Fifty Years of Graduate House inset Founding Warden William Berry
THE MELBOURNE GRADUATE The Graduate Union of The University of Melbourne Inc.
THE MELBOURNE GRADUATE
A teacher affects eternity: she can never tell where her influence stops
The Melbourne Graduate October 2012 – Volume 67 No. 2 Periodical Newsletter of The Graduate Union Print Post Approved PP337834/00022 Australian Business Number 55610664963 Incorporated Association Registration Number A0023234B Editorial: Shirley Ho Printed by: Kwik Kopy Box Hill
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Henry B. Adams (1838-1918)
THE MELBOURNE GRADUATE CONTENTS From the CEO and Head of College The William Berry Dinner Membership Data Our Individual Members - David Wilson - Jasper Follows - Jennifer Wu - Desma Phoebe McDonald - Matthias Könning - The Rev’d Canon Donald Johnston - David T. Bottomley - Margaret Robins - Barbara Funder - Heather Kudeviita - Madge Farrall - Louse Homfrey - Magnus Victor Anderson - E. Noel Bergere Our Organisation Members - The Career Education Association of Victoria - The Rotary Club of Carlton - The Australia India Institute - Acknowledgement of Patronage College Events - Sunday Music Concerts - Twilight Lectures - The Phillip Law Dinner - Monthly Luncheons College Photograph Festive Season Products College Garb A Cosmosgram
4 7 8 9 10 10 11 12 14 15 16 16 17 17 17 17 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 28 32 33 34 35
Cover photo Secretary of the Graduate Union 1948-1984, and founding Warden of Graduate House from 1962-1984, William Berry was the driving force assisting the Councils of the day in acquiring the properties in which we reside with pride today. He edited “The Melbourne Graduate” from 1950-1984, a time in which many distinguished academic were contributors to the magazine. His generous bequest enables the William Berry Post-Graduate College Trust to maintain our historic terrace buildings.
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THE MELBOURNE GRADUATE From the CEO and HEAD of COLLEGE On the 9th of August, 2012 our Association held its 100th Annual General Meeting. The proceedings were reported in brief in the October 2012 Newsletter, but are summarised as follows for the benefit of those who do not receive this publication. To begin, the Chair of Council, Mr David Sparks, presented Mr Matthias Könning with The Graduate Union Research Scholarship and an award trophy. Matthias gave a short presentation on his exciting research with the Melbourne Neuroscience Institute (see his article later in this edition of the Melbourne Graduate), explaining that the scholarship funds had enabled him to present his results at the 8th Annual Forum of Neuroscience held by the Federation of European Neuroscience Societies (FENS) in Barcelona, Spain. Because of this opportunity, Matthias was invited and is now a member of the Advanced School of the International Society for Neurochemistry and is learning from leading international experts in this field. We are proud to support Matthias at this stage of his career and look forward to following his progress over the coming years in applying his findings to the repair and regeneration of the brain’s nerve cell ‘sleeves’ – something that will be important for sufferers of multiple sclerosis. The AGM then continued with members joining the Chair in congratulating and welcoming Mr Andre Cleghorn, Mr Kingsley Davis, Dr Jane McKellar and Mrs Glenda Fisher to continued terms on Council, the governing body of The Graduate Union; and in extending gratitude and a fond farewell to retiring members Mr David Eyres and Dr Christopher Booth. The resignations of Dr Robert Gibson, Dr David Bellair, Dr Ross Weber and Mr Andrew Binns were also acknowledged. Since the AGM, Mr Eyres has kindly agreed to continue as Chair of the Sunday Music Concert Committee and as a member of the Membership Committee, a standing committee of Council. Dr Booth, though initially agreeing to continue on with a governance role, has recently advised of his posting overseas. We thus wish him and his family all the very best and hope that he will keep in touch and send us regular news updates from Europe. Following the presentation of the Financial Report for the year ending 31st December, 2011 and reports about the business of The GU, questions were invited. Of great interest were the comments from the member audience during the meeting and following, at the Phillip Law Dinner, on the strengths of our unique ‘college’ and ‘association’ and on the purposes and directions of The Graduate Union. Many of these comments were consistent with and parallel our increasing refocus on collegium, collegiality and participatory frameworks involving all member cohorts – those studying, in careers, including home duties, or retired. They have stimulated reflection of the name of our Association, of our raison d’être and of our commitment to pay tribute to and honour the foundations and principles established by our forefathers and foremothers while also welcoming and harnessing ongoing participation and engagement from graduates of current (aged 20 to 110 years) and future generations. The Graduate Union holds origin first as people coming together 100 years ago as an association and then as the bricks and mortar (50 years ago, predominantly through the work of William Berry and Barbara Funder) residence and meeting place for graduates. In its entirety, our ‘college’ is thus much more than the contemporary sense of a residency near a university. Similar to some colleges internationally, it has
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THE MELBOURNE GRADUATE grown out of a voluntary and ‘lay’ group of people and in law is an eleemosynary corporation – charitable. Its history and purposes resonate more with distant and culturally eclectic etymological stages of the word ‘collegium’: Russian коллегия (kollegiya), a committee, council or working group; Latin collegium, a company of people (con, together, and lēgō, selecting, collecting, gathering, reading aloud); and ProtoIndo-European stems of kom, near, with, together, and leg, to gather. The members of this unique collegium are not alumni in the traditional sense. They have not all graduated from the same university; they have not all resided in our buildings – the physical part of our college. Rather, they share the experience of having graduated from a tertiary educational institute in the world (some from a university in Melbourne), of being or having been in Melbourne (some for further study and in residence; others on a visit or for life) and of education: its advancement and application for the benefit of individuals and society. They comprise resident members (about 600 per year, multidisciplinary, multinational), non-resident members (working and retired, contributors to society, a cohort with experience, wisdom, influence) and our organisational members who bring in now about 1,700 working-age graduates per month for professional development, academic and research meetings, not-for-profit development activities, etc. With both the historical and current names, our unique ‘college’ or, perhaps better termed, ‘collegium’ shows involvement from and commitment to members within and beyond the walls of our fondly termed Graduate House (this series of buildings in which we live, meet and learn). Today, our business name includes union, a word holding origins in Latin of single pearl or onion – and yes, we do have many layers - and meanings in other languages of association (Urdu ;نمجناHindi sangh), fellowship, alliance (simplified Chinese 合伙) and cooperation based on common agreement (Finnish liitto). For the ancient Greeks, the word hetaireia meant ‘the company’ of bodyguards or protectors, which could translate to another interpretation of ‘union’ today – one that I had with initial viewing of the business name, and one which is mentioned and questioned often by newcomers to our Carlton gem – of a body that represents and stands for the rights of its (graduate) members. This speaking to name and purpose is at a particularly interesting point in our history and in the history of the sectors and society in which we sit. Today we are a good provider of graduate accommodation, meeting services and membership. There is sustenance, there are ‘member benefits’ and there are educational and social events. Yes, within this recipient model of member involvement, there are many areas for improvement, growth and continuing quality control. We hope always to address these responsively and responsibly. Further, however, our establishment, our constitutions and our current members remind us of a responsibility for deeper and more integrated levels of engagement from, and interaction between, members – collegiality, collegium. Through the critical lens of hindsight in twenty years, we will be judged on how we met the challenges and major changes of this time, which include those in graduate education (the Melbourne degree; global reach; corporatisation; competition), in networking between graduates (social media; mobile; globally) and in graduate career options and paths that are more often than not in several disciplines, with several employers and involving multiple cultures. In parallel, we are in a period of significant regulatory change. At state level, as an incorporated association, we are required to re-state our purposes and develop new rules. At the national level, as a charity and not-for-profit, we are to be regulated additionally by the Australian Charities and Not-for-profit Commission (ACNC) requiring also our clarification of purposes, our mission and our ‘performance’.
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THE MELBOURNE GRADUATE One member, in reminding us at the annual general meeting of mission components for a collegiate environment and for our graduate members to be engaged in intellectual stimulation, moved our consciences to the privileges of our collective minds, disciplines and experiences and thence to the inherent responsibility to work together on important issues. Again, this resonates with concepts of collegium and collegiality pursuing shared goals within a framework of mutual trust and respect (Robert A. Spivey) and sharing ideas and responsibilities, in a friendly way (McMillan Dictionary). Personally, I’m only enthusiastic about engaging with organisations that are working towards some concrete goal, and a graduates’ club, by definition, is not. The above is one part of a response from a respected member whom I approached, among others, on the question of our collegiality/collegium. In speaking about an alumni newsletter (from this person’s undergraduate University), this member points out also that: It’s a waste of time and resources that could have been better spent elsewhere. This sentiment of wanting to engage with and contribute to something concrete, worthwhile and meaningful is one oft expressed here at Graduate House by members young and old, from any country, in any discipline and at any life stage. Yes, part of this is for self-advancement in academia, career, reputation, influence and experience. The other part, however, is of wanting to contribute for the benefit of others and of society (with social responsibility, as coined in some contemporary circles) and within a GU collegial framework. The foundations are solid. The business is sustainable with opportunities for growth. Stewards before us have thus positioned us well for this refocus on our collegiate identity, on purposes for now and the future times and on working at common problems and possibilities. 解决共同的问题，探索共同的可能性。 I thank members who are speaking frankly and constructively about how they want to be involved and how they want to help other members become involved. Looking, for example, at the many resident member graduates now studying/researching here in Melbourne, Australia, we have been speaking to how we can all work better here/now to ensure that each of our ‘best and brightest’ leaves our physical walls but continues as a graduate who believes in the possibilities of our global ‘collegium’ and who continues to contribute to common problems – however the latter might be defined or scoped. Looking at our kind, generous and distinguished life members, there have been a number of proposals on how we can better enable their interaction and engagement with less-experienced graduates in the workforce, in study or in families/ communities as mentors, advisors and welcomers. For graduates who are visiting these facilities to attend meetings, seminars, conferences and functions convened by our organisation members, how do we better give you a welcome and invitation that makes you feel included and important for this collegium? By necessity under our current structure, human resourcing, fiscal responsibilities and priorities, continued development of collegium is to be in small and achievable steps. Larger ‘concretes’ are obviously in the pipeline and will be defined through current and future strategic planning rounds. I shall keep you all posted, dear members, as these attain better definition. Whatever and however the path, our charitable basis is ‘advancement of education’ and our theoretical foundations, to be relevant and applicable across all of our graduate cohorts, are potentially best laid by Dewey’s grounding of human thought in ‘pragmatic’ purposes and goals and by Sumner’s ‘goodness’ values of education in producing good citizens. Dr Kerry M. B. Bennett October 2012 volume 67 No. 2 Page 6
THE MELBOURNE GRADUATE 50 YEARS OF COLLEGE THE WILLIAM BERRY DINNER On Friday 13th July, 2012, The Graduate Union’s Graduate House celebrated its 50th Anniversary. Our college began half a century ago! Council Chairman and the Trustees of the William Berry Trust welcomed members and guests including the Chancellor of The University of Melbourne, relatives of the original benefactors, the Johnston, Anderson and Stillwell families, and some of the post-graduate scholars of early days.
