Date archives "April 2018"

Culture Environment Society Technology

Indigenous Engineering in Australia

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Indigenous Engineering in Australia

These efforts have been around for thousands, if not tens of thousands, of years. Wow.

 

The detective work behind the Budj Bim eel traps World Heritage bid
The detective work behind the Budj Bim eel traps World Heritage bid
In the 1840s, the eel traps of Budj Bim were described as the work of ‘civilized men’. But it took another 135 years for more appreciative European eyes to examine the complexity of western Victorias Aboriginal fishery.

Rather than living passively off whatever nature provided, the Gunditjmara actively and deliberately manipulated local water flows and ecologies to engineer a landscape focused on increasing the availability and reliability of eels.

Manipulation of the landscape involved stone structures (such as traps and channels) dating back at least 6,600 years. Eel aquaculture facilities (ponds and dam walls) pre-date contact with Europeans by many hundreds (and possibly thousands) of years.

As Lourandos pointed out more than three decades ago, and Bruce Pascoe reveals in his recent award-winning book Dark Emu, differences between hunter gatherers and cultivators, and foragers and farmers, are far more complex and blurred than we once thought.

https://theconversation.com/the-detective-work-behind-the-budj-bim-eel-traps-world-heritage-bid-71800

And there’s much, much more to explore and celebrate:

 

 

Courtesy ‘Merki’ this week on Twitter’s ‘IndigenousX‘ rotating account. (Follow!)

Header photo by Christopher Burns on Unsplash

 

Health Wow Cool

The Versatile Jackfruit: Meat Substitute?

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The Versatile Jackfruit: Meat Substitute?


You can tell this (‘Now This Food’) video was assembled by people who aren’t familar with Jackfruit. It doesn’t taste like meat! Kind of like um, chewy/stringy banana custard? (I could eat it all day).

And it’s not ‘pungent’ – doesn’t smell bad unless it’s seriously spoiled. (Thinking of Durian perhaps? A smaller, more spiky, pineapple sized fruit?) Jackfruit may be frozen or (horror) canned in brine before reaching the USA / Europe.

But it IS versatile and CAN easily be seasoned to taste. If YOU want to say it tastes like pork or chicken, go ahead.  Just know that Asians have opinions.

If people want to use it as a meat substitute? Go ahead!  You can even order it from Amazon, if you’re not fortunate enough to live where it grows. 

Jackfruit ‘fusion food’ ahoy!

Pulled 'Pork' Made From Jackfruit Is The Next Delicious Trend
Pulled ‘Pork’ Made From Jackfruit Is The Next Delicious Trend
Now here’s a food trend we can get on board with.
More: https://www.huffingtonpost.com/life-by-dailyburn-/all-about-jackfruit-your_b_12203058.html

For those new to Jackfruit, below you can see how BIG they are and how to cut one up.

 

Society

Sex, Death and Dementia

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Sex, Death and Dementia
Hobart's 'museum of sex and death' to help design Australia's first dementia village
Hobart’s ‘museum of sex and death’ to help design Australia’s first dementia village
Tasmania’s experimental Mona gallery is collaborating on the design of a care village for the elderly.
Australia’s first “dementia village” will be sited just outside the Tasmanian capital Hobart. Everything about the design of the village, Korongee, will be dementia-friendly. the 12 or so homes will be built on cul-de-sacs to keep the feel of local streets, and the businesses – including a cinema, supermarket and beauty salon – will be staffed by 350 people with dementia training.

Header photo: Matthew Bennett on Unsplash

Economy Society

BourneCoin: Eastbourne, UK joins neighbors in issuing Community Currency

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BourneCoin: Eastbourne, UK joins neighbors in issuing Community Currency
Eastbourne community currency to go live
Eastbourne community currency to go live
BourneCoin began as an experiment, when a tiny group of Eastbourne residents decided to create a town money. The idea was to stimulate the local economy and encourage wealth to stay in the area.
 
