Archive for 2014
How Neanderthal Are You?
The DNA of all homo sapiens (you) includes one to four percent Neanderthal DNA. In his recent book, Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind, Yuval Noah Harari quotes research from 2010 that proved modern humans interbred with Neanderthals. Prior to these findings, many scientists doubted that homo sapiens and Neanderthal could have successfully mated because […]
Tommy Woodcock – the Story Behind THE Photo
At last Tuesday’s launch of Nicolas Brasch’s brilliant new book, Horses in Australia: An Illustrated History, the legendary Age photographer Bruce Postle disclosed the story behind one of Australia’s iconic photographs. Tommy Woodock (1905–85) is best known as Phar Lap’s strapper. Before important races, Tommy would sleep outside Phar Lap’s stable. Reputedly, Phar Lap would […]
Symphony of Steel
Although the devil can lurk in detail, so can beauty. Climbing the Sydney Harbour Bridge is the best chance many of us will have to drink in the details of the world’s most famous coat hanger. Last Sunday it was my turn. The views were great, the climb was easy, the organisation first class. But […]
The Slide Rule and Essendon’s Fate
The slide rule deserves no sympathy. It bamboozled a generation of children who had already mastered arithmetic on paper. Thankfully, the calculator saved most of us. The arrival of the calculator in the 1970s was a by-product of NASA’s race to the moon. So if anyone argues that putting people on the moon was not […]
The Ghosts of Mobiltown
Urban decay or rot has its own Wikipedia page because it is so common in parts of Europe and America. Melbourne has its own ghostly huddle of shops in Mobiltown, less than 10 kilometres from the CBD. The shops grew around the Mobiltown railway station, which was built in the 1950s to service the nearby […]
Busting Stereotypes in Berlin
Travel can take you to the centre of yourself. Beyond the external distances and slabs of time involved, there can be moments that genuinely transform. I don’t mean the elation of visiting legendary places, tasting exotic food or soaking up postcard views. That’s the obvious stuff. Nor do I mean unexpected difficulties or mishaps that […]
Last Summer’s Sleeping Dog
This post is not so much a blog entry as an image to help you ride out the winter months. If you are feeling run down or stressed, drink in this vision of a summer’s day on the back porch of a beach house with Bert. He is resting after a hard morning chasing bunnies on […]
Click on any Icon below to Follow …