Members and guests arriving for pre-dinner drinks and signing the Graduate House guest book.
Resident member Jason Poon playing music which included the College fanfare, a commissioned work for the Association Centenary in 2011.
Graduate House opened as a small residence on 13th July, 1962.
The lively crowd mingled and enjoyed drinks and canapés, set in the sixties style with gentle piano music in the background, courtesy of resident member Jason Poon. Pictures on display showed people and places in the College over the last five decades. The William Berry Dinner, honouring the founding Warden, was held in the Stillwell room. Continuing the theme, dinner guests enjoyed the exquisite ‘sixties style’ menu, with soup, a lamb roast main and a ‘berry’ pudding, along with selected wines and a feature photographic slide show. Former resident scholars shared stories of their experiences of living in college and of William Berry, and had everyone entertained with amusing anecdotes of his individual style as a tweedy, pipe-smoking and avuncular Warden.
Heather Kudeviita sharing fond memories with the Chancellor, Elizabeth Alexander AM FCA FAICD, and dinner guests.
Over 36 years (1948-1984) William (Bill) E F Berry was Secretary of the Association and Warden.
Dinner guests enjoying a sumptious and traditional dinner.
Barbara Funder (left) with Chairman David Sparks and Duty Resident Tim Stephens (right) enjoying drinks and canapés.
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THE MELBOURNE GRADUATE MEMBERSHIP NEW MEMBERS
We extend a warm welcome to new members of the Association.
HONORARY MEMBERS
Mr Si么n Lutley, The University of Melbourne Vice-Chancellor Representative on Council
HONORARY LIFE MEMBERS Mrs L M Weston
LIFE MEMBERS Dr A Jenney
REGULAR (ORDINARY) MEMBERS Ms J A Marion Binari De Saram, Ms K A Biram, Dr C Burvill, Ms M Gillett, Mr W R Harman, Dr C Hogan, Mr N Letcher, Dr A Lovegrove, Ms M R Mathias, Rev Prof J L Morgan, Dr E Mullins, Justice T G Pagone, Mr B Poidevin, Prof J Polesel, Mr B Salter-Duke, Mr D J Shore, Mr J R Styles, Dr Z M Unger, Mr C E Wade, Ms L Walker, Mr A Wu, Ms X J Zhang
ASSOCIATE MEMBERS Mr J Mulholland Ms Eira Parry
RESIDENT MEMBERS
Overseas Country of Origin Bangladesh 1, Belgium 5, Bolivia 1, Canada 4, Chile 2, P.R. China 4, France 2, Germany 10, India 3, Iran 1, Israel 1, Italy 1, Japan 12, Korea 1, Lao PDR 1, New Zealand 10, Oman 1, Philippines 2, Singapore 6, South Africa 1, Spain 2, Sri Lanka 1, Thailand 1, The Netherlands 1, United Kingdom 9, USA 11, Vietnam 1 Australia State of Origin Australian Capital Territory 5 New South Wales 24 Queensland 7 South Australia 7 Victoria 69 Western Australia 13
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ORGANISATION MEMBERS
Australian Centre of Excellence for Risk Analysis Australian Urban Research Infrastructure Network Constructioneering Corporate Communique Environment Protection Authority Victoria Forensic Foundations Pty Ltd Melbourne Business School Planning Institute of Australia, Victoria Division Rushall Consulting Group Safety Institute of Australia Ltd Supply Chain Logistics Association Australia University of Melbourne - Department of Anatomy and Neurosciences - Department of Computing and Information Systems - Faculty of Architecture - Faculty of Medicine, Dentistry and Health Sciences - Marketing and Communications - Melbourne Law School - Melbourne School of Engineering - Melbourne Students and Learning - People Capability Human Resources - Property and Campus Services - Provost Office - School of Historical and Philisophical Studies Victoria Comprehensive Cancer Care
VALETE
Our condolences are extended to families and friends. Dr David E Bland - Life member 1946 Mr Alan Alexander Cohn - Life member 1952 Dr Maurice Maxim Gooey - Life member 1955 Mr Donald Murray Hart - Life member 1946 Mrs Jean Hughes - Life member 1961 Dr John (Jack) A McDonell AM - Life member 1959 Dr John Raymond Nicholas - Life member 1980 Prof Emeritius Alan G Shaw - Life member 1941 Mr Derek Shew - Life member 1957 Senator S E Spindler - Life member 1967 Mr William Tetley - Life member 1965
BEQUESTS AND DONATIONS
We are grateful for the generous support of donations and bequests from: Mr Leonard H Bailey Mr Leon Dawes Miss J F Eltham Ms Betty Keay Mr Edward Muntz Other kind people who wish to remain anonymous
THE MELBOURNE GRADUATE OUR INDIVIDUAL MEMBERS Our Membership is of non-resident, resident and organisational members. Thank you to the following members for sharing their graduate stories. David Wilson, Member since 2009 I am from Perth, Western Australia and graduated from the University of Western Australia in Geography in 1971. In 1978 I completed my PhD in Geography from Northwestern University in Evanston, Illinois and during this time was fortunate enough to work on the Chicago Area Transport Study. In Chicago I worked with some of the leading geographers and transport engineers. At that time, Northwestern was the home of mathematical geographers. In 1979, I came to The University of Melbourne in Civil Engineering where I taught transport planning and some traffic engineering, as well as engineering economics. I have returned to the same department many years later in Infrastructure Engineering and currently, among other things, I am a Senior Tutor in Earth Processes for Engineering – something which combines physical geography with engineering. I joined the Graduate Union in 2009 because I wanted to hold a three-day workshop on Intermodal Transport somewhere in the vicinity of the University. I organised the workshop through my own company, Master Research Australasia, and it involved some academics from the University plus transport consultants from around Australia. The location was perfect because it was convenient for the academics and also many people from the Victorian Department of Transport who supported the workshop. What I like about being a member of the Graduate Union is the warmth, friendliness and professionalism of the staff, like Rosie and Bill and others. They made running the workshop less stressful. Now, I just enjoy coming to the Union for lunch and bringing visitors because of the warm and friendly reception. You are always treated extremely well. The CEO is very special and I believe we are really fortunate to have her. I think the future for the Graduate Union is exceptionally bright and I would hope my company can run many more functions here.
Our members: international interdisciplinary graduates
Early Career (e.g., Masters and Doctoral studies; in a profession)
In Careers In Caring Roles
Late in Careers Retired
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THE MELBOURNE GRADUATE OUR INDIVIDUAL MEMBERS Jasper Follows, Vancouver, Canada, Resident Member since 2010 I come from Vancouver, Canada and am studying dentistry at The University of Melbourne on the way to completing the four-year graduate Doctor of Dental Surgery degree. I’ve lived in Graduate House for close to two years and I consider it a great stroke of luck that I ended up here as I only enquired a few weeks before arriving. Thankfully, it’s exactly what I was looking for. In fact, I can see myself becoming like a piece of old furniture here already. The amazing mix of young and old, local and international, and bright and very bright make this college unique. Every single person has excelled in some discipline or another and, no matter where they’re from, they add something interesting to the global microcosm of Graduate House. Academics are a priority of course, but I’ve never yet been unable to find someone willing to have a good chat or go exploring more of this fantastic city. And to top it all off, I’ve even learned a little bit about cooking!
Jennifer Wu, Shanghai China, Resident Member since 2011 I come from a beautiful Chinese city called Wuxi, also known as the Pearl of Taihu Lake. I obtained a Bachelor of Business and Commerce Degree from Monash University and am currently undertaking a Masters of Management (Finance) at The University of Melbourne. My main interests are management, accounting and investment. After a three-month internship in a Fortune 500 pharmaceutical company, I realised that there are so many people who are suffering from unimaginable pain and badly need help. Inspired also as a granddaughter of four doctors, I now aim to contribute to industries that are social welfare related. I learned about Graduate House when I was browsing The Jennifer on the cover of a Monash University publication. University of Melbourne’s website. I like it because it is a community of postgraduate students, provides advanced facilities and is so close to the University. I didn’t decide to stay in Graduate House long term until I actually moved in. The most amazing thing is the interaction with other residents, as they have various backgrounds and are specialised in different areas. Through this simple interaction opportunity I am able to gain more knowledge, to be more open-minded and potentially to develop new interests. I believe these to be important and necessary experiences for a university graduate student. October 2012 volume 67 No. 2 Page 10
THE MELBOURNE GRADUATE OUR INDIVIDUAL MEMBERS Desma Phoebe McDonald (nee Stephenson), Life member since 1948 I was born on the 3rd of January, 1926 in Melbourne and had my secondary education at the Melbourne Girls Grammar School during World War Two. I graduated in 1947 from The University of Melbourne with a Bachelor of Science degree. Soon after I joined the Graduate Union as a life member in order to maintain contact with university interests. I was appointed as a clinical scientist at Prince Henry’s Hospital Melbourne in 1948 and remained there until marriage in 1952 to a RAAF veteran of Bomber Command. I then worked as a clinical biochemist at the Royal Women’s Hospital until the arrival of children. The hospital hours proved to be incompatible with family life, which has always been a first priority.
