Sunday 2 January 2011

Yes, Virginia, there is a bright future out there

The following impressive study undertaken by British primary school children aged between 7 and 11 years of age shows that the world still contains much human potential - Blackawton bees.

The abstract is here, the full report is here and here is the list of the young science enthusiasts and now published authors and their support team:

1. P. S. Blackawton1,

2. S. Airzee1,

3. A. Allen1,

4. S. Baker1,

5. A. Berrow1,

6. C. Blair1,

7. M. Churchill1,

8. J. Coles1,

9. R. F.-J. Cumming1,

10. L. Fraquelli1,

11. C. Hackford1,

12. A. Hinton Mellor1,

13. M. Hutchcroft1,

14. B. Ireland1,

15. D. Jewsbury1,

16. A. Littlejohns1,

17. G. M. Littlejohns1,

18. M. Lotto1,

19. J. McKeown1,

20. A. O'Toole1,

21. H. Richards1,

22. L. Robbins-Davey1,

23. S. Roblyn1,

24. H. Rodwell-Lynn1,

25. D. Schenck1,

26. J. Springer1,

27. A. Wishy1,

28. T. Rodwell-Lynn1,

29. D. Strudwick1 and

30. R. B. Lotto2,*

1 Blackawton Primary School, Blackawton, Devon, UK

2 Institute of Ophthalmology, University College London,

11-43 Bath Street, London EC1V 9EL, UK

*Author for correspondence (lotto@ucl.ac.uk).

Saturday 1 January 2011

Confronting, curious, intriguing, questionable and amusing quotes read or heard over the festive holiday period



"cows do not belong in fields."
Nocton Dairies,UK,on its development application,2010

Norad is tracking Santa. Let's hope they don't overcompensate for 9/11 failures by blowing this bearded fundamentalist out of the sky.
Darryl Mason,on Twitter,2010

We are the only non-singing Welsh on the planet, me and my family. We migrated because we were polluting the gene pool.
Prime Minister Julia Gillard, Labor TV interview with Corinne Grant

Manning related to me on December 18 2010 that he does not receive any substantive exercise and cannot perform even basic exercises in his cell. When told of the Pentagon's statement that he did indeed receive exercise, Manning's reply was that he is able to exercise insofar as walking in chains is a form of exercise.
Statement allegedly made by Private Bradley Manning being held in the Quantico Marine Base brig,2010

"Voting in Oz these days is almost always a choice between the ignorant or inept and the corrupt"
Petering Time, in conversation,2010

MADGE Australia Inc is happy to be the conduit for totally confidential leaks coming out of @FSANZnews
MADGE Australia Inc,onTwitter,2010

And if anyone should sue for mental distress surely it should be a teenage girl taken sexual advantage of by grown men, allegedly impregnated by one of them, then tossed aside like a used jockstrap.
Derryn Hinch,on the St. Kilda football club,2010

Australians remain uniquely exposed to mistreatment by bureaucrats and government. We want better protection of rights – the polls show us that – but not having them provokes little concern round the kitchen tables of the nation. We muddle through, hoping and trusting. It's the Australian way.
David Marr, 10th Human Rights Oration,2010

According to my local federal member, the legislation for internet filtering was shelved. However, the software was still developed, so who knows if they have implemented it anyway. I have had problems with some sites in the last few weeks, and no idea why.
Theresa,onYahoo!7 Answers,2010

But it's interesting you're raising that particular question, because it's something that appears to be coming out of attempts to conflate media activities with espionage. That's a serious business.
Julian Assange,CBS interview,2010

Earlier in the negotiations with Tony Abbott, he said in no uncertain terms that he would be prepared to double the humanitarian intake into Australia in return for my support.
Andrew Wilkie MP,ABC PM interview, 2010

Several doctors across Australia were recently caught out publicly ridiculing patients on Facebook, labelling some "whingers" and "dissatisfied housewives" to their online network of friends. Some doctors were even found to have disparagingly named patients on social networking sites."I feel like an adviser to a women's knitting club, having to suffer the whines of Mrs X and her daughter Ms X," one doctor posted.
"Warning to docs over mocking patients",2010

Pope says God suprises us whats he gonna do jump out of a closet and go BOO
retiringoldchap‎,onTwitter,2010

The Department of Health and Ageing, was the heaviest user of market research services. In the past five financial years, the department spent almost $24m on surveying the public mood.
"$31 million to read public's mind",2010

''Our current unfair dismissal system encourages Australians to behave like greedy whingers. A no-fault dismissal system would set our heads right on the issue and provide for dignity of exit, allowing people to focus not on legal conflict but on managing departure in the chosen way whilst being encouraged to embrace the future opportunities that are always just around the corner.''
Grace Collier,industrial relations consultant to H.R. Nicholls Society,2010

This is not an argument for kicking a million disability pensioners and long-term unemployed people off benefits .
Australian Leader of the Opposition Tony Abbott, on his 'fairer welfare' policy,2010

