Continent of Curiosities
In the backrooms of museums around Australia, millions of specimens lie waiting to be discovered – bones, fossils, skins, eggs, rocks, plants and artefacts. Each one has a story to tell, a place in the history of our continent.
From a passion for collecting curiosities, the sciences of natural history have emerged. And no continent provided more curiosities than Australia. Continent of Curiosities follows the thread of these stories from the collections of one of Australia’s oldest museums, Museum Victoria. Inspired by objects in the natural science collectios, these essays weave a history of the development of biological science from an Australian perspective, with insights into the people and places that influence the way we see and understand the natural world around us.
Find out more:
- Read a sample here
- Listen to an interview with Robyn Williams on ABC RN Science Show
Reviews
- ‘beautifully produced’ Mammalian Biology
- ‘wonderfully absorbing’ Canberra Times
- 'Clode's engaging writing style throughout the book will appeal to both the natural science enthusiast and a more general audience...a truly delightful and engaging journey' ReCollections: A journal of museums and collections
- ‘fascinating collection…popular science writing of a high standard’ Australian Book Review
- ‘Clode is a thoughtful and fluid writer, and can spin a good yarn’
Historical Records of Australian Science
Contents
1. Curious collections
1. Curious collections
1. Curious collections
Museums are more than their showy exhibition halls. Beneath the surface there is a wealth of objects weaving stories through time and space.
2. A beast named Su
1. Curious collections
1. Curious collections
Europeans were bewildered by their early encounters with marsupials in Australia, but where was their first encounter with these creatures?
3. Local knowledge
1. Curious collections
4. Water, water everywhere
The history of science is often presented as a history of great men, but science is also built on the contribution of many who go unknown and unacknowledged.
4. Water, water everywhere
6. The mystery of the reappearing possum
4. Water, water everywhere
Protected water catchments not only provide cheap clean water to cities like Melbourne, but also protect healthy forest ecosystems.
5. Forests of fire
6. The mystery of the reappearing possum
6. The mystery of the reappearing possum
Bushfires have shaped the nature of Australian ecosystems, and particularly eucalypt forests in diverse and remarkable ways.
6. The mystery of the reappearing possum
6. The mystery of the reappearing possum
6. The mystery of the reappearing possum
Extinction is an all too common feature of Australia's modern fauna, but sometimes species thought to have been lost are found in unexpected places.
7. The case of the missing mollusc
7. The case of the missing mollusc
7. The case of the missing mollusc
From Jurassic fossils in Paris to the beaches of Tasmania, trigonias have unexpectedly illuminated evolutionary debates for decades.
8. Brainbox
7. The case of the missing mollusc
7. The case of the missing mollusc
Brains are not something usually associated with dinosaurs, but understanding what's in their skull tells us much about our past.
9. The ape case
7. The case of the missing mollusc
10. Lines in the sea
This family of gorillas was a sensation in 1865 Melbourne, reflecting popular and scientific debate over our relationship with close cousins.
10. Lines in the sea
12. Is there life on Mars?
10. Lines in the sea
Alfred Wallace famously developed his theory of evolution by natural selection in south east Asia, but his contribution of biogeography just as significant.
11. Shifting continents
12. Is there life on Mars?
12. Is there life on Mars?
What do flightless birds have to tell us about the shifting distribution of the continents and the origins of Gondwana?
12. Is there life on Mars?
12. Is there life on Mars?
12. Is there life on Mars?
A Martian meteorite can tells us much about the red planet. But can it tell us anything about interplanetary life?