A recent picture of Desma in her garden.
From 1966 onwards, I spent six years working part-time in the Medical Faculty at Monash University as a biochemistry demonstrator to third year medical students. In 1971, a successful 50th birthday celebration was held for my husband Bill at the Graduate Union.
Graduation in 1988 in M.Ed. Studies from Monash University.
In order to join the Victorian Education Department full time in 1973 at Emily McPherson College in the training of dieticians, I gained a Diploma of Education. Later, in 1977, after the dietician’s course, I was transferred to Deakin University. I remained with the Education Department in the TAFE College sector in science departments, gaining a Graduate Diploma of Educational Administration. In 1988, I obtained a Master of Educational Studies degree from Monash University. This study reflected my interest in women’s education and I was invited to adapt my Master’s thesis to form Chapter 6 in “Centenary Essays” which was published by Melbourne Girls Grammar School in 1993.
Desma with cap, gown and family at Graduation.
I recently rediscovered old friends and the delights of the Graduate Union with marvellous parking facilities and the most enjoyable monthly luncheons.
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THE MELBOURNE GRADUATE OUR INDIVIDUAL MEMBERS Matthias Könning, Ahaus, Germany, Resident member since 2011 The 2012 Graduate House Research Scholarship recipient Originally from Ahaus, a German town lying between the University City Münster and the Dutch border, I undertook my Bachelor and Masters degree in Biochemistry at the Technical University of Munich. One year ago I came to Australia to start my PhD in Neuroscience, working with Professor Trevor Kilpatrick and Dr Ben Emery in the Multiple Sclerosis Group of the Melbourne Brain Centre. For me, on top of this world class research facility, Melbourne also offers a diversified environment that makes it easy to relax after long days in the laboratory. There is nothing more refreshing than a day at the beach or a weekend of hiking in the nearby conservation areas. And due to the Graduate House community of visiting scientists and people who also seek to become familiar with the area, it is always easy to form a group to do this with. Graduate House is also a place where interesting conversations about world affairs and academic projects come naturally and are discussed amongst people of various expertise and cultural background. This not only can widen the horizon under one’s own nose, but is also valuable for developing new ideas and for viewing my own research from different angles. Importance of myelin in health and disease Speaking of my own research, you might think that, being a neuroscientist, my main field of interests would be nerve cells - neurons. However, I am also interested in another cell type found in the brain - oligodendrocytes. The interplay between neurons and oligodendrocytes is one of the fascinating examples of cooperation between different cell types in the brain. Neurons are the cells responsible for information processing and forwarding. The information is represented by an electric pulse. For pulses to be transported from a neuron to another or to the muscles, they pass along processes of the neuron cells, the axon. Axons can be up to one metre in length, yet the propagation of the electric pulse has to be rapid and efficient. This is where oligodendrocytes come in. They surround axons with myelin, a layer of electrically insulating material. One can think of the myelin sheath as an analogue of the insulating plastic around a metallic cable; if you remove this insulation, electric transmission is less efficient. The process of producing myelin and wrapping it around axons in a myelin sheath is called myelination. The importance of October 2012 volume 67 No. 2 Page 12
Neuron Oligodendrocyte Interactions (Adapted from Sherman & Brophy, Nature Reviews 2005).
THE MELBOURNE GRADUATE
myelin sheaths for proper brain function can be seen in diseases that lead to a degradation of myelin, such as multiple sclerosis (MS) where the myelin sheaths get attacked by the body’s own immune system. As this negates proper signal transduction from the brain to the muscles, it results in muscle spasms, paralysis and is ultimately fatal. With our research we hope to one day offset the degradation in such diseases. Therefore we look into the mechanisms controlling myelin production. As most constituents of myelin are specific to it and not needed in other cell types, their production is very tightly regulated. The regulation of myelin production How does the body make sure that myelin proteins are produced only in oligodendrocytes and only when needed? Let us think of the cell as an inventor, who has engineering drawings for many different products. And let’s say the inventor has an apprentice with limited understanding of all these engineering drawings. If the inventor wants the apprentice to bring a certain drawing to the manufacturers, how could he make sure that the apprentice picks the right one? A possible way would be to split the various construction drawings into different lockers each with its individual key. This way, the inventor could only give out the key of the locker that contains the construction drawing of the product he wants to be produced. The apprentice could then open that locker, make a blueprint copy from the construction drawings and take it to the manufacturers. All of the objects and acting people in the above story have equivalents in biology. The many construction drawings locked in long term storage are our DNA. The blueprint is called RNA, while the final product is a protein. Apprentice and manufacturers are complexes that produce RNA and proteins, respectively. The key then, is Myelin gene Regulatory Factor (MRF), the subject of my research. As you could imagine, if the key goes lost, no more production of any of the products is possible. Therefore, MRF is essential for the production of myelin proteins and the formation of the myelin sheath. In my research so far I have proven this essential role for MRF. Support from the Graduate House Research Scholarship The Graduate House Research Scholarship allowed me to present the findings made in Australia to an international audience at Europe’s biggest conference for my field of research, the 8th Annual Forum of Neuroscience held by the Federation of European Neuroscience Societies (FENS) in Barcelona. It also allowed me to accept an invitation to the International Society for Neurochemistry (ISN) Advanced School, a special program for 40 PhD students to network with leading experts in the field. My ongoing research will be on the mechanisms by which MRF is activated. The Research Scholarship has also allowed funding for me to realise smaller sub-projects of my own design. Overall, we hope that one day, by an activation of MRF, we can increase the amounts of myelin produced to repair damage done in MS. October 2012 volume 67 No. 2 Page 13
THE MELBOURNE GRADUATE OUR INDIVIDUAL MEMBERS The Rev’d Canon Donald Johnston, Life member since 1951 I am Melbourne born and bred and was educated at Geelong Grammar School. I then went to Trinity College in Melbourne and obtained a Bachelor of Arts degree from The University of Melbourne. I then did my Studies in Education at London University. For my first teaching job, I taught at a British Army School at Pløn in North Germany, then at Repton in Derbyshire. My wife, Elin and I were married in Copenhagen before returning home to join the staff of Melbourne Grammar School. In the late 1950s, my father, Dr Bill Johnston (later Sir William) who was then a Member of Council of the University, invited several of our family to attend a formal dinner at which he spoke. This was held in the University Student Union, chaired by the Vice-Chancellor David (later Sir David) Derham. I believe Bill Berry was also present. This dinner was to launch an appeal for funds to set up Graduate House in its own home. My father proposed that as many of our family as were Graduates to join The Graduate Union as Life Members. Since so much of my life has been lived overseas, I have been a poor member, unlike my brother, Dr Stewart Johnston who was a member of Bill Berry’s “Century Club”, which lunched regularly at the Union. In 1961, with two and a half children, Elin and I moved to Cambridge (Emmanuel College) where I read Theology before being ordained at York Minster and serving in a parish near Hull. We then came back to Melbourne to care for the Anglican Parish of Nunawading (‘nappy-valley’ to the locals). I then taught at Brighton Grammar School, where I was thrown into the all-absorbing role of assisting Martyrs’ Memorial School in Papua New Guinea (PNG). I later returned to Melbourne Grammar and continued with this same interest. In 1985 we moved to PNG to teach at the two Anglican Secondary Schools. I retired in 1991 and moved to live at Point Lonsdale. Even then, I have never The Johnston Library, named after Donald’s stopped helping Martyrs’ School, mostly through the work father, Sir William Johnston. of the Rotary Club of Geelong whose direct assistance has literally saved Martyrs’ School. My focus has shifted recently to Sariri Village, destroyed by the flooding following Cyclone Guba. Elijah Sarigari, my former School Captain of Martyrs’, gave up teaching to rebuild this isolated village with great and continuing help from Rotary. More funding needed! October 2012 volume 67 No. 2 Page 14
THE MELBOURNE GRADUATE OUR INDIVIDUAL MEMBERS David T. Bottomley, Market Researcher and Great-Grandfather, Life member since 1964 It is two-thirds of a century since I became a Graduate Union Life Member. In 1945 I was Melbourne University Student Representative Council (SRC) President and I thought £20, my monthly allowance, a good investment in what I thought would be a club for academics. As all know, the Union has been transformed by the vision and hard work of so many people into excellent graduate student lodging, an excellent place for conferences, luncheons and dinners but never, for me, a club for casual meetings with contemporaries or a place to work before University seminars. After a little science teaching, I fell into market and social research in consumer and industrial fields, here and in Asia – for sixty-two years.
Articles of David Bottomley were often featured in the Farrago publications when he held the position of SRC President at Melbourne University in 1945.
I moved to Hong Kong in 1986 at a very interesting time. Through my work which gives me entry to people’s homes wherever I am, I watched China race through its industrial revolution; the older people wearing Mao suits, and shorter than I, gave way to taller young people with the same problem as our own children - the immense task ever to buy a home of their own. I have seen in China narrow roads crowded with man, beast and truck replaced by six or eight lane freeways and have travelled between major cities in trains travelling up and down hills at constant speeds of 260 km/h. As pollster for the Hong Kong South China Morning Post for eleven years I tracked Hong Kong people’s feeling about their becoming part of China. I saw the dismal cowardice of the British in agreeing with the Chinese government to refuse Hong Kong people any voice in their own destiny, and yet denied British citizenship to those who did not want to stay. Recently, for six years, my most interesting work has been in ten cities of Myanmar (Burma). Presently, I have taken leave of market research to be a full-time doctoral student in 19th century English History of Science Education. David is regular at Graduate House on Wednesday afternoons and welcomes a ‘Combination Room’ for discussions between resident and non-resident members.
