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Science Talk 2007: Tim Entwistle

An interview and tour of the Royal Botanic Gardens of Sydney and its herbarium with Dr Tim Entwistle, a plant scientist and the NSW Government Botanist. Tim talks to a pre-service teacher from Macquarie University about his love of plants, in particular freshwater algae. In the herbarium we find out why it is so important ...

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Giant Cuttlefish

This 12 minute video segment from Catalyst outlines the fascinating and unique features of the giant cuttlefish and its mass breeding at Point Lowly. Then it explains how scientists have determined the vulnerability of this species- the fact that the eggs are sensitive to high levels of salinity and the fact that they die ...

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Turtles

This 7 minute video segment from Catalyst describes the risk factors that impact on turtle survival. Protecting the future of turtle populations on the Queensland coast has been the life's work of Col Limpus for the past 40 years. His efforts have included research and reducing predation from foxes and entrapment in trawler nets.

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Water recycling

This 11 minute video segment from Catalyst provides an excellent explanation of the processes involved in recycling sewage for an urban water supply. It also provides a range of opinions and concerns in an excellent debate on the topic.

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Catalyst: Megafauna fossils

Travel back in time in outback Australia and investigate the giant lumbering beasts of the past - the megafauna. Visit a fossil site in Cuddie Springs, New South Wales, where megafauna bones have been discovered. Explore the connection between Aboriginal peoples and megafauna, and theories for the extinction of Australia's ...

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Working as an ecologist

This is a colour video clip in which marine ecologist Dr Candida Savage of the University of Otago in New Zealand talks about her work, what led her to it and why she enjoys doing it. She explains how her research involves a variety of experiences, requiring creativity and collaboration with other scientists in many different ...

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Ladybirds

This program encourages people to observe and identify ladybirds in their own backyard. There is the potential to discover a new species or identify an introduced and harmful member of this group of insects.

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Borneo Live Reef Fish Trade

This nearly 13 minute video segment from Catalyst explains how Fisheries scientists warn that if fishing around the world continues at its current pace, more and more species will vanish. The coral triangle is one particular area where biodiversity is at risk, and the top predator appears to be humans.

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Dr Ove Goegh-Guldberg

This 5 minute video segment from Catalyst highlights the vulnerability of some of our ecosystems and the way abiotic factors can have a dramatic effect. It also exemplifies the difficult process of having new scientific ideas accepted.

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Party locusts

This 8 minute video segment from Catalyst is an excellent example of animal behaviour of locusts as a successful adaptation and how understanding the behaviour can potentially help reduce the damage they cause.

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Seahorses

This six and a half minute video segment from Catalyst shows one of the most beautiful and bizarre creatures under the sea, the seahorse. Their highly unusual reproduction has not been sufficient to overcome the impacts of habitat destruction and human predation.

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Farmland run-off into estuaries

This is a colour video clip of marine scientist Dr Candida Savage discussing nutrient run-off from farmland, and the effects it has on estuaries and other coastal environments. The clip shows Dr Savage, from the University of Otago, New Zealand, being interviewed. It also shows images of houses on the banks of estuaries, ...

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Cloud seeding

This nine and a half minute video segment from Catalyst describes how researchers from Monash University have hard evidence that cloud seeding can produce good amounts of extra rainfall. Data collected over a long period of time has give hope to scientists and environmentalists who are trying to reduce the impacts of droughts ...

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Bryozoans' role in the ecosystem

This is a colour video clip of marine scientist Associate Professor Abby Smith discussing the role bryozoans play in marine ecosystems. The clip shows Abby Smith, a teacher and researcher at the University of Otago, New Zealand, being interviewed. The clip also shows underwater photos of bryozoans, fish and corals.

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Sea Urchins

This 7 minute video segment from Catalyst describes an excellent example of how biologists have worked to investigate and solve a problem of an invading species of sea urchin that was devastating a marine ecosystem. The scientific approach to develop a biological control needed to rely on technologies such as radio tracking ...

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Catalyst: Waves supply nutrients to marine ecosystems

Dive through the marine kelp forests off Australia's western coast and discover how ocean waves help cycle nutrients to sustain the plants and kelp forests of marine ecosystems.

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Catalyst: Quoll rescue

Discover what threatens a native Australian predator and how scientists are hoping to save it from extinction. This clip about quolls in the Northern Territory describes the causes of its decline and a rescue strategy to save it from extinction. The strategy has a surprising twist - it features the very thing that is threatening ...

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Four Corners: Ecological effects of bushfires

Did you know that Australia is the most flammable continent on Earth? Watch this clip to discover how bushfires impact natural ecosystems, and how the increasing global threat of bushfires may affect Australia. Australian scientists explain the ecological consequences of fire and a US expert describes his concerns for the future.

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Landline: Spinifex research

What does spinifex grass contain that might prove useful in modern buildings? Watch this clip and discover how Aboriginal knowledge, combined with Western science, is unlocking the potential of spinifex. Find out about this natural resource and how it could become a new, sustainable material for the building industry.

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Catalyst: Coorong salinity

Imagine the mighty Murray River as it flows through South Australia and reaches the sea. Explore the consequences of drought and human activity while listening to Graham Phillips describe the effects of the Coorong's increasing salinity and the the associated threat to Adelaide's supply of fresh water.