Did you know

NEW ZEALAND has the highest rate of deaths from melanoma in the world. More people die of this skin cancer each year than are killed on our roads. However caught in time it can be treated. The first sign is often a change in the size, shape or colour of an existing mole, or the appearance of a new mole. Get it checked ASAP! 

A WORD OF praise for the District Council’s recently revamped web site. It is really user friendly; clear and concise. Even I can use it and I’m no great shakes at computers. So thanks to the person/team who put it together. All the frequently required information is available and clearly labelled, I’m sure it will reduce the number of telephone enquiries 

‘FOR EVERY complex problem there is a clear and simple solution – and wrong’ H L Mencken  

‘SCIENCE HAS BEEN quite embattled. It’s the most important thing there is. An arts graduate is not going to fix global warming. They do many valuable things, they are not going to fix the planet or cure cancer’  Bill Bryson  … Continue Reading

Cooking corner

Gourmet Burger

INGREDIENTS 

• 1 x pack of English Muffins
• 4X Beef patties 
• 1 x cup Grated Cheese
• 250g Streaky Bacon
• 120g Fresh Spinach
• 4 x Eggs
• Jar of Hollandaise Sauce

METHOD

1. In a fry pan cook the bacon until crispy.
2. Cook the Angel Bay Premium Angus Beef Patties according to the packet instructions – we suggest in the oven. When the patties are almost done, sprinkle on the cheese and cook until the cheese has melted.
3. In a pot, half full with water, get the water boiling and add 1 tablespoon of white vinegar.
4. When the water is boiling, stir the water and get it swirling and then crack in the eggs. Turn the water down to a medium-low heat and continue to gently swirl the water. Cook for 3-5 minutes, until the yolk is cooked as desired. Remove the eggs with a slotted spoon and sit on a paper towel.
5. Gently wilt the spinach in boiling water (or put the spinach in a sieve and gently pour boiling water over the spinach).
6. Lightly toast the English muffins in the toaster.
7. Now you’re ready to serve, butter the bottom muffin and layer the patty, bacon, the wilted spinach, the poached egg and a generous drizzle of hollandaise sauce.
8. Pop on the lid, and enjoy!

UNDER THE MARTINBOROUGH STARS

Have you ever wondered how astronomers know what objects in space are made of? Since it’s inconvenient to impossible to travel to most of the universe, how do we examine stars and planets to find out whether there’s hydrogen or carbon dioxide or kryptonite (not a real element) there? If you’ve ever seen a rainbow you’ve seen a simple visual example of the answer and the basics of spectroscopy in action. Of course, astronomers like to take it much further, always asking how, why, but how though?  Relax, I’m going to tell you. 

It’s fair to say that Spectroscopy (the science) and Spectrometry (the method of measuring interactions between light and matter), were the key to understanding what the universe is made of. In our last article we discussed how most of the elements in the universe were created by stars, including much of the makeup of our own bodies. Thanks to spectroscopy, we now know that those same elements and molecules exist on other worlds and in other galaxies. A great example of this science in action is the discovery of helium in the chromosphere of the sun, before it was discovered on earth. Its discovers didn’t know it was helium at the time. They just saw its spectral signature.  … Continue Reading

SOUTH WAIRARAPA REBUS CLUB

The Guest Speaker at our recent meeting was Jills Angus Burney who, as an adoptee and a barrister, introduced us to the current review of the law surrounding adoption in New Zealand.

Jills was born in June 1960 on her birth parents’ honeymoon.  Adoption transferred the legal responsibility for and parentage of her from her newly married Angus family (birth parents) to the Burney family (adoptive parents). Once the formal adoption order was made in early 1961, the law under the Adoption Act 1955 treated her as if she were born to the Burney family.  

Until law reform in 1985 partially opened the door, the law totally restricted all access to her birth information.  She grew up with two adopted brothers, knowing the State had created them and her as legal fictions.  She was confused by being raised among her adopted Mum’s family as a Burney, her father’s family, of whom she was told little. The information available in 1991, when she requested release of her file, allowed her in January 1995 to make reunion with her Angus birth father and her younger sister. Sadly, she missed out on meeting both her brother and her birth mother, who died respectively in 1991 and 1992. … Continue Reading