Showing posts with label australia. Show all posts
Showing posts with label australia. Show all posts

Volvo Protects Cars From Kangaroos

Though the protected bars on the front of rural vehicles is called a bull bar, it was originally designed to stop damage from hitting a kangaroo. These animals are as common as muck in Australia. Indeed, they are a native pest if ever there was one. Countless kangaroos invade farms all the time eating grass meant for food animals and drinking water pumped out of the ground.
Kangaroo hit in front of car vehicle 4wd truck stuck lodged
It is unusual for a driver to hit a wandering cow. Because they are valuable they are generally safely penned in. On the other hand, kangaroos wander freely. If they can't jump over a fence they will run through it. Several years ago I saw the remains of a kangaroo paw hanging from a fence wire. Obviously, the animal had survived and bounded on his way.

Volvo Australia is studying kangaroo behavior on the roadside. They intend to fit a radar sensor to cars that will scan the road ahead. When a kangaroo is detected directly ahead within contact range the brakes will be automatically applied to a vehicle.
Car write off by impact with kangaroo
If Volvo is successful it will dramatically reduce insurance costs. Over 20,000 kangaroos are hit annually in Australia. It is like hitting a brick wall. Some vehicles are written off; there is so much damage.
◆ Technology by Ty Buchanan ◆
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KANGAROO DANGER
 #kangaroos #bullbar #bull #cows #road #highway #danger #damage #insurance #cost  
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Australia's Bird the Emu

Early European settlers were amazed by the emu.  Governor Lachlan Macquarie was so impressed that, in 1822, he sent two emus as gifts to the Governor-General of India, the Marquis of Hastings.  When Macquarie set sail from Australia back to England on the ship Surry, he wrote that voyaging with the passengers were "pets" that included six emus, travelling in roomy well aired pens  well-aired pens. The animals were to be given as gifts to friends and patrons of Governor Macquarie back in England. Unfortunately many of the pets, including one of the largest emus died on the trip.
Emu with young chicks
In l791 John Harris, who arrived in the new colony as a surgeon, wrote that emus were swifter than the fleetest of greyhounds. Emu eggs were described as dark Green with little black specks the of pins.  It is a little larger than goose eggs.  The emu is Australia’s largest bird standing up to 2 metres high. lt has wings but it can°t fly. lt can run really quickly around 50 kilometres per hour. The legs are also yery powerful and used for fighting, especially if males are fighting over females. Emus are common throughout mainland Australia but not in dense rainforest and urbanised areas. They are highly nomadic, which means they must move as they need in search of food, water and shelter.

An emu°s courtship is a boisterous affair. There ISs lots of bobbing up and down, weaying and dipping, throat drumming, grunting and fluffing of feathers.  Mating begins late in December: The female flattens a platform of grass into a large nest and lays her clutch of between 7 and 11 dark green eggs lthough it could be as high as 20.  lf it is a good season and there is plenty of rain she might lay one or two more clutches with different males.

After laying her eggs she leaves. The male has the sole responsibility for parenting.  When the eggs are laid, the male gets broody and begins incubation before the clutch is completed. The female stops mating with the male but might continue to lay eggs in the nest. which are fertilised by other males. It takes 56 days of incubation before the eggs hatch and striped chicks appear, usually in early spring. During this time the male emu sits on the eggs. rarely leaying the nest and only standing to turn the eggs every few hours.  He doesn't eat or drink. Drawing on fat reserves, he looses about eight kilograms.
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Bullet Train for Australia - Not Yet!

Australia has always wanted a high speed train. The problem is there are great distances to travel and a complete rebuild of tracks will have to be done.  Like roads in Australia there is not the money to put down a decent foundation for them like they do in Europe where people live close together.
Bullet train for australia
If it was to be done the first location would be from Melbourne to Sydney.  That is where most choose to travel for vacation and business.  Governments of both political persuasions have set up inquiries then rejected the findings in the past.

Some are saying that with the economic downturn investment in a bullet train would create jobs.  The real problem is who is going to pay for it?' Victoria and NSW say that the federal government should pay.  A joint investment program will be needed, however.

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#technology   #bullet #train   #bullettrain   #nsw   #victoria   #australia  #investment
OTTER PLAY
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Malcolm Turnbull is Big Bad Wolf - Watch Out Goldilocks!

When you get chosen as Prime Minister the first rule is... look after yourself and your mates. For some odd reason the "group of independent deciders supported the Coalition's policy of exempting Australia's wealthiest people from disclosure requirements on a new tax system taking effect in December. Mind you, the ordinary Jack and Jill will have to disclose their data.
Straighen those crooked glasses Malcolm Turnbull
It seems Malcolm Turnbull is not just a pretty face: he is a crafty sod as well! Let's all head for the Cayman Islands. If its good enough for our PM, it is certainly good enough for the rest of us dinkum Aussies. Kerry Packer the famous now deceased billionaire once said that "it is every Australian citizen's duty to avoid paying tax: I have lived in Australia and elsewhere all my life and have never paid one cent in tax". When he died the Australian Government gave him a state funeral.

Guilt is not for the wealth it appears. For the ordinary Joe though, he must be checked and double checked on the way he goes about his life. If your tax return is $100 out you get a massive fine.

