Two of my kids have just sat their year 12 History exam. It’s fascinating to look at how the actions of humanity have shaped and affected our world. Wars can be traced back to human action, whether it was to increase someone’s empire, enrich a nation or settle a long-held grievance. Similarly, some people live…
For centuries, the problem of finding out your longitudinal position had baffled the greatest minds. While it was easy to find your latitude through observing the position of the sun during the day or the stars at night, finding your longitude remained elusive. The greatest scientific minds thought that if one method worked for latitude,…
There are some pretty exclusive clubs in the world with highly restrictive conditions that prevent the majority of people becoming members. It may be you have to earn a certain amount of money, be successful in some area of life, be related to a member of an important family or have to be invited by…
It begins early in life. At school we are grateful we are not like “those kids”. If we go to University, we are grateful we are doing a decent degree, unlike “those students”. At work, we are grateful that we don’t do “that job”. In our lives we are glad we don’t live “there”. We…
This week we witnessed athletics history being made when the Kenyan runner Eliud Kipchoge ran the marathon distance in under two hours. The thing is though, he didn’t just wake up that morning and decide to have a crack at it. It was the result of months and months of planning, preparation and training. All…
In the novel, “The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy”, Douglas Adams addressed the size of the universe in these terms, “Space is big. Really big. You just won’t believe how vastly, hugely, mindbogglingly big it is. I mean, you may think it’s a long way down the road to the chemist, but that’s just peanuts…
Storms have been very much in the news these past few weeks as we’ve watched with horror the death and devastation caused by Hurricane Dorian. Classed as the second most powerful hurricane to ever make landfall in the Atlantic, it has devastated the Bahamas and left it looking like a nuclear bomb has gone off.…
Can you remember what you doing on July 29th this year? It was a day worth noting as it was “Earth overshoot day”. That’s the day when humanity has used up more ecological resources in the year than the earth can regenerate by the end of the year. It means that every day from 30…
If you’ve ever had to arrange the seating plan for a wedding or function, you’ll have an idea what it’s like to have absolute power. You can finally get your own back on your least favourite Aunt for that time she forgot your birthday by seating her next to your annoying cousin who has questionable…
If you’ve ever been caught out in a storm, you’ll have experienced the power of nature. Whether it is lightning, thunder, gale force winds or high seas, it can be very confronting. It’s something immensely powerful and you have no control over it. It could cause you some real damage and there’s nothing you can…