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The Great Canuck/Aussie Adventure

Robyn Williams, host of The Science Show

This week's show takes Bob to Melbourne, Australia, where he's attending the World Conference of Science Journalists. And, with a first for the show, Bob's co-hosting Quirks & Quarks with Robyn Williams, the host of The Australian Broadcasting Corporation's, The Science Show.

Related Links

ABC Radio National's The Science Show
Robyn Williams

Farming Kangaroos

Kangaroo

If you look at agriculture in Australia today, it looks pretty much like agriculture anywhere else. Cattle and sheep are kept in herds. Wheat is planted in the fields. But Dr. Michael Archer, the Dean of the Faculty of Science at the University of New South Wales, wants to change all that. He's arguing that the best way to sustain agriculture in Australia is to turn to native plants and animals as food sources; for example, ranching kangaroos, or growing gum trees. He's even suggesting that Australians trade their cats and dogs for native animals as pets.

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Related Links

Dr. Archer's Book, Going Native
Dr. Archer's faculty page at the University of New South Wales
Confronting Crises in Conservation: A talk on the Wild Side (A paper by Dr. Archer outlining his ideas)

Tasmanian Devils Face Cancer

Tasmanian Devil - Courtesy, Tas Department of Primary Industries and Water

A terrible disease is spreading across the island of Tasmania, and killing that symbol of the island, the Tasmanian Devil. It's a form of cancer that affects the face, eventually leading to the devil's death. What makes it unusual is that it's transmissible. Somehow Tasmanian Devils are passing this cancer from one to another, leaving biologists mystified. There's no obvious virus responsible, so it's hard to know how to prevent the spread. One of the leading researchers trying to work out how to deal with the disease is Dr. Menna Jones, a research fellow in the School of Zoology at the University of Tasmania in Hobart.

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Related Links

Information on the disease from the government in Tasmania
Save the Tasmanian Devil
Dr. Jones' profile at the University of Tasmania

Marsupial Lions

Artist's rendition of marsupial lion - Courtesy, ABC and Jeanette Muirhead

Until about 46,000 years ago, about the same time humans arrived, Australia was home to some amazing animals. There were giant kangaroos, giant wombats and the marsupial lion. Recently, Dr. John Long, the Head of Sciences at Museum Victoria, and a team of researchers uncovered a treasure trove of fossils from more than 400,000 years ago. He says the fact these animals dominated the continent for so long suggests that humans were responsible for their demise.

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Related Links

The Nullarbor Caves where the fossils were found
Museum Victoria website
Dr. Long's paper in Nature Magazine

The Wollemi Pine

The Wollemi Pine - Copyright, J.Plaza, RBG Sydney

The plant life of today is very different from that of the past. Almost all of the vegetation from the time of the dinosaurs has long since gone extinct. So when a small grove of Wollemi pines was discovered in Australia, everyone was surprised. The Wollemi pine is a living fossil, it hasn't changed in almost 200 million years. Today, it's possible to buy Wollemi pines to grow, but the wild population is under threat from disease. Dr. Tim Entwisle is the Executive Director of the Botanic Gardens Trust in Sydney, Australia, the Government Botanist for the country, and one of the guardians of the Wollemi pine.

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Related Links

Where to buy Wollemi Pines
Information on the pine from the Botanic Gardens Trust
Dr. Entwisle's homepage

Killer Jellyfish

Courtesy, Dr. Lisa Gershwin

The world's leading jellyfish expert is Dr. Lisa Gershwin, Australia's National Marine Stinger Advisor. She's discovered and named 151 species of jellyfish, including the 20th century's largest invertebrate. Her work concentrates on the box jellyfish and the irukandji. The irukandji jellyfish are named because of the condition, irukandji syndrome, which results from their sting. Irukandji syndrome includes lower back pain, nausea and vomiting, cramps, sweating, muscular restlessness, and a feeling of doom. There's no mark left from the sting and there's nothing to test for. Death is usually the result of a stroke.

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Related Links

Information about Dr. Gershwin
The Medusazoa (Jellyfish) homepage