All things are interesting things.
All things are interesting things!
Not everyone can say they've sent something to Mars! Dr. Patrice Rey and his team hand-selected a piece of Australian rock from the Pilbara to send to Mars as part of the Perseverance 2020 mission!
This video was made with the help, assistance and patience of Dr. Patrice Rey at the University of Sydney.
A grouping of tree species found on the Lightning Ridge opal fields that defend themselves with spikes!
This video was made with Warwick Schofield, with support from Margaret Schofield and Kay Wotherspoon.
Sydney is home to the largest cemetery in the Southern Hemisphere, and once upon a time it had its own dedicated railway line...
Thanks to Sharath from Building Beautifully, Ross Jackson, Shaun Galman, the Lightning Ridge Historical Society.
An opalised fossil was discovered at Lightning Ridge in 1916, here's a letter from the Australian Museum to the London Museum asking for advice with a mysterious twist!
Thanks to Lost Lightning Ridge, the Lightning Ridge Historical Society and the Australian Opal Centre, Jenni Brammall, Dr. Elizabeth Smith, Leisa Carney, People Need Goals.
The Australian Outback is famous for being red and desolate, but it shares a lot more in common with the Mars than you might think -- including opal!
This video was made with the help, assistance and patience of Dr. Patrice Rey at the University of Sydney. Special thanks to Shaun Galman for access to a working opal mine!
The Sherman family have been involved in and supporting the Lightning Ridge (and Australian) opal community since 1896. This 1959 FC Holden was used to advertise the business for many years and now resides with the Lightning Ridge Historical Society as a piece of local heritage and a local icon.
Special thanks to Barbara Moritz from the Lightning Ridge Historical Society and Peter Sherman of Sherman Opals for making this video possible.
The Australian Opal Centre building is under construction on the historic Three Mile opal field at Lightning Ridge. Learn about the history of the AOC and take a tour of the building site as the construction progresses!
Special thanks to Jenni Brammall (AOC) and Simon Fraser (Barpa) for their support and assistance with this video.
Lightning Ridge is an opal mining town in New South Wales, Australia. A lot of things are unusual about Lightning Ridge, and its cemetery is no different.
This video was made with the support of the Lightning Ridge Historical Society.
Male bowerbirds have an amazing strategy for attracting a mate -- to collect a whole bunch of stuff and display it proudly!
This video was made with Warwick Schofield, with support from Margaret Schofield and Kay Wotherspoon.
A long time ago, I made a picture of some scientists as action figures. Over a decade later, someone is making them real!
Special thanks to Clay at Brainiaction Toys for helping out with this video, and all the best with the Kickstarter and future endeavours!
Lightning Ridge opal comes in two common formations: nobbies and seam opal. What's the difference, and how are they formed?
This video was made with the assistance of Vicki at Down to Earth Opals at Lightning Ridge!
I grew up in what seemed like a normal house, but it actually has history dating back to the early 1900s, and a railway line that had the potential to change the history of outback New South Wales.
Synthetic opal isn't the newfangled thing you think it is. The first fake opal is much older, dating back to the Industrial Revolution.
Three plants with red fruits or flowers, all with strikingly different properties and purposes. Introduced species aren't always invasive, but they still have an impact on the environment around them.
This video was made with Warwick Schofield, with support from Margaret Schofield and Kay Wotherspoon.
Some behind-the-scenes terminology from the Australian opal industry. In this video, we discuss sorting opal for selling and a story about a very lucky salesman!
This video was made with the assistance of Vicki at Down to Earth Opals at Lightning Ridge!
I met up with Mike (aka fraxyl), musician and composer who has provided music for Curiosity Mine videos. We asked ChatGPT to interrogate us!
Leopardwood is a common tree on the opal fields at Lightning Ridge, but it has a few tricks up its sleeve including some clever survival mechanisms and a spectacular seeding process!
This video was made with Warwick Schofield, with support from Margaret Schofield and Kay Wotherspoon.
Everyone talks about equipment, geology and opal formation -- let's talk about weird things in an opal mine, instead.
In this video we meet up with Lightning Ridge opal miner Shaun Galman to take a look at a few of the more unusual things you might find under the ground in an opal mine at Lightning Ridge.
In the middle of a semi-arid dustpan is a one-hectare patch of tropical rainforest, built by sensible and sustainable practises and clever use of available resources.
In this video, Rebel Black from The Hungry Spirit at Lightning Ridge shows us the syntropic agroforestry test bed, and we dig deep into the methodology, theory, science and success of syntropic agroforestry in semi-arid regions.
Special thanks to Rebel Black and The Hungry Spirit.
You can find The Hungry Spirit on Facebook and the web, and Syntropic Solutions on Facebook, Instagram and the web.