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Australia and New Zealand are in a different part of the world from most other places, as the cover shows. They are also a long way from each other, geographically and in other ways. This survey of science in the two countries is necessarily far from complete. It is offered as evidence of the vitality and promise of what is happening in these interesting places.
In both solid Earth and atmospheric sciences New Zealand has international responsibilities stretching from the equator to the south pole and from 165° E to 155° W, representing almost 6% of the Earth's surface.
Dr Pockley is Public Affairs Adviser to the University of New South Wales and was formerly Director of Science Programmes at the Australian Broadcasting Commission.
A national programme of recording of Aboriginal rock art sites has been accepted by the Australian Institute of Aboriginal Studies as one of its principal research priorities.
In this article an attempt is made, with particular emphasis on university experience, to give an overall view of scientific research in New Zealand and its special features as seen through the eyes of a research worker.
The aim of pest management is to manipulate or manage pest populations by a combination of all available means so that they do not cause economic damage.
Dr Morse discusses the most cost effective ways of utilising solar energy in Australia and points out the possibilities of producing ‘synthetic’ liquid and gaseous fuels from trees and plants
The role of New Zealand's 10-year-old National Research Advisory Council has been chiefly to advise the Minister of Science on the research activities of government agencies with particular reference to the total expenditure and priorities for expansion in various fields of application of science. In this article its chairman reviews the functions of the council and its achievements, and outlines future developments. Particular importance is attached to closer integration of the research carried out by government agencies, the universities, research associations and industry.
In the first account Dr Bolton, of the CSIRO Division of Radiophysics, Sydney, deals chiefly with radio and solar work. In the second Dr Cannon, formerly a research fellow at Mount Stromlo and now with the United Kingdom 48-inch Schmidt Telescope Unit, highlights the situation in optical astronomy and explains why astronomical research in the Southern Hemisphere is so important.
Man was well established in Greater Australia between 25,000 and 30,000 years ago and by at least 20,000 BP was occupying almost all of the principal ecological zones of the continent.
Sir Rutherford Robertson discusses how the Australian science effort is organised and financed, and describes how the present government is approaching some of the problems.