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THE MELBOURNE GRADUATE OUR INDIVIDUAL MEMBERS Margaret Robins, Life member since 1959 I was born and educated in Kew in Melbourne’s east. After matriculating early, a minimumage regulation blocked my starting Law but I escaped school by becoming a junior library assistant for an interim two years. I then took English at The University of Melbourne but switched halfway through to History and Philosophy. This was a lucky decision: when I made the then statutory trip to England, elements of both disciplines suited me for a library appointment in Oxford. A friend of my old Centre for Adult Education (CAE) director, Colin Badger, gave my name to Sally Chilver at the University’s Institute of Commonwealth Studies and I became its Librarian. The Institute undertook research, post-graduate work and the training of graduates from newly ex-colonial countries, who were to replace the Colonial Civil Service Administrators it had previously prepared. My seven years there were demanding, challenging and very sociable. A future position in London arose but I needed to improve my library qualifications and moved there to take a new graduate course offering. A year’s freelancing with British Forces Broadcasting Service followed while I adjusted to the need to return home for family reasons. Here I faced the barrier of ‘over-experienced and over-qualified,’ something returning expatriates can still face. Then the Baillieu Library offered me a position and I stayed in the tertiary library sector until retraining as a teacher. How does The Graduate Union enter the story? Bill Berry, then Warden, must have been a very active Warden at Wilson Hall’s graduation ceremonies in the late 1950s, judging by the many members from that time whose mothers joined them up for life. On such efforts were the Terraces (largely) founded. Until I retired I could only drop into the House occasionally but I warmed to its welcoming atmosphere, its Common Room ambience and its tweedy Warden’s way of ensuring you met residents from all over the world. It recalled my stimulating Oxford days. If the Union can retain and nurture this atmosphere of collegiality, if it can effectively promote its unique character in the University sphere, it should have a fine, useful future.
Barbara Funder, Life Member since 1977 After an interview in early 1962 with Bill Berry, and impressed by his dream for a college on the Square, Barbara Funder joined The Graduate Union as Office Secretary in that year and in 1964 was appointed Assistant Secretary-Warden. Important milestones in her time included the expansion of the terraces to accommodate 50 residents and the purchase of further properties, the monthly luncheons moving from the Victoria Hotel to our own dining room in the early 70’s; the affiliation of The Graduate Union as the 11th College of the University in 1972; her admittance as a Life Member in 1980 and appointment as Trustee of the William Berry Post-Graduate College Trust, along with Heather Kudeviita, in the 1980s. October 2012 volume 67 No. 2 Page 16
THE MELBOURNE GRADUATE OUR INDIVIDUAL MEMBERS and CONTRIBUTORS Heather Kudeviita, Life Member since 1962 A familiar face at functions in Graduate House and a Life member, who also trained as a teacher of English to speakers of other languages, Heather is also a member of a lively group of Francophiles who meets monthly for lunch at Graduate House. Heather often spends several months of each year in the U.S., U.K. and Europe.
Madge Farrall, Former Staff of The Graduate Union Described as a Lancashire lady, Madge Farrall was apprenticed Matron-Housekeeper of our young “Hall of Residence” in 1962 when seven post-graduates from various parts of the world occupied one house in the original terrace. As one resident recently recalled, she ruled with a rod of iron and woe betide any late for breakfast or improperly dressed who crossed her path. She was however regarded with respect and affection as an important part in the first fifteen years of Graduate House’s history. A more relaxed atmosphere prevailed later!
Louise Homfrey, Honorary Life Member since 1965 Louise Homfrey was given an Honorary Life Membership for her significant contribution as producer and actor with the graduate theatre group The Tin Alley Players who performed in the Union Theatre and in play readings at Graduate House until the 1990’s. She was also a broadcaster in the early days of radio and known as “Louise of 3AW”.
Magnus Victor Anderson, Former Councillor Magnus Anderson was an important member in the fifties and early sixties as head of a firm of Chartered Accountants and with his position on Graduate Council. His financial expertise helped to guide The Union in its formative years, and his generous donation enabled the establishment of the Anderson Room, now a Common Room. Two of his relatives, Bruce and Rhys Watson, keep his memory alive in The Union.
E. Noel Bergere, Chairman 1957-1959 A graduate in Law of The University of Melbourne and a Master of the Supreme Court, Master Bergere is known as “The Father” of The Graduate Union’s Constitution. While we know that today the Constitution and Rules are under review to conform with current standards, it should be noted that Master Bergere’s version has served The Graduate Union well from the 1950’s to current times. His Chairmanship of the newly constituted Council in 1957 and valuable legal advice often steadied the ship at meetings with large waves.
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THE MELBOURNE GRADUATE OUR ORGANISATION MEMBERS The Career Education Association of Victoria The Career Education Association of Victoria is a not for profit association that represents school-based careers practitioners and related professionals. The prime role of the association is to provide professional development and resources for members. The CEAV also offers consulting services on career development to government and other organisations. It holds a conference for new career practitioners each year, as well as a Biennial Conference. We have used Graduate House on many occasions for the delivery of professional learning and meetings of the CEAV. Graduate House has excellent facilities, including internet access and car parking. The staff are always most helpful and willing to meet our needs, even at short notice. The location is accessible for our members, especially those from country regions. The refreshments are appetising and our members appreciate the ability to choose from a wide menu. On the 31st October, 2012, we are conducting a seminar on Proving that Career Development is Effective in Schools. We will hear about the latest developments in research and practice from Professor Mark Watson (Nelson Mandela University, South Africa) and Dr Mary McMahon (University of Queensland), two internationally renown career experts. On the 1st December 2012, we will hold our 2012 CEAV Awards Dinner. Both of these events will be at Graduate House.
The Graduate Union is proud to support our Organisation Members through the provision of tailored meeting services. If you represent a group - small or large in the university, government or not-for-profit sectors, join as an Organisation Member. Invite also colleagues who have graduated from a university in the world to join as individual members.
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CEAV staff.
THE MELBOURNE GRADUATE OUR ORGANISATION MEMBERS Rotary Club Of Carlton Keith Ryall, Member of the Rotary Club of Carlton Immediate Past District Governor for Rotary International District Rotary is a worldwide network of inspired individuals who translate their passions into relevant social causes to change lives in local, national and international communities. Carlton members enjoying fine dining at the Adelaide Rotary Club during one of their interstate visits.
The Rotary Club of Carlton meets every Tuesday at 12.30pm for 1.00pm in the dining room of Graduate House and has been meeting there for over three years.
In addition to the regular weekly luncheon meetings, Rotary uses the various conference rooms at Graduate House for strategic planning meetings, as well as for meetings of several special interest groups. We selected Graduate House because we were looking for a quality central location that reflected the academic and general community that is so important to Carlton and Parkville. Why consider Rotary? It is open to men and women of all ages and backgrounds. I joined Rotary mainly to build friendships in the local community and for general networking opportunities. That was several years ago. I have stayed in Rotary because I have seen how it is able to change people’s lives (young and old) for the good. In saying that, we also manage to have a lot of fun and really enjoy the wonderful food, wine and superb staff service at Graduate House.
A number of membership associations that contribute to societical causes meet here at The Graduate Union. We aim to support their charitable and not-for-profit endeavours. Graduates in these groups often also become members of The Graduate Union. A group of Rotarians, mainly from the Carlton Rotary Club, at Wilson Hall, The University of Melbourne.
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THE MELBOURNE GRADUATE OUR ORGANISATION MEMBERS The Australia India Institute The Australia India Institute (AII) is a leading centre for the study of India established by The University of Melbourne in 2008, with funding from the federal government of Australia, the government of India, the state government of Victoria and The University of Melbourne. The University of New South Wales and La Trobe University were also founding partners. Through its diverse and extensive teaching, research, public policy and outreach programmes, the Institute aims to build Australia’s capacity to understand India and to promote a deep and enriching relationship between India and Australia. Initiatives include lectures by wellknown Indian and Australian academics and social commentators, an undergraduate studies programme, conferences in both Australia and India, an annual Artists’ Retreat and regular Tiffin Talks. A recent initiative has been the Emerging Leaders Fellowship Programme, an eight-week residential fellowship which is awarded to emerging leaders from India from a variety of disciplines. Participants in this programme are accommodated at Graduate House. Future initiatives for the AII will include hosting a Chair in Indian Studies, funded by the State Government of Victoria and The University of Melbourne, and a Visiting Chair in Indian Studies, sponsored by the Indian Council for Cultural Relations. The importance of the Institute is reflected by those individuals working actively to achieve its mission. The Patron of the Institute is the Governor of Victoria, the Hon Alec Chernov AC QC. Professor Amitabh Mattoo is Director of the Australia India Institute and Professor of International Relations at The University of Melbourne. He concurrently serves as Professor of Disarmament Studies at the Centre for International Politics, Organisation and Disarmament at New Delhi’s Jawaharlal Nehru University. Distinguished Fellows affiliated with the Institute include Professor, the Hon Gareth Evans AO QC, Emeritus Professor Brian Stoddart and Ms Maxine McKew. Your interstate and international visitors are welcome to reside at The GU. Our Stella Langford Wing has self-contained apartments. Advance booking is advised.
Some staff of The Australia India Institute
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THE MELBOURNE GRADUATE ACKNOWLEDGEMENT OF PATRONAGE We acknowledge and thank our Organisation Members for their continued patronage.
