AWARDSby Chris RoseThe Nobels are the originals, of course. Alfred Nobel, the man who invented deadly explosives, decided to try and do something good with all the money he earned, and gave prizes to people who made progress in literature, science, e...
Waltzing Matildaby Paul MillardMost countries have a unique piece of music that means something special to its people. For many of those celebrating Australia Day this week, its a song called Waltzing Matilda, written in 1895 by a song-writer and poe...
Rainforests rule!by Claire PowellA world like no other perhaps this is the best way to describe the world of the rainforest. No rainforest is exactly the same yet most rainforests are now distributed in the small land area 22.5 degrees north and 22.5...
Goodbye Great Aukby John KutiIn those days, people still lived on the islands of Saint Kilda. Two men from the village went out on the rock. They found a big strange bird. It was sleeping. They decided to bring it home to the village. Far out into th...
Mary Seacoleby Linda BaxterThe most famous nurse of all time must be Florence Nightingale, the lady with the lamp, who became famous for her work during the Crimean War in the middle of the nineteenth century. But have you heard of Mary Seacole? I ho...
Physical educationby Richard SidawaySchool days are supposed to be the best days of your life and part of that experience usually involves some strenuous physical activity. I asked some colleagues to give me their recollections of what happened to th...
Universitiesby Richard SidawayCairo, Bologna, and Paris have been offering them the longest. What am I talking about? A university education, of course. So who goes to university and what do they get out of their experience? More than a quarter of th...
Magicby John RussellDouble, double, toil and trouble; Fire burn and cauldron bubble. Fillet of a fenny snake, In the cauldron boil and bake; A. From the witches in Shakespeares Macbeth, to Gandalf the Wizard in Lord of the Rings books and films, it i...
Revolutionby John KutiThe other day I was watching a debate on TV on the subject Should it be compulsory to learn English? The speaker chosen to oppose the idea was Vladimir Zhirinovskiy - a politician who many people in Europe think is a dangerous e...
Disabilityby Chris WilsonNowadays in the west the able bodied are constantly reminded that disabled people have rights just like everyone else and they mustnt discriminate against them in any way. Public buildings have to have ramps and toilets big e...
Vice, Investment, and the Seven Deadly Sinsby Craig DuncanMarch 2005: its official vice pays. And its not even illegal. This month the Financial Times examined the spectacular growth of The Vice Fund, a Texas-based investment company which encourages...
Surfingby Nik PeacheyI've spent most of my entire life surfing, the rest I've wasted. (Anonymous) It seems that the oceans of the world have become many things to many different people. For some the ocean is a source of food and income, for others a...