Armenia's Chief of Police, Alik Sarkisian, claimed that emo could "damage our gene pool". "We should fight against such phenomena because they are morally harmful to our people,"
"Armenian police target teenage rock cult",2010

Watching the Walking Dead. Creepy similarities to the Australian cricket team...
Rod McGuinness, on Twitter,2010

The Department of Housing is collecting almost $7 million from private renters living in what is supposed to be public housing, while almost 50,000 people are on waiting lists. Central has found that Housing NSW uses realtor Run Property to lease 20 properties to private renters, including apartments and houses, in the inner city and three elsewhere in NSW.
"Housing NSW cashes in on private rents",2010

"The success of the Labor Party at the next election depends entirely, as it always has done, on the people who work."
NSW Premier Kristina Keneally, allegedly quoting Ben Chifley,2010

Ways you know you've enjoyed the #boxingdaysales:
1. you need to phone the bank at the checkout after overspending daily limit...
2. you can't physically carry it to your car.
3. you can't FIT it in your car.
4. thought of getting upstairs is like a TAbbott marathon.
5.you forgot what you actually bought.

Journalist Latika Bourke, on Twitter,2010

Take your pick: flooded, fried or frozen
The Australian, headline commenting on extremes of weather across the country in late December, 2010

SOUTH Australian couples wanting to end their marriage are increasingly using the internet to do so. More than 250 people in almost 18 months have applied for divorce using an online service.The Federal Magistrates Court introduced its "e-filing" separation option in September 2009, allowing unhappy spouses to take the first step towards official separation over the internet.In the past 15 months, 268 South Australians applied to end their marriage online.Another service, where men and women are alerted via a text message when their divorce has been granted, has also been flagged by the Federal Magistrates Court.Earlier this month Australian Bureau of Statistics figures revealed the number of people divorcing nationally increased by 4.7 per cent in 2009, the first rise since 2001.
"E-divorce on rise as couples disconnect",2010

Today approximately 1.8 billion people use the Internet to do everything from conduct business, communicate with friends and family, keep up with current events or simply entertain themselves playing games or watching videos. Each individual and each Internet-connected device presents a certain footprint that is exposed and often manipulated for criminal or political gain. Malware, or malicious software, is often the catalyst for this manipulation, while targets span the gamut from corporate and national secrets to personal information that can be used to directly steal money or another crime. Technology and the Internet provide the means and opportunity, while global socioeconomic trends provide the motive to perpetuate these crimes.
"State of the Internet 2010",CA Technologies white paper

MELBOURNE'S Catholic Archdiocese has failed to announce or fully implement changes requested by Victoria Police to the church's sexual abuse inquiry process, more than a year after serious deficiencies were exposed...........
Sources close to the church have said that police have requested it to revamp its inquiry process to ensure that priests under investigation for sexual offences by detectives are not in effect tipped off by the church's chief abuse investigator, Peter O'Callaghan, QC, that they are the subject of a police probe.
Church sources also confirmed to The Age that the police had serious concerns about Mr O'Callaghan's practice of comparing himself to a royal commissioner, despite the fact that he is appointed and paid for by the church.

"Church 'silent' on abuse reforms",2010

Former Israeli President Moshe Katsav was found guilty of rape and other sex crimes on Thursday, in what Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu called a sad day for the Jewish state.
"Former Israeli President Found Guilty of Rape"
,2010


Every Aus media is controlled by this corruption, all bar Crikey and @BernardKeane.Shame on the lot of you. #MDBA
qwadja on Twitter,2010


Jules Faber in The Daily Examiner, 2010

One of the reasons so many people choose to live on the NSW North Coast


Dolphin in flying leap
Photograph taken by Matt Deans
just south of Split Solitary Island off Coffs Harbour
in December 2010
Published in The Daily Telegraph
Click on photo to enlarge

Happy New Year 2011


Happy New Year
from all at
North Coast Voices

Image found at Oohm


Saturday 25 December 2010

Seasons Greeting from all at North Coast Voices in 2010


Season's Greetings

To all our readers

And to those Australian and overseas bloggers

we regularly read ourselves

From everyone here at

North Coast Voices

Have a happy and safe time during this year's festivities



As is our usual custom we will be taking a holiday break from

Christmas Day 2010 until New Year's Day 2011.

Animated image from fanpop!

Friday 24 December 2010

More rubbishing.....

Are we too late to add Maccas rubbish in Yamba today to the North Coast Voices online pile before Santa comes tonight?

Anony-mice
Yamba

Last puzzled word on the state of Australian sedition law in 2010


Remember the Anti‑Terrorism Act (No. 2) 2005 (weakly amended in 2006 in order to protect mainstream media and professional journalists) which contained new draconian sedition law introduced by the Howard Government which virtually made every blogger, letter to the editor writer, whistleblower and protester potentially vulnerable to political charges of sedition and/or treason in certain circumstances? Were you one of those outraged by its provisions?

