Mr Rayon

From my first post, I fear I may have been too optimistic. Okay, I tried thinking of some bad things about living in OZ: - Skin cancer - Currently suffering from a binge drinking culture - Low level racism - Bushfires in Summer - Obesity epidemic (last time I checked we were the second most obese country in the world after the US) - I think we also get the occasional drought/floods up North Queensland too. - Also no-body really likes to talk about this but our highschools have a big drug problem (i.e. lots of teens like experimenting) But yeah, I can't think of anything else. We're also generally pretty friendly towards foreigners as pretty much everyone here is from somewhere else or has someone related that's non-Australian in their family, whether from Europe, Asia or somewhere else. Interesting. If you're into studying, have you considered possibly doing some sort of student exchange/study abroad program to Australia? ...might look good on a resume. I actually lived most of my life in Victoria where the winters can get pretty cold. In Victoria the temperature doesn't stay constant throughout the year. We experience Spring, Summer, Autumn and Winter however the winter isn't really that cold in Victoria, certainly not enough for snow and it's quite rare for this (apart from a few attraction sites). For this reason, I actually prefer the winter and not the Summer as the heat makes it hard to fall asleep and we don't have air conditioners where I currently live. A lot of Asians like to come here to study university.

I have lived in Australia for most of my life and I can say with certainty that there are very little bad things about Australia. It's an isolated Island of paradise and currently seems to be one of the best countries in the world to be living in. I am a very lucky person to be born into this country! We also seem to have some close ties to China. Our highschool education system is probably not as good as some Asian/European countries but from what I've been hearing generally it's better than those of the US. The universities are also pretty good, of course not as good as the Ivy League American universities but still good. Have you checked out the university rankings yet?

If life was 100% fair would it make this world a better place? In what ways would attaining fairness be desirable and in what ways would it not?

I want to see a cure for death.

I think using renewable energy sources may be a better choice.

A Genderless school in Sweden http://www.heraldsun.com.au/lifestyle/the-other-side/pc-preschool-bans-words-him-and-her/story-e6frfhk6-1226082516997 has banned the use of him/her. What's your opinion of this?

http://au.news.yahoo.com/thewest/a/-/offbeat/9712735/ufo-mothership-visits-london/

If you were offered citizenship of any one country in the world, which would you pick?

What does everyone think is the best science related job out there? Anybody got any ideas?

Yes, theoretically it should be easier but somehow society has this perception that people who do this don't have lives (which may be correct). This was what my highshool history teacher told me a few years ago. Also, people tend to be a bit immature when it comes to online dating. How can governments fix this problem? It's horrible to see so many people in their mid-thirties and still single. I'm wondering whether there are any things society can do to fix the problem.

Okay, increasing in the Western World we've been seeing higher divorce rates and more middle-aged men and women remaining single unable to search for a partner who is in search of commitment/responsiblities etc. My question is, how does the scientific community interprete this new recent development? I think it's really sad... What can society/governments do to fix this problem?

Hi there gasbag! Welcom to the SFN, I hope you enjoy your stay here with us. I'm from downunder too. Where are you located?

That's great. Sounds like the perfect job for someone who's into the sciences! What do you think are the worst things about being a petroleum engineer? ...It sounds like a cool job to have but is it dangerous do you think? Oil seems to make people do some crazy things... also how long...and how many years away are you talking about? I've watched a few fear-mongering documentaries regarding what will happen when our oil reserves will run out and need some reassurances...

When will petroleum engineers become redundant due to low oil recovery because of depleting amounts of oil throughout the world? At what year will getting a degree in petroleum engineering be not worth it? A close friend of mine is interested in become a petroleum engineer and I am asking here because I am curious too, if anyone knows or has any ideas...

i.e. if two parents are ugly, does this mean that their offspring are much more likely to be ugly (in appearance)

True!

Does anybody know? And does anybody know whether the job/field is in high demand?

I am! Anybody else? It's still considered plausible to have doubts about it, right?

Omg, that's actually a really smart idea! Well done! Have you thought about perhaps writing a letter to the government about it? It might give them some good ideas on how to improve their country's education system. I bet it also wouldn't be a too expensive project to initiate as well...could bring about some positive changes...

Hmm...yes I've looked into this issue as well, there's definitely a fair bit of Islamophobia going around in Europe. However it seems to be an isolated case, in Australia for example it's almost unheard of. As for counteracting Islamophobia, perhaps including more Muslims on TV whether it be for live religious debates between the Abrahamic religions or just generally the inclusion of more Muslim characters in our favourite television programs would help.

I wouldn't label 0.8% as being a "significant fraction".

When people think about what kids watch nowadays (e.g Pokemon, Dragon Ball Z, Batman/Ironman, Naruto) one automatically thinks about violent cartoons... Pokemon for example encourages children to adopt the view point that mistreating animals is okay (e.g. cock fights, horse racing etc) What does everyone think?