 “A flagship workshop with designers and users in the Towner Art Gallery reflected and celebrated the birth of something new in town: a local currency with the potential to facilitate all sorts of formerly hidden and isolated activities in the community.”
 
The project aims to create a local community currency in Eastbourne and surrounding areas, stretching to Brighton, Uckfield, Lewes, and Hastings. Organisers say it will be in digital form and in printed notes, and being a local platform, they argue it will allow people to ‘take back control’ of their data.
Eastbourne will join Bristol, Hull, Brixton and many other UK community / complementary currencies.
https://www.eastbourneherald.co.uk/news/eastbourne-community-currency-to-go-live-1-8453026
Editorial

The State Of The Bubble (April 13, 2018)

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The State Of The Bubble (April 13, 2018)

Some days we open the newspaper and feel we are all doomed.

So I started The Bubble as a modest Facebook Group, for a respite from media overload. It became the one thing I could share with all my friends and family, without hesitation. And now it’s a web site, thanks to help from friends. I’d never expected it would grow this big and travel so far.

There are some simple rules: No drama. No hurtful speech or news. And of course, accentuate the positive.

There’s no one perfect future. We aim to share granular items on Culture, Society, Environment, Technology,Health, Economy, Science plus “Wow Cool” and “Adorable” moments.

If you want to make the world a better place? It’s not enough to critique; we need clear visions of what will replace our faulty systems. It’s worth pondering how it will look, taste, shape, feel and function.

I’m continuing to ‘export’ over a thousand posts from the original Facebook group (started in late 2016) .  Feel free to join us with your thoughts, comments, items to share on our social contacts below.

– John Weeks, Editor

Twitter / Facebook / Email

Header image: Angela Acosta

 

 

 

Environment

Re-wilding: Re-introduced ‘Fishers’ Thrive In Cascade Mountains

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“Fishers” are slim furry, forest-dwelling relatives of weasels, mink and otters in North America. But they’ve been extinct in the Pacific Northwest since the 1900s. Until scientists attempted to re-introduce them in the Cascade mountains.

 

Fishers are back in Washington ? but can they survive?
Fishers are back in Washington – but can they survive?
Biologists released a handful of the endangered, weasel-like animals in 2008, but now they must find out if the population is sustaining itself.
https://crosscut.com/2018/02/fishers-are-back-washington-can-they-survive 

Header photo courtesy Earthfix

Technology

Norway pushes Electric Aircraft research

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Norway pushes Electric Aircraft research

Norway, flush with oil money, is aware the boom won’t last.  And one of the biggest fossil fuel C02 footprints? Commercial aircraft. So this is welcome research.

Norway plans to boost electric airplane development
Norway plans to boost electric airplane development
On the heels of their success pushing sales of electric cars, Norway want to spur the move to electric airplanes
Header image: Gabriela Parra
Society

Asgardia’s First Elections

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Asgardia’s First Elections

Trouble in paradise? Fledgling orbital colony Asgardia has a shoebox sized satellite in orbit, but is already conducting some contentious elections.

World's first "space" democracy struggling to launch more than a satellite
World’s first “space” democracy struggling to launch more than a satellite
Who knew establishing a parliament in space would be so complicated? Certainly not the self-described “Space Kingdom” of Asgardia. The group, which calls itself the first ever global “space nation,” has some lofty goals: “to ensure the peaceful use of space, to protect the Earth from space hazards, and to create a demilitarized and free scientific base of knowledge in space.”
https://futurism.com/first-space-democracy-asguardia/

 

Technology

Space Harpoons to remove orbital debris

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Space Harpoons to remove orbital debris

A lovely summary from BoingBoing:

A satellite designed to get rid of space junk
A satellite designed to get rid of space junk
There are 500,000 pieces of space junk orbiting the earth, many of which significantly endanger satellites and crewed space missions. to test various techniques of collecting and disposing of space junk: Orbital garbage collection!