Sunday Snippets - 6 April 08

In September 1894 Australia's first commercial hydro-electric power-station was developed near Armidale to light the gold mining town of Hillgrove.

This photo by Gordon Smith, one of a series, shows the concrete channel (flume) built to lead the water from the dam into the wooden flume which, in turn, would transport water the couple of kilometres (over a mile) to the edge of the gorge where it was dumped into the penstock.

This will be a very busy day, so I am limiting this post to a few Sunday snippets.

Well, daylight saving has ended, and a good thing too! It really was nice to see the sun rise at an earlier hour.

Nice email during the week from Herbert Stock to thank me for the story I wrote on Patrick Desmond Fitzgerald Murray 1900-1967. Herbert's dad Alex was Professor of Zoology at the University of New England and a close friend and colleague of Dr Murray.

I really think that I am a very lucky blogger. Touch wood, I have never been caught in a flame war. I am constantly being educated by other people through their posts. I have a small group of readers who educate me through their comments. Then with a small number of individual posts I get thanked for writing!

Turning to other matters.

Geoff Robinson had a short post Mormons and Muslims with a link through to a previous post discussing the high level of religious tolerance in the US. This post included research results comparing attitudes to cultural homogeneity in the US and twenty European countries. Geoff mused that Australia might fit in the middle between the two.

I used to be quite interested in research on cross cultural comparisons, but have not re-visited this area for a while. Reminder to self: do so!

Legal Eagle's Property law and the One Ring provides a highly entertaining picture of the legal position regarding the true ownership of the one ring in Lords of the Ring. If you follow the links through, you will find some quite fun stuff, sort of lawyers at play.

I have decided to hold off changing my bookmarks again until I am reasonably sure that Neil has settled down once more! Speaking of Neil, I thought that I might test his new found resolution to avoid politics by referring him to John Howard’s Legacy, the argument that Mr Howard was Australia's greatest PM. Cruel aren't I?

I enjoyed Neil's Closely watched trains 4. That's one powerful loco. However, the post was also useful because a link there finally carried me through to NSWrail.net, a really great site with lots of information that I need on the rail slice of New England's history.

While I was aware of the Torres Strait nurses dispute, I did not know the details. Farmer Dave's Captain Bligh - Apologise - then ensure this never happens again paints an absolutely horrific picture.

I thought of Thomas as I browsed Obama Mail on my namesake's ABQ News blog.

A comment from Kangaroo Valley David was useful in helping me further clarify the ideas I was trying to put forward in Saturday Morning Musings - foreign policy, Mr Rudd and the dangers of Australia's middle power status. I also tested them over dinner last night. I think that I am making some fair points, but I need to disentangle them a bit.

I am very conscious that I still have to finish the series that I began with Saturday Morning Musings - economic and demographic change, education, ethnicity and the maintenance of social cohesion in Australia 1. Most of my ideas are linked, so I am still thinking through the best way of presenting this slice. I will try to complete the series this week.

Finally, I have done very little writing this week on the professional side, although I have some part written posts. I hope to do better next week.