Malcolm Turnbull's speech in parliament was contradictory. He said, this country is built upon hard work." And added, "there are taxi drivers that work harder than I ever have." Thus, he has admitted that his wealth was not built upon hard work. He must have been crafty, deceitful and fleeced his employees to get rich. Yes, we know what you are about Malcolm - you may look angelic, but you are really a big bad wolf!
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WEALTHY BUSINESSMAN OR POLITICIAN - BOTH?
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Volcanic Chain Found in Australia

Scientists have always said that Australia is the safest country on earth in regard to volcanic eruptions and earthquakes.  Now we find that this is totally wrong.  A massive volcanic chain has been discovered stretching from Hillsborough in central Queensland in a straight line down to Cosgrove in Victoria, then into the sea.
Cosgrove hot spot volcanic chain north to south in the east of australia
The Australian continent has moved right over the top of the chain leaving volcanoes under the sea in Bass Strait.  Yellowstone in North America is only a third as long as the new Australian hot spot.  It is unusual because it is not located on a tectonic plate boundary.  This type of volcanic chain was not thought to exist.

A weakness above a mantle plume has allowed volcanoes to break through to the surface.  The mantle is 3,000 kilometers below.  The Cosgrove hot spot could become active especially in the south where it is younger.  This could happen as the Australian tectonic plate is the fastest moving on the planet.

Active volcanoes normally exist where the mantle is less than 100 kilometers thick on average.  Cosgrove is 150 kilometers thick at its greatest.  This is not a law for activity.  Eruptions are still possible.  Seismic activity is occurring off the north coast of Tasmania.
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WORLD'S LONGEST CONTINENTAL VOLCANIC CHAIN DISCOVERED IN AUSTRALIA
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Link Between Diabetes and TB

There could be link to diet for tuberculosis. It seems people with diabetes are likely to also have tuberculosis in tropical Australia. Little is said about it, but tuberculosis is the leading cause of bacterial death in the world. It has also been known for some time about the predilection to have tuberculosis in people with diabetes.
link between diabetes and tuberculosis tb
It could be a "racial" trait. Australian Aboriginals and those of Torres Strait descent are high on the list. having diabetes makes sufferers susceptible to immune dysregulation with opens people to infection generally. It is only rational to screen those with diabetes for tuberculosis. This is not currently done.

It is not known if dysregulation is the cause of problem. Historical data is not much help because diabetes was not an identifiable disease while TB was, in past centuries. Research is being done to find find the reason for it. Reduce the prevalence of diabetes and cases of TB fall. It is as simple as that.
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Female-Only Epilepsy

Many children have a form of epilepsy that is genetic, handed down from a parent. Female-only epileptic syndrome is a case in point. It is rare but it remains a debilitating problem.  At birth babies seem to be normal, but in a few months they begin having seizures.
eEpilepsy in girls
Australian scientists have pinned down the genetic mutation responsible for its expression. Professor Gecz says that the 19 (PCDH19) gene is the mutation triggering the ailment. Females have two X chromosome which determines their sex. This duality of X triggers epilepsy in girls.

The main issue with female-only epilepsy is that it causes intellectual disability because seizures cause damage. A deficiency of the allopregnanolone hormone is the main factor in the onset of the ailment. This is an effect caused by the genetic disposition. When the hormone is brought back into balance at puberty permanent damage has already been done. The research continues.
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The Chestnut-Crowned Babbler Bird Uses Sentences

It seems that bird calls evolve like human language. Research on the chestnut-crowned babbler shows the cooperative bird is able to change the order of sounds to make new "sentences" with different meanings. The babbler does not sing like other birds. It makes a series of unique sounds.
The chestnut-crowned babbler bird uses sentences
Analysis shows that the bird is communicating in different ways by stringing sounds together. It has two main categories of calls A and B. If flying, only AB calls are made. In the nest with young birds BAB calls predominate.

When different calls were played back, AB calls initiated flight in the birds that heard it and BAB sounds caused them to go the nest. These "sentences" were definitely perceived as unique instructions. Even when sound prompt elements were changed for the sentences the birds could still tell the difference.

This is the first time a vocabulary type structure in communication has been observe in any animal other than human. The first sound in The A and B structure determines what the overall meaning is, This is similar to human words, for example like the C in CAT (when AT can be used multiple times in any human sentence). It would be pertinent to assume that language in humans began with a very simple system as in these birds.
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Pig Goes Shopping for Beer

Pig goes shopping for beer
"Just going to the shops."
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Ships' Ballast Water Spreads Marine Creatures

As international trade continues so does "equalization" of the planet. Many marine species are now found in all waters of the world. This is because transport ships literally hoover up animals in ballast water, which is released at any time, any place, when it is no longer needed.
Ship releasing ballast into a port
All ballast water is released into a port when cargo is taken onboard. Marine survivors of this rough treatment give the local environment a go. Some are successful and multiply to epidemic proportions. Zebra mussels and Pacific seastars in particular are a major problem.

An Australian study gathered data such as ports where ballast was likely to be taken on and where it would probably be released. Marine species spread this way were identified and it was predicted how long they would survive. This data was fed into a computer.

It was noticed that shipping volume was increasing mainly in the transport of primary products. Most of this Australian export was delivered to Asia and Southeast Asia. This meant that marine species from this region were unloaded into Australian waters.

New laws were introduced in 2001 to ban the emptying of Asian ballast water into Australian seas. The new rules have been totally ignored. Furthermore, the International Convention for the Control and Management of Ships' Ballast Water and Sediments (BWMC) directed ballast water be unloaded into holding tanks. Shipping is not complying.
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