AUSTRALIAN ASIAN ASSOCIATION
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THE MELBOURNE GRADUATE COLLEGE EVENTS SUNDAY MUSIC CONCERTS HEATHER STEWART
A classically trained singer and violinist, Heather Stewart, who plays Bach in her spare time, presented a program of blues and Cajun songs with her fellow musicians Dan Dinnen on guitar and harmonica, Ben Hendry on drums and Leigh Barker on bass. Each had the chance to shine in wonderful solo passages. Heather’s great rapport with her fellow musicians was obvious and their enthusiasm was shared by an attentive and responsive audience. Heather delights in rediscovering the old blues songs and bringing them to a new audience in her own special way. Included in her program were some of her own songs and we were introduced to the banjo mandolin which she also plays. The songs were very beautiful. In some, simple words were repeated; in others, there was sadness, or an up-beat and humour. Heather also included solos without words, like Alma Waltz. The concert ended with a lively rendition of the title song of her award winning album Get Your Fingers Off It.
WILMA SMITH and FRIENDS
Wilma Smith, concertmaster of the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra, along with distinguished friends Daniel Kossov (Principal First Violinist of the Tasmanian Symphony Orchestra), Simon Oswell (well known Melbourne violist), cellist David Berlin, clarinettest Philip Arkinstall and cellist Howard Penny delighted the audience with a wonderful concert in April. The group excelled in a performance of Brahms’ great Clarinet Quintet which Wilma described as ‘the pinnacle’. Great waves of sound filled the room as the five instruments interwove, sometimes as an ensemble and sometimes in solo passages. The concert began with Dvorak’s Terzetto for two violins and viola, with its folk style Scherzo, and finished with Number 4 of Haydn’s Opus 20 String Quartets, a milestone in string quartet composition.
HOANG PHAM
An attentive audience enjoyed a wonderful piano recital given by the brilliant young pianist Hoang Pham in June. The main work was Chopin’s 24 Preludes Op. 28 which has been described as Chopin’s ‘dazzling chromatic homage and challenge to Bach’ - a reference to Bach’s two sets of 24 Preludes and Fugues in each major and minor key. Chopin’s Preludes are all very different - some violent or passionate and others calm, but together they form a cohesive whole. Hoang played the set beautifully. He began the program with Bach’s keyboard Partita No. 2, a collection of dance movements finishing with the brilliant Capriccio. In response to the audience’s enthusiasm he played two encores by Chopin - the E flat Nocturne and the D flat Waltz, known as the Minute Waltz.
PEP TALK
Members and guests enjoyed an informal concert on the 19th August given by the jazz trio Pep Talk, established last year by students from the Victorian College of the Arts. This was led by Pepita Emmerichs on violin, with Lincoln McKenzie on guitar and Stephen Hornby on bass. They played a lively program of mainly gypsy jazz or hot club jazz, which began with Grapelli and Reinhardt in Paris in the 1930’s. The concert included the musicians’ own arrangements and some familiar jazz standards like the Gershwin classic Lady be Good, Ain’t Misbehavin’, a swinging Sweet Georgia Brown as well as beautiful quieter songs. We also strayed to Brazil with Tico Tico. In each number the original tune was played first, followed by individual improvised solos. Pepi introduced each item and we were able to ask questions and learn more about the music. Vignettes of each concert can be viewed on our website: www.graduatehouse.com.au
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THE MELBOURNE GRADUATE COLLEGE EVENTS TWILIGHT LECTURES PROFESSOR GARY EGAN On his topic ‘Visualising the Brain’, Professor Egan (NHMRC Principal Research Fellow and Professor and Director of Monash Biomedical Imaging) explained his involvement with research of the human brain in the last two decades, how medical research has developed over the last 100 years and how he envisaged advances over the next 5-10 years. We are now at a stage where scanners can image our thoughts up to eight seconds before we even have them, and can show us how motor actions are enacted in a coordinated manner across many and varied parts of the brain. With pictures at the cellular level of neurons connecting and signalling with apparent fluidity notwithstanding an obvious complexity, Professor Egan illustrated simply how this research has moved from a cottage industry to mainstream with large scale approaches. Neuroscience is now a competitive and large industry. From the early 20th century scientists have found that different parts of the brain control various functions of the body, and that the brain is made up of highly specialised subdivisions. X-rays taken on photographic plates were the first ways to look into the human body when the body was still alive. Later CAT scanners linked computers with x-rays to show cross sectional images of the brain. Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI), which gives images from the magnetic properties of tissue, has developed rapidly to become smaller, more compact and ‘friendlier’. Professor Egan also outlined his research on Huntington’s disease and multiple sclerosis. He believes that it will soon be possibe to look into the live brain. Questions from the audience included one on how the brain functions through the learning process, to which Professor Egan answered with reference to neuroplasticity. To a query about advances in brain injury rehabilitation, Professor Egan explained new techniques, such as trans-cranial magnetic stimulation where electrical fields and currents in the grey matter are activated or subject to interference. We thank Professor Egan for this fascinating insight of how we gain ‘in sight’ to brains and look forward to hearing more of the incredibly rapid advances in neuroimaging.
PROFESSOR EMERITUS DAVID PENNINGTON AC The bionic eye might seem the world of science fiction, but Professor Penington’s Twilight Lecture on ‘Challenges in Developing the Bionic Eye’ gave a wonderful view into the world of biomedical engineering and advances that promise a reality for people with blindness. Currently Chair of Bionic Vision Australia, an unincorporated joint venture that received a $42 million grant from the Australian Research Council late 2009 to develop the bionic eye, he really is the right person to be leading this initiative, particularly after having led the development of the bionic ear through Cochlear, a company that now holds 70% of the global market for cochlear implants. Professor Penington pointed to the important role of Australians and local companies for implants. He spoke to the fiercely productive drive of industrialist Paul Murray Trainor AO (1927-2006) who established a number of companies from the 1960s to success globally with pacemakers and defibrillators. He outlined how he and Professor Graeme Clark joined the Faculty of Medicine at The University of Melbourne in 1970; and how they and others contributed to the development of the bionic ear. The bionic eye has a similar technology to that of the bionic ear – an implantable device with electrodes that stimulate nerve cells. Three years into the development of this biomedical masterpiece, he was delighted to report that a blind person with retinitis pigmentosa who had recently received an implant and training in the use of an early prototype device was now seeing light. The next step is the technology and training for visual recognition (e.g. of a person or an object) which will likely require another two to three years of intensive re-engineering, testing and commercialisation. We thank Professor Penington for this wondeful presentation and wish him all the very best in securing funds so that this product can become available for people with such conditions as macular degeneration and retinosa pigmentosa.
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THE MELBOURNE GRADUATE COLLEGE EVENTS THE PHILLIP LAW DINNER
FREDERICK ELLIOT Frederick Winton Elliot spoke at the Phillip Law Dinner on the 9th August, 2012 following the annual general meeting and gave historical and memorable stories of his friend and colleague. Below is the complete version of his recap of events in first person and with references to ‘Phil” throughout. On Saturday, 13th of February 1954, I was one of a group of men standing in a semicircle at Horseshoe Harbour in MacRobertson land, while Phil read out a proclamation reaffirming Australia’s claim to the area and naming the new station “Mawson”. The National Anthem was self-consciously sung and Phil gave Dick Thompson the nod to unfurl the flag, which Dick attached to a temporary flagpole lashed to a sledge caravan. Dick tugged the lanyard, but there was some difficulty as the flag refused to unfurl. On the third tug, the mast fell down to the general guffaws of the troops. But this ceremony was important to the Australian Government’s claims in Antarctica. So we had to do it again for the record. Apparently there is a strict protocol for these land claiming ceremonies where the position of the witnesses, the proclamation, the singing of the Anthem, etc., are clearly set down. I wonder what Phil thought of it all.
Raising the flag at the establishment of Mawson Station. Phillip Law is pictured at the foot of the flagpole.
