Adventure Ausrama Blog

The common Sydney octopus does not look like a happy chappy, but he always looks gloomy. It is just the way he is. Not doing so well in the sea around New South Wales he has moved down to the cooler waters off Tasmania. Because they increased in number from a few early arrivals their genetic diversity is less than those on the east coast. More are arriving from NSW and Victoria so things are improving. The exodus began in the mid-2000s. A joint project between James Cook University, the Centre for Marine Socioecology (CMS) at the University of Tasmania and the Institute for Marine and Antarctic Studies (IMAS) is researching the genetics of the species. Gloomy octopuses have been found as far south as the waters near Hobart. A new study, published in the journal Scientific Reports, suggests the species is thriving in Tasmanian waters with a healthy mix of genes from local and interstate populations. The species, also referred to as the common Sydney octopus, or octopus

Nothing is being done to make national standardized examinations fair. To say an IQ test measures intelligence is a misnomer. A high score indicates that a person has mastered cultural values. The questions are based on what city people should know. Those in rural areas learn different norms of behavior.  ⎳ naplan a biased a against a With a rural a students a test australian metropolitan ⎳ School exams have the same bias. Standardization has gone against country students. A problem is obvious because outback children are a year behind the lucky ones living in metropolitan regions.  No wonder, travel to school takes much longer.   ⦿3 naplan b biased b against b With b rural b students b test ⦿3 Such questions as "Describe a day at the beach" are meaningless to students on a farm. Other irrelevancies are - "Write what you know about a train timetable". Young Aboriginals were far better in memorizing articles removed from a table than white Aussies. This sho

Soon universities and colleges made of bricks, stone and concrete with be a thing of the past as young and old turn to the Internet to get their degrees. Leading Australian universities are trying to "buck the trend" by not offering online course, but if they don't change their student enrolments will fall. Initially it was mature age students who chose to study online; now more of the young are studying this way as well. Next year the restriction on the number of places Australian universities can offer will be abolished. The market will open up as institutions will be able to offer as many openings as they want. With no investment in new buildings planned new offering have to be online. Charles Sturt University already has two-thirds of its students studying online with growth at 14 per cent a year. For many, the only time they will set foot on a university campus will be to receive their degrees. Lecturers will no longer be able to hide their heads in text