Recall the 2006 Australian Law Reform Commission Inquiry which in Fighting Words: A Review of Sedition Laws in Australia (ALRC Report 104) recommended conservative changes (including the removal of Schedule 7–Sedition) which would ease the more punitive effects of this legislation and, the fact that in 2008 the Rudd Federal Government formally supported 25 of these recommendations and two others in principal?

Can you bring to mind this undertaking made in the Australian Parliament:

Review of Security, Counter-Terrorism and Sedition Laws
Mr Ciobo (Moncrieff) asked the Attorney-General, in writing, on 24 February 2009: When does the Government plan to introduce legislation to: (a) establish the statutory office of National Security Legislation Monitor; and (b) implement the recommendations of the Australian Law Reform Commission's review of sedition laws.
Mr McClelland (Barton) (Attorney-General) —The answer to the honourable member's question is as follows: (a) As I announced on 23 December 2008, as part of the Government's comprehensive response to the reviews of Australia's security and counter-terrorism laws, the Government is progressing legislation to establish the statutory office of the National Security Legislation Monitor as a matter of priority. The legislation is being developed by the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet in consultation with the Attorney-General's Department. (b) As I announced on 23 December 2008, as part of the Government's comprehensive response to the reviews of Australia's security and counter-terrorism laws, the Government will introduce legislation to implement the recommendations of the Australian Law Reform Commission with respect to the federal sedition laws. The Government is planning to release exposure draft legislation in the first half of 2009. This will provide an opportunity for public input prior to the introduction of any legislation into Parliament.

Well the exposure draft was published in 2009 and, the National Security Legislation Amendment Bill 2010 (finally introduced in September 2010) which allegedly intends that Schedule 1 contains proposed amendments to the treason and sedition offences in Division 80 of the Criminal Code in response to recommendations from various reviews apparently does not really remove those wide sedition provisions across the board. Instead they have been rebadged as treason.

Indeed, under the current Australian Attorney-General this bill will expand the existing sedition offences (to be renamed offences that 'urge violence') to also cover urging force or violence on the basis of 'ethnic' or 'national' origin and it will also add to Part 5.1 (Treason and Sedition ) of the Criminal Code Act 1995 so that an Australian citizen, resident, corporation or accepted refugee can be imprisoned for life if found to have materially assisted another person considered to be taking part in an undeclared war which the Commonwealth in its turn considers itself to be party to.

While Senator Ludlam's private members bill Anti‑Terrorism Laws Reform Bill 2009 which (among other matters) actually proposes to remove rather than rebadge the offence of sedition, after a Senate Inquiry has morphed into the Anti-Terrorism Laws Reform Bill 2010 and now idles during the parliamentary silly season holidays.

I seem to recall that in the second half of 2007 the Australian Labor Party began to tell the electorate that it would remove those constraints on free speech and freedom of association which could be implied from Howard's draconian legislative measures.

I don't know about the rest of Australia, but I am ending 2010 confused as to the actual state of play, highly suspicious of the political process and, never quite sure if I'm being seditious or not - either verbally, in writing, waving a placard or making a donation to a charity with international programs.

Orams falls foul of yet another Daily Examiner reader


Even the Federal Member for Page (whose electorate covers part of the Clarence Valley where The Daily Examiner is situated) disagrees with that newspaper's ĂĽber conservative journalist, Graham Orams, on occasion and went so far as to write this letter to the editor published on 21 December 2010:

Supporting patches

I DISAGREE with Graham Oram's editorial (DEX, December 12) critical of the Federal Government making nicotine patches available through the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme. I actively lobbied for this to happen.

My disagreement is based on the primary principle that health care must be made available without discrimination.

If we start to ration it based on blame, where does that lead? Do we say you have to pay if your illness or injury is self-inflicted, through smoking, drinking, over eating, abuse of legal and illegal drugs, dangerous sports, driving too fast etc?

Public policy should be directed to a number of things and the primary aim is about service and helping people, and should be done on the basis of being effective. In health policy the government promotes healthy behaviours as well as providing treatments.

Nicotine patches are effective.

If someone wants to use them, they are well on the way to giving up smoking.

Let us support them.

JANELLE SAFFIN,

Member for Page

Background:

Australian journalism continues to attract blinkered conservatives into its ranks

Is there an annual award for foot-in-mouth journalism?

Now who has been loose with the facts in the Clarence Valley rate debate??

Orams Returns! (groan)

One of the Clarence Valley's resident "opinionated jerks" is at it again

The Battle of the Rates continues in The Daily Examiner as Orams gets trounced

The last polling I'll inflict on readers this year - I rooly trooly promise!


From the folks at Essential Research on 20th December 2010:




Click on images to make them grow


I'm off to do a bit of camping and fishing - if I can find a dry spot to pitch the tent - see you all in February 2011.