I have since realised that science was used as a sort of scapegoat to give credence to the national claims in Antarctica by countries from both the northern and southern hemispheres. I have also come to believe that Phil’s passion for publicity was as much due to his desire to further the cause of the Australian National Antarctic Research Expeditions (ANARE) as for his own personal esteem. How did Phil come to be there? In the early 1950s, at No. 1 South Wharf, next to Spencer Street Bridge, the good ship Wongala would often dock. It was about 500 tons, had a strong wooden hull and boasted sails as well as engines. It was not remembered fondly by Phil, although in a roundabout way it was a factor in him becoming Director of ANARE. Originally the
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THE MELBOURNE GRADUATE F.V. Fanefjord, it was launched in 1919 in Norway as a herring boat. Its well-rounded bottom, like Nansen’s Fram, ensured that it would not be nipped by ice as it plied its trade in the arctic seas. That rounded bottom gave it the ability to roll in dry dock, or so it is said. In 1933, Lincoln Ellsworth and Sir Hubert Wilkins bought her and changed the name to Wyatt Earp. After they finished with her in about 1938, following a landing at the Vestfold Hills, the Australian navy took her over eventually renaming her H.M.A.S. Wyatt Earp. As an aside here, Ellsworth’s supplies came with the ship and were put in bond store until taken over by ANARE. I remember that Phil had some magnificent fur mittens from that store and when Commander Ike Schlossbach (USN Ret) who had been with Ellsworth and Wilkins (in fact Ike had been with almost everyone) came down to Mawson with the 1956 relief party, we were able to re-unite him with his old sheepskin flying jacket. I also remember that the whiskey from those stores, bottled in the States during the prohibition era, was literally firewater, for it could be used to prime the primus. In extreme emergencies it could be used to prime the person priming the primus. As a further aside, I feel that I should say something about those early post-war years when ANARE began, for they were a time of great hope that the world might return to some sort of normality, and that young men and women could plan for the future with some confidence. A veil had been lifted and the future beckoned. For instance, Tasmania’s Federation Peak was unconquered and the Bass Strait island Rodondo, a pristine remnant of the land-bridge to Tasmania, had not had its secrets revealed, a kind of living fossil. It was a good time to be alive. For Phil, the opportunity for adventure came when Sir Douglas Mawson urged the Australian Government to send an expedition south to establish a scientific base, so that Australia’s claim to a slice of Antarctica might be better recognised, especially in view of Norwegian and American exploration in the area. He also suggested that his old base at Macquarie Island be re-established and the British Government asked Australia to take over its claim to Heard Island, to forestall a possible American claim. Dr Herbert Evatt, Minister for External Affairs, was enthusiastic about the scheme and an Executive Committee on Exploration and Exploitation of the area claimed by Australia was formed under the auspices of the Department of External Affairs. It decided that Group Captain Stuart Campbell, who had been the pilot with Mawson on the British Australian and New Zealand Antarctic Research Expedition (BANZARE) be seconded from the Department of Civil Aviation to become the Executive Officer of the expedition. Sir Douglas suggested that the HMAS Whyatt Earp be refitted by the navy in Adelaide. In July 1947, Phil was appointed Senior Scientific Officer, and in that capacity he went to Adelaide to make sure that the refit made adequate space available for scientific work. When sailing back to Melbourne on her, he became so seasick that he passed out on a coil of rope on the deck and had to be carried below by four sailors. In fact he was such a bad case that Commander Oom suggested that he should not sail south, but Oom did not know the calibre of the man. Phil was not a good sailor, but he never made that an excuse for not fully carrying out his workload. He was a most determined person. After its failure to reach the Antarctic Continent in 1947, it was obvious that the Wyatt Earp would not be a suitable vessel for further exploration and scientific work around the continent of Antarctica. Neither was the other naval vessel, HMAS LST 3501, later renamed HMAS Labuan, which was used to establish the two island stations at Heard Island and Macquarie Island in 1948. Thus it was that, because the Wyatt Earp was so unsuitable, the establishment of a continental presence was put on hold until suitable shipping became available. This gave Phil the opportunity to become Director of ANARE, for Group Captain Stewart Campbell could not see himself carrying on with just two subantarctic island bases instead of the real thing on the Antarctic continent. He resigned and went back to a permanent position with the Department of Civil Aviation. Phil, who saw the scientific value of the island stations, accepted the Directorship of ANARE in 1949, and that was when I first met him, bouncing with enthusiasm for adventures ahead. I was at the Melbourne Teacher’s College (where Phil’s father was Principal) in 1949 and John Bechervaise was running a series of travel lectures at the Melbourne Museum. I was his assistant. One night Phil was guest lecturer and showed a picture of Big Ben on Heard Island. We put in our bids for a chance to climb it. Three and a half years later, we were on a small vessel, which had docked on the other side of the river to the Wongala, at No. 1 North Wharf where the Conference Centre now stands. This was the MV Tottan, which had begun life as a corvette, a U-Boat hunter, being built on the Clyde by a Mr. Brown. The war ended before it was completed, so it was towed across to Norway where it was fitted out as a coastal passenger ship and powered by U-Boat engines from Messrs Blohm and Voss in Hamburg. The passenger boat idea failed to be profitable, so the Tottan was given two holds, an ice bow and a new existence as a sealer. It was not a
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THE MELBOURNE GRADUATE COLLEGE EVENTS happy marriage and I was not alone in wondering whether the U-Boat and the corvette were still enemies. For instance, the U-Boat engines had a bad habit of ceasing to function at the most inappropriate of times, the first being just after we cleared the Heads en route to Heard Island. A story about Phil’s leadership style concerns the Tottan. In 1952 the ANARE Store was out at the Air Force depot at Tottenham. For several months we worked at getting our year’s supplies ready for shipping, under the watchful eyes of the head storeman, George Smith. The Tottan arrived in port and George asked us to turn up earlier than usual to load the first lot of semi-trailers with cargo. We did, and while waiting for their return, the black Commonwealth limousine arrived and Phil took one look at us loafing and went straight in and started to berate George, who stood quietly until Phil had said his piece. “Well Phil,” he said “I asked the blokes to come out early today. We have sent off the first loads and are just waiting for the semis to come back for the next ones.” “Well,” said Phil, “Why didn’t you tell me?” George just replied, “Jesus Phil, you didn’t ***** ask!” Phil just said, “Oh!” and walked back to the car. I was flabbergasted, but Phil was quite unperturbed. The problem of not having a suitable ship was solved when Phil heard that the Danish Lauritzen Line had built a ship specifically for the Greenland trade. Although not a real icebreaker like the American Wind Class icebreakers, it was registered to navigate in ice, and had two holds and accommodation for twenty-four passengers. Phil did some wheeling and dealing with the Government. In sacrificing the Heard Island base and offering to transfer some of its buildings and equipment to the proposed continental station, Phil persuaded the Government to charter the Kista Dan for the 1954 season. And so began a remarkable association between ANARE and the Lauritzen Line which lasted for thirty years, the last ship being the M.V. Nella Dan named after Phil’s wife, Nell. The Kista Dan made an Antarctic station feasible. With Phil on board, it called in at Heard Island to collect five of us from the 1953 Heard Island party. It then went over to the French base at Kerguelen before heading south to set up the Mawson station. On the way home we picked up the rest of our Heard Island crew and then went back to Kerguelen before returning to Melbourne. I was standing on the wharf with a Frenchman who said to me, “Doctor Law, he is your Director?” I confirmed this. “But you do not show him any respect. When we wish to speak to Commandant M. Armengaud, we make an appointment, but you, you people just call out, “Hey Phil!”. He did not seem to understand that our respect for Phil was personal, nothing to do with rank. Perhaps Liberté, Egalité, Fraternité lose something in translation into Australian. I wonder what he would have thought had he had been present later that day when Phil threatened to flatten one of our men who was making a bit of a fool of himself in front of our hosts. Phil’s infectious enthusiasm was a vital element in gathering around him a band of men and women who The Kista Dan in 1954. willingly worked long hours at the ANARE headquarters in Melbourne and at the Stations. Men like George Smith, Lem Macey and Dick Thompson come to mind from that time towards the end of 1952. They were loyal, but by no means servile. Yet there were times when Phil’s enthusiasm reached the “Gung Ho” category. In spite of the fact that it took six hours to free the Kista from the newly frozen sea when we left the new base at Mawson, Phil took the opportunity to try to get accurate fixes on land features shown in the American “Operation Highjump” which photographed almost all the Antarctic coastline in one hit. In fact the site for Mawson base was selected from these photographs. They had plenty of spare aircraft carriers. Scullin Monolith was the first stop. Jim Brooks, Dick Thompson, Dr Arthur Gwynn and Phil were taken in, in a ship’s boat, by the Second Mate Bill Pederson. A high ledge of ice attached to the rock prevented them from getting ashore. Phil was all for making a flying leap, but Dick told him not to be a bloody fool. Phil took Dick’s advice. I note though, in my diary entry for the day, that there was a fairly heated exchange on the deck when they returned to the Kista.
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THE MELBOURNE GRADUATE COLLEGE EVENTS The most serious case of excess enthusiasm occurred not long after when he insisted that Captain Peterson take the Kista Dan into the pretty much unchartered waters at the Vestfold Hills where Davis Base now stands. It was too late in the season to be there and, on the night we left, Kista Dan broached in hurricane force winds. The engine room inclinometer showed a seventyfour degree list to port at one stage. Our remaining Auster, rebuilt from the wreckage of the two damaged by wind at Mawson, fouled a life boat and had to be cut loose. This was done by the Second Mate, Bill Pedersen, whose hands were so frozen by leaking petrol that he could not write for a month. He said that he had never experienced such pain. The Fourth Engineer spent his watch, in cramped quarters, clearing slush ice from the engine water intake which the list had brought to the surface. It was such a terrifying experience that he never got over it. He never went to sea again.
Frederick Elliot joined the Australian Antarctic Research Expedition (ANARE) in 1952 to Heard Island as a weather observer. During that first season in 1953-1954 he helped to establish the Mawson Research Station on the Antarctic continent in 1954. He returned to Antarctica for the 1955-1956 season again as a weather observer at Mawson establishing what is now the longest running upper air sounding program in Antarctica. That same year he participated in the first exploration of the Framnes Ranges. His distinguished service was recognized the following year when he was awarded the Polar Medal.
Phil admitted he had made a grave error of judgement and had put the lives of those on the Kista in jeopardy. I once heard him say that he had never been so terrified, not just for his own safety, but for knowing that if the Kista capsized, the Australian future in Antarctica would have gone down with it. Indeed we were reminded of what could happen in 1958 when the sister ship of the Thalla Dan disappeared with all hands in the North Atlantic. But he made sure that there was a future after that and worked relentlessly to achieve this. He was helped to do this when the Russians put their base on Australian territory in preparation for the International Geophysical Year. That loosened a few purse strings in Canberra. There was no Russian diplomatic representation in Australia at that period following the Petrov affair, and there was a rumour doing the rounds that the Russians were setting up submarine pens down there. The highly respected journalist Osmar White was with us, ostensibly to report on the trip. But very secretly he had been instructed by the Minister for External Affairs, R.G. Casey, to check out this rumour. After the wonderful banquet luncheon the Russians put on for us, Osmar was gazing at a bust of Lenin outside when the Russian Commandant came up and said, “Well Mr. White, have you seen any submarine pens?” Before we went ashore, we were told by Phil to be good ambassadors and warned about the iniquities of vodka, but aero-vodka (also known as de-icing fluid) wasn’t mentioned. It was super-iniquitous. Later in the day two large Russians were seen assisting Phil back to the ship. Alex Brown was about to photograph the incident when one of the Russians said, “You photograph, we shoot!”. He didn’t and they didn’t. Most of us though will remember a relaxed and happy Phil sitting, cigar in mouth, in the smoke-filled saloon, leading the singing with his piano accordion; cartons of Tuborg and Carlsberg skidding round the deck as the Kista rolled, making it an interesting operation trying to open a well-shaken can without spraying half of it on the deckhead. “Hey Phil! Can you play Smoke Gets in Your Eyes?” yells out someone and starts to sing it while Phil valiantly attempts to find the right pitch and key to suit the voice. Luckily he was a very good musician. They were memorable times with Phil. At Phil’s 90th birthday celebration one of the speakers said, “There were many times when we could have screwed the little bugger’s neck, but we are all here because of him.” And so we are tonight.
