The koala brothers

Greeeeetingg earthlinksss,

okey i guess i have to stop with the doubles and triples, i love doing that, to express how excited i am, writhing this post, well, this is my 1st time writhing a blog since i was too busy making this planet a better place to live, and that is by doing nothing, (hah, that's really productive) :p as u can see i've actually posted a post before about food in Australia. c:

okey okey, that's enough crap for now, back to the serious stuff. tehee. Very well, if you've read the earlier post written by my non-identical twin Jasmine about Koala, you would know that they are not bears at not, and they are more related to kangaroos and the platypus

A platypus really?? err.. 

well, it's because they are the marsupials, okey i like you to observe this cool lyrics that the koalas are begging us not to call them bears

Please Don't Call Me A Koala Bear lyrics I'm a koala not a bear And I don't think it's fair The way that people always add a word that isn't there I'm a marsupial and proud of it And there can be no doubt of it I'm closer to a kangaroo than I am to a bear So please dont call me a koala bear Coz I'm not a bear at all Please don't call me a koala bear It's driving me up the wall If your name was Tom And everyone called you Dick Perhaps you'd understand why I'm sick, sick, sick I'm simply a koala And I want the name to stick So please don't call me a koala bear I live here in Australia In a eucalyptus tree I'm as cuddly, cute and charming as an animal can be I don't understand fair dinkum How anyone could think them Grizzly bears and polar bears Are anything like me So please dont call me a koala bear Coz I'm not a bear at all Please don't call me a koala bear It's driving me up the wall If your name was Tom And everyone called you Dick Perhaps you'd understand why I'm sick, sick, sick I'm simply a koala And I want the name to stick So please don't call me a koala bear

You guys