qualified information technology people, maths and science graduates find the job market difficult. It seems there is real demand only in geological science. A little more than half of graduates say their qualifications are relevant to their work. They hold down jobs only in distantly related fields.
One would think that with science and technology moving forward at a rapid pace such qualified people would be sorely needed. Employment in agricultural science is falling because young people are leaving rural towns and refuse to learn about farming. It is seen as glorified laboring.
Getting a post-graduate qualification does not help to find work. Employers see higher degrees as narrowing educational scope. Government is continuing to push universities to offer science and maths teaching despite labor demand falling. Places for teachers are available, but when first employed new teachers have to work for ten years or more in the bush before they can choose where they want to live.
Though historically Australian culture was based on bush life, today the young are urbanites. They love big cities and living near the ocean. The trend is for elderly grandparents to spend their last days in rural areas, while their offspring live it up on the coast. Maths and science, however, may not be the road to financial success.
Conservation
The Casual Aussie
In the modern world many types of behavior are tolerated. Angry people are allowed to run the streets chanting their violent slogans. Individuals are entitled to live the life of a hermit, barely communicating with anyone else. Saying that things have changed is too simplistic. The more things change the more they stay the same.
Some have said that Australia's new Prime Minister Kevin Rudd is too familiar with all those around him, calling fellow members of cabinet by their nicknames. It has been said that this is new for Australia. This is nonsense. Australians quickly find the names of strangers and from the "get go" call them by their first names. I remember watching a talk on television some years ago and the American was really upset by the Australian, who was also being interviewed, for not addressing him as Mr "Smith".
Australia is an unusual country. It has a culture of bringing everyone to the same level. Honorifics have little place in such a culture. Judges for example are treated as just public servants. Other countries rank judges highly and ordinary people would not even attempt a jovial conversation with them. Australians can see no barrier.
In recent years Australia could be said to be moving in the other direction. The street barbecue is fading away and neighbors rarely talk to each other. I hope Australia does not go down the same road as Britain and France where false "upper-class' accents are adopted by those trying to move up the fixed societal ranking. No, let Australia be. It has a unique heritage and being different is a good thing.
Conservation
Whales Continue to Beach Themselves
Why do Whales beach themselves? The theory is that some coastal regions are shallow so sonar does not bounce back to the animals to tell them to keep away. This is only a theory. There seems to be no way of stopping the mammals from laying themselves on the sand to die a painful death. Dragging them out to sea is an attempt to save them, but they continue toward the beach again within hours.
A few days ago killer whales beached themselves on sandbars near Fraser Island. Three of them died. Fishermen have been told to keep their boats well away from the animals. They are trying to find deeper water. The hope is that open sea will attract them and they will move away from the shallow sand.
Apparently when a whale beaches, the whole pod panics. The presence of boats, particularly motorized ones, stresses them more. One would have thought that evolution would have "bred" out the beaching trait. The numbers who die each year on beaches is obviously not high enough to affect the breeding population so those with the trait pass it on to the next generation.
It is feared by many people that beaching could lead to extinction of species. There is no possibility of this as the number who swim safely along the coasts remains very large. It is good for people to try to save them. Unfortunately, humans cannot change nature.
Conservation
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