Phillip Law in his prime as a polar explorer. Inset: a more recent picture.
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THE MELBOURNE GRADUATE COLLEGE EVENTS MONTHLY LUNCHEONS WILMA FARROW Caroline Chisholm burst into the luncheon room and commenced a spirited discourse about her outstanding life of service as a progressive 19th century woman who, seeing a need in society, set out to meet that need. It is easy to see why she appeared for many years on the Australian five dollar note. Although her good deeds were not confined to Australia, she is known mostly for her involvement with female immigrant welfare in Australia’s early days. When still a child, her father took a maimed soldier into his house, pointing out to his children their obligations to the man who had fought for them. There is little doubt this led to the sense of responsibility that was the basis of Mrs Chisholm's life work. Wilma Farrow, aka Caroline Chisholm, is a great admirer of women who have made a difference and she is determined they will not be forgotten. As a frustrated Shakespearean actress whose dreams of a career on stage ended with the birth of her children, she is now using her dramatic talents to play feisty women of renown, Vida Goldstein and Louisa Lawson, Henry’s mother. Half history lesson, half performance - Wilma’s acts are memorable and fun.
KIM SAMPSON Kim Sampson’s presentation on ‘Influenza’ (from an Italian word meaning influence) was informative and timely. He is the CEO of the Influenza Specialist Group (ISG) which came into existence when its founders realised that influenza vaccination figures were low and that the general public was unaware of the severity of the illnesses that influenza can cause. General practitioners, particularly in the early 1990s, were not recommending vaccination, mainly because they thought them to be ineffective and therefore not worth promoting. Objectives of the ISG are to increase understanding about influenza, to develop educational tools and information, and to provide an independent voice between government and industry. Challenges for ISG include dealing with government, as well as industry and the media. Commonly known as ‘the flu,’ influenza is caused by a group of virus infections of the respiratory tract. More deaths are caused by the flu in Australia than on our roads annually. The flu is mostly seasonal, from late autumn to early spring. Occasionally severe and worldwide outbreaks (pandemics) occur. Immunisation takes a few weeks to ‘kick in’ and lasts approximately 12 months. Symptoms of fever, chills, headaches, muscular aches, severe cough, weakness and lack of appetite can lead to various complications. An adult generally contracts ‘the flu’ once every 5–6 years. It is a notifiable disease that mutates and adapts.The virus is transmitted by wild birds or water foul species and passed onto other animals with the infection spreading through small airborne particles (up to 5 metres), through droplets and contact. These viruses live on hard surfaces for eight hours or more. There is an incubation and contagious period of one to two days prior to feeling any symptoms, and a contagious period for several days afterwards. The suggested high risk groups are those over 65’s, people with underlying medical conditions, children under six months of age, Indigenous people over 15 years of age, pregnant women, nursing home residents and people who may transmit to high risk group areas. Only two vaccinations are available on the immunisation scheme: the Influenza vaccine and the Meningococcal vaccine. Some myths about ‘the flu’ include The young and fit don’t get the flu - FALSE; You get the flu from the vaccine - FALSE; The vaccination is dangerous for pregnant women - FALSE; The vaccination only protects against a few strains - FALSE. Of note was the common sense advice that the most important prevention against infection is to wash your hands regularly. More information about Dr Sampson, Influenza and the ISG can be found at: www.isg.org.au
The 15th March, 2013 is the official start of Australia’s Flu Vaccination period. The Graduate Union will be hosting the opening.
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THE MELBOURNE GRADUATE COLLEGE EVENTS BRUCE McBRIEN Mr Bruce McBrien’s affection for his city was very apparent during his insightful and informative presentation entitled Marvellous Melbourne and Me. Born in 1926, the same year as Queen Elizabeth II, he started life on a housing estate, built by the ‘AV Jennings’ of the day, in the new suburb of Brighton, at that time an outer suburb which saw the introduction of nature strips. “Why?” you may ask. Bruce explained that with cars becoming more popular and with increasing numbers on the roads, they caused clouds of dust to enter houses. The nature strips provided a barrier for dust collection. Bruce’s reminisces were of the times when tradesmen travelled the street in horsedrawn carts, hawking their wares. He gave clear pictures of such local identities as the ice man lugging blocks of ice for the ice chest, the ice cream man (not Mr. Whippy!), and the dustmen running alongside their carts, usually local footballers, emptying tin rubbish bins with lids being thrown anywhere and having to be searched for. He remembered sturdy remedies for common ailments, like the whisky poultice around the neck to cure a sore throat, and a cure for arthritis involving taking two pitted prunes soaked in gin every night before bed! A little different from the prescription medicines of today. Bruce is an entertainer and a brilliant raconteur and we thank him for the generosity of wit in his story telling.
Professor, The Hon GARETH EVANS Starting out as a lawyer, barrister and Queen’s Council, Professor Evans entered Federal Parliament as Senator for Victoria in 1978, became a Member for Parliament for 21 years and later the Foreign Minister from 1988 to 1996. Diverging from his topic ‘Making Australian Foreign Policy: Who Matters?’ he said that there is never a dull moment in politics and had us entertained with anecdotes about various political issues and personalities. He said the process of making policies is never dull, particularly recently, with the rise and fall of Kevin Rudd, and his resignation as Foreign Minister. Concerned that the business community and academic institutions were no longer influential, he said public voice was rarely heard except when things went wrong for Australians abroad and the event captured public interest. Returning to the ‘who matters’ in the foreign policy, Professor Evans spoke of the relationship between the Foreign Minister and the Prime Minister. A Foreign Minister would usually accept the obsessions of the Prime Minister, in the hope that the obsessions would be few, rational and manageable. Prime Minister Hawke’s obsession was the creation of an exclusion zone in the Antarctic to ban the oil and minerals exploration, while Keating’s was to develop closer relationships with Indonesia. Although differently approached, both PMs had been a pleasure to work with. Foreign Ministers have an extraordinary amount of leeway to develop their own foreign policy because PMs are so caught up with domestic issues and their political management. Some important skills required of a Foreign Mininster, according to Professor Evans, include the capacity to handle endless issues, to think creatively and to recognise opportunities. Most important is the ability to empathise, seeing all perspectives of an issue, particularly the other person’s opinion, to communicate, persuade and be listened to. On the successes and failures of both Liberal and Labor politicians, he added that if Kevin Rudd were to bounce back into the limelight, prioritising would be his big challenge. From his perspective, the current challenges facing Australian Foreign Politics include issues with security, our economy in relation to China and USA, recognition of the reality of the Asia Pacific, and Australia’s relationship with India, Indonesia and the Pacific Islands. Professor Evans pointed also to realising what Australia, as a middle power, can bring to the wider global debate community in effectively playing a part in such major issues as climate change, global security and terrorism. He acknowledged that homeland security is a major issue, but that threats could easily be overstated and needed to be kept in perspective. Open, humourous, candid and frank, this presentation held us riveted with the intrigues of politics.
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THE MELBOURNE GRADUATE COLLEGE EVENTS MONTHLY LUNCHEONS JENNY DAVIES Jenny’s interest in Flinders Street Station began after learning that her own grandparents met at a dance in the Station’s ballroom, and then a tour during which she heard of its many stories. While embarking on her journey to write a book for the Station’s Centenary, a former VicRail train driver with many stories to tell reinforced her interest in writing about how our beloved central railway station has always met the needs of Victorians. Although the Flinders Street Station project was the largest development in Melbourne at that time, there was little coverage in the newspapers. A competition held to design a central railway station was won by two railway employees and the job of overseeing the building of the winning design was awarded to James Faucet. He ultimately became the leading architect for the railways with engineer Mr H Ashworth. Many changes were made during the five year construction period and by its completion, the building was almost unrecognisable from the original design. About 350 local Melbournians were involved in the plastering, stonemasonry and bricklaying. All the stonework was hand cut. The size and style of Flinders Street Station suited the times, as the city was going through a period of growing national pride and it was thought that Melbourne was likely to become Australia’s capital. Flinders Street Station was always intended to be a public building. There was a vibrancy about the building, in part due to the myriad of diverse businesses which operated within it. Jenny Davies launched her book about Flinders Street Station in 2010, the Station’s centenary year, calling this day ‘her celebration’ because, once again one hundred years later, the government of the day appreciated to be indifferent to the Station’s significant historical occasion. Many in the audience emembered the crèche or nursery that existed in the 1930’s and early 40’s where they played while their mothers went shopping. There were questions about how money could be raised for the required restoration. With the withdrawal of funds from railway infrastructure, it was felt that donations might be forthcoming from the public, particularly those of older generations with memories of the station’s earlier days. It was also suggested that those with interesting artifacts should returned these as museum pieces for display.
PROFESSOR GRAHAM BROWN AO Professor Brown, Foundation Director of the Nossal Institute for Global Health, presented a talk on Malaria. From a female mosquito bite, the malaria parasite enters the blood stream when piercing the human skin and reproduces. This causes fever and sweating with flu symptoms. A blood test is required to confirm malaria. Several forms of malaria can cause death, particularly where parasites enter the brain, and during pregnancy. Though people living in malaria prone areas build immunity after numerous infections, this immunity is lost if they leave the area to later return with decreased immunity and a huge risk of being reinfected. Different methods of eradicating malaria include sleeping under mosquito nets impregnated with insecticide to avoid bites. DDT insecticide sprayed on external surfaces of buildings twice yearly was thought to be an effective control strategy but there were calls to stop using DDT in the 1960s after concerns were raised about the side-effects of toxins on the environment, predominantly from use in agriculture. Professor Brown expressed the need to reevaluate this position and weigh up the known benefits to human health from surface spraying against the small effects on environmental health. Professor Brown works with Bill and Melinda Gates to eradicate malaria worldwide under the ‘Roll Back Malaria’ initiative. It is estimated that only US$6-8 billion per year worldwide could achieve significant headway with good governance of health systems and with better prevention, detection and treatment. In conclusion, he highlighted that the gains of the last 20 years through effective vaccination programmes must be supplemented rigourously by continuing to fight the illicit manufacture and distribution of inferior drugs for malaria treatments and by resisting complacency, particularly in malaria-prone areas.
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THE MELBOURNE GRADUATE ZORA SANDERS Graduating from The University of Melbourne with a Bachelor of Arts, Zora started her internship as a publisher, writer and storyteller with the student union newspaper ‘Farrago’. Speaking on The things I had thought about doing but not ended up doing, Zora brought images alive with stories of career fantasies that turned from wild imagination to the cold hard realities of what each career entailed. As a girl, Zora yearned to become an astronaut after seeing Hubble space telescope images. By age eight, she realised that becoming the first Australian female astronaut might not be within her grasp, given her selfproclaimed low aptitude for mathematics and science, along with some less than pleasant episodes of motion sickness. Toying with becoming an archeologist Egyptologist following a visit to the New York Metropolitan Museum at age nine, she marveled at how these structures carried messages from civilisations long gone. Thoughts of time travel and a magical mysterious world enveloped her vivid imagination. Archaeology continued as a career thread when, at age eleven, her family moved to Salisbury, England where she visited the Salisbury Museum and joined the South Wiltshire Archeologists Club, a ‘nerd’ haven. After an initially promising ‘dig’ for the skeleton of a man supposedly crushed several centuries ago under a manmade monolith, she came to realise that hours of digging in dirt and finding just a rock might not be her permanent cup-of-tea! With hindsight, Zora realised that her attraction to these jobs was based on the grand stories and super human scale, with space being the longest story to be told. Egyptians believed in immortality but their culture still speaks to us and captures children’s imagination everywhere. Archeology tells stories of the past and the lives of those people. Zora has thus come to settle well within a career where story telling is central. Currently the Deputy Editor of Meanjin, Australia’s second-oldest literary journal established in 1940 and an imprint of Melbourne University Publishing since 2008, she works with stories, arguments and people who care enough to write. Zora takes new stories and places them in an object that hopefully will last longer than her own life and the lives of the authors.
SHERIDAN PALMER Dr Palmer spoke on the significant cultural changes in postwar Melbourne, the era of European immigration which saw Australia introduced to modern art, literature and architecture. It was an influence that raised Australia’s international standards and strengthened multiculturalism, giving direction to Australia’s existing modernists. Gino Nibbi, an Italian, was one notable émigré who established the Leonardo Art Shop at Little Collins Street selling Australian and international literature, reproductions and postcards. This bookshop became an oasis for artists, writers and Europhiles. Basil Burdett, a well-informed Australian art collector, was best remembered for organising the Herald Exhibition of French and British Contemporary Art in 1939, giving both Australian artists and the public a chance to engage with post-impressionist and modern paintings not experienced before. The arrival of German and Austrian émigrés from 1919 to 1933 saw a demand for photographers and architects in Melbourne and thus emerged the dramatic influence. Melbourne became an active commercial hub for textiles, industrial and graphic art, and furniture design. Performing arts were given a new lease of life with concert pianist Erwin Rado, who later became a dominant figure in the Melbourne Film Festival scene. Likewise, Edouard Borovansky arrived in 1938 and is acknowledged as the man who made Australian ballet. After World War II, Australian art and education were restored at secondary and tertiary levels as more European refugees arrived in the 1950s. Sheridan defined this post-war period as one of the most exciting revisionist phases. After the war, the explosion in art and culture was replaced by a return to pre-war civilian life characterised mainly by the return of women to the home. Notable exceptions were Helen Ogilvie who managed Stanley Coe’s interior design shop in Bourke Street. This started a market for modernist art and led to a breed of collectors from another generation. New galleries opened and the Women’s Weekly offered a grand prize for the best portrait by a woman. This was also a time when many people could afford to buy an original work of art. Dr Palmer concluded that the 1950s was a period of significant émigré and multicultural influence and that it marked the emergence of a rich yet uniquely Australian culture of art, architecture, music and intellectualism.
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THE MELBOURNE GRADUATE COLLEGE PHOTOGRAPH Resident members gathered for the first Graduate Union College Photograph on the 25th September, 2012. If you recognise your beautiful face in one of the photographs below, and want to purchase a Graduate Union bordered print, please contact Bill, the photographer, at info@eliteschoolphotography.com.au.
The next College Photograph session is on the 14th December, 2012. As per the first occasion, this second College Photograph day will have two resident member sittings, one at breakfast and one at dinner. Don’t miss out on this opportunity to be a part of history. You, your relatives and your friends may like to have in hand a special memento of your Graduate Union experience. Non-resident members are invited either to be part of these College Photograph sittings or to have an additional group sitting on the 14th with friends and colleagues. Call Bill on (03) 9570 9311 to arrange. He is taking these photographs for you to then purchase from him directly a Graduate Union bordered print (with a legend of the names of those photographed) for about $20.
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THE MELBOURNE GRADUATE FESTIVE SEASON PRODUCTS Yes, it is that time of year again! The festive season is just around the corner and our talented elves have been busy preparing a range of delicious Graduate House products. They did not want you to miss this once in this year opportunity to give GU seasonal gifts to your loved ones. Fig and Orange Jam
$7.50
Chocolate Sauce
$5.50
Marmalade
$5.50
Asian Pickle
$5.50
Egyptian Ma’amoul biscuits $4.50
The elves have their ware on display at the bar in Graduate House for direct purchase, either as individual items or as customised gift hampers. You may also order by telephoning (03) 9347 3428 or online at: www.graduatehouse.com.au
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THE MELBOURNE GRADUATE COLLEGE GARB Resident and non-resident members demonstrate their proud allegiance to our 100 year old Association and to our 50 year old College through dress. Our apparel range is made from the highest quality materials and to last. These items are available at our office and may also be purchased online from our website - see the link to Rowbust on our home page. http://www.rowbust.com/graduate-house
MENS POLO $40
CREW NECK T-SHIRT $30
WIND CHEATER WITH HOOD $50
KNITTED VEST $50
MERINO PULLOVER $110
CAP $30
WOMENS POLO $40
Our gift range also includes:
Mugs $5.00
Pens
$5.00
Key chains
$3.00
Reusable Keepsake Cups $10.00 Metal Handbag Holders
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$15.00
THE MELBOURNE GRADUATE A COSMOSGRAM To circulate amongst the circulations This text I am typing by the time it reaches you and everyone else, has gone through various changes. It has started its journey of circulation. It is now both a thought and a product. It is digital. It travels from A to B while staying at point A. It is available through a network. There is no far close, outside/inside that exists on that network. This text could have started as a word document and have been cut and pasted by me into the box. It wasn’t but it could have been. So as all the packets aggregate to make up what you and others now see on your screen this thing (thought and product) already has been transformed. Now it is visible to you. Think of the manipulations you can make of this object. The further transformations! It now resides on the server that hosts this site. It has been stored. It already has history. You have called it up. My artifact has politics! It is part of my world as I type excitedly knowing that soon it is going to be part of yours as well as all who see. The machines have already had to engage with it, and now it is your turn. You must see it by now, my cosmogram. My thoughts race ahead of my fingers as I dream of the gestalt (ah ah moment) you will have. Then sink as I tell myself ah ah will be so what. Never the less I press on with my offering. It already has affected me, now it is going to affect you. Good, bad, indifferent, who cares. My gift, my cosmogram. Too late, like trying to catch the wind, I press submit. Once captive of me it now circulates. It is no longer mine! It’s now a cosmosgram. You have already judged me. This thought has no content. Well to that I say, this is not mine at all. I disown it. It may bring me into disrepute. It has already exposed my deviance. Hasn’t it? This circulation of mine is now dear reader part of your circulations. It may be copied cut and pasted wherever you will. It may be e-mailed. It may end up on the hard drive. Already its life is being mapped and recorded. I am doing that myself. This object of mine, this thought without content is an “other” as far as I am concerned. I am worried now. What if my supervisor learns that I have published a thought without content? It is no longer just me is it? The reputation of the University may be at stake. “How many other students publish thought without content?” the Opposition Leader asks in the House. This artifact’s politics have turned ugly. But I am not my thought! I know what happened. Yes yes that’s it. You see in the transformations all the content must have been separated from the thought. It’ s been lost. But I can find it. You will help me won’t you? That’s it! We can all find it together so thoughts with content will rule once more. A triumph of pure reason. By Jim Downing, from the introduction in his doctoral thesis after his later age entry into the Information and Communication Technology world. Inspired and read by Bruno Latour, a French sociologist, anthropologist and influential theorist in science and technology.
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THE MELBOURNE GRADUATE
THE GRADUATE UNION of The University of Melbourne Inc. Australian Business Number: 55610664963 Incorporated Association Registration Number: A0023234B 220 Leicester Street, Carlton, VIC 3053, Australia Telephone: +61 (0)3 9347 3428 Facsimile: +61 (0)3 9347 9981 www.graduatehouse.com.au admingh@graduatehouse.com.au
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