Adventure Ausrama Blog

testing EquipmentLaw: Police drug testing equipment so faulty they do not stand up in court. You can trust the police. Can't you? Sure, even if the equipment they use to convict you for drug use do not work accurately, or not at all! Draeger Drug Test 5000 machines are the malfunctioning equipment. Furthermore, a third of saliva testing kits (STKs) go strait in the bin when they do not work. The kits should turn blue, but nothing happens. Even an investigation into quality control has not solved the problems. If you are charged with drug taking using the equipment any solicitor worth his salt will get you off scot-free. Moreover, the test for cannabis has never worked. This is like the mine detectors sold to the Afghan government that were found to be just a plastic casing with nothing inside. Draeger is pulling a fast one and getting away with it. State police departments or state governments, who do the purchasing, must be stupid. ◆ Law by Ty Buchanan ...

The sex of central bearded dragon hatchlings is determined by the prevailing temperature during incubation. Some females carry male genes and behave like males. They are more confident and active than other females. The "tomboys" also have more offspring. Australian central bearded dragon Of great interest is how genetic and climatic factors affect gender. In lab test incubation, if the temperature was over 32 degrees females with male chromosomes hatched as females. Below 32 degrees the dragon expressed its genetic disposition and hatched as males. High temperature females were larger than males which is normal for the species. It appears that male type behaviors of these females is genetically determined. Some of the females were even bolder than normal males. Male chromosomes affect the brain which is driven to express male traits. Only one other animal has the feature of environmental and genetic factors determining sex - the skink. Other animal...

Culture: we buy on impulse with east credit and fast pay. We are all guilty of it. What is it? Impulse buying of course! It may not be for major purchase - we usually have a think about them before making a decision. Well most of us do. Minor things like snack bars and quick coffees are usually done on a whim. A site like eBay where thing are cheap but generally of low quality is also a vehicle for fast shopping. Some people purchase "quickie" items more than others. It all depends on ones personality. Even being out with others affects buying behavior. Having money to buy is less of a factor because easy credit is available. A person's prevailing mood also has an effect: happiness drives impulse buying. Advertising is perceived differently by individuals. "Buy one and get one free" is a trap for some. Indeed, Westerners seem to be particularly prone to buying things with little thought, people in Eastern cultures not so much. Culture does ...

Anthropology: Cat mummy in Western Australian Museum a fake. It is known that ancient Egyptians made counterfeit mummies, particularly of birds and cats who were given as offerings to the gods. In 1982 an X-ray of a cat mummy showed that it was a fake, probably made in the early 20th century. Staff of the Western Australia Museum who were custodians of the "mummy" were shocked and disappointed by the discovery. A recent CT scan of the "mummy" highlights a human femur broken in the middle then molded to take the shape of a cat. The scan has been sent to Cairo for further study. To solve this problem once and for all a determination of its real age needs to be done. Why waste time looking and re-interpreting?  The WA Museum is still so ashamed of the issue that is has never released a photo of the fake cat mummy nor will show the X-ray or scan to the public. Genuine fake-cat mummy from Saqqara in  Egyp Genuine mummies are on display today at the WA M...

Biology: Red reef lobster caught in Western Australia. It is common knowledge that lobsters do not have hair. We all know this. However, hairy lobsters do exist and one has been caught in Western Australia. The red reef lobster is common in the waters of Madagascar, Hawaii, and African countries. Finding it off WA is a real surprise. The fisherman who caught it has never seen anything like it in his life. It seemed to be a prawn, lobster, scampi hybrid. The hairy red is much different from Australian lobsters: it has crab-like claws. Biologists do not believe that it came all the way from Africa, at least not in recent times. They hold that it has been here all along living and breeding in a localized, remote spot. The one caught probably strayed away from its locality. Obviously, its normal range must be reasonably close. Being elusive, scientists are not going on a hunt. The creature will be left alone. ◆ Biology by Ty Buchanan   ◆ Adventure Australi...

Invincible soldiers created by chemistry. It is not a new idea to "fill-up" front line soldiers with drugs when they take on the enemy. Sappers in WWII were told to inject themselves with morphine before advancing to set off mines so infantry who followed could move forward. It was common knowledge that the US turned a blind to marijuana use by its solders during the Vietnam war. ISIS is also into this game. Alcohol is a no-no because the Holy Book specifically says it should not be imbibed. The Koran says that intoxicants are abominations. All drugs are intoxicants. This has not stopped drugs being used by ISIS to make fighters feel superhuman. Daesh soldiers are being given fenethyline. This is an amphetamine compound and is very cheap. It has not been available in the West since 1980 due to side effects. ISIS makes it and sells it to anyone who wants to buy. The income is used to obtain weapons. Fenethyline makes one feel invincible. You will ke...

Chemistry: Weeds are becoming resistant to selective herbicides. Herbicides have officially been used since 1890, though common salt could have used to kill weeds for possibly a thousand years before. The first selective herbicide was identified in 1940. It later became 2,4-D compound and was released in 1946.  Seventy years later we face the problem of weed resistance to selective chemicals. Western Australia can no longer get significant kill of weeds growing around crops. It is costing farmers a fortune. Project Kangaroo has been initiated. It is managed by Australia’s Grains Research and Development Corporation (GRDC) and receives assistance from Bayer of Germany. Money from growers is funding it: they are paying $45 million in levies. The Federal Government is promising money. Knowing how government has behaved recently the project might get a dollar! Wild radish and ryegrass are the main culprits affecting crops. Glyphosphate was used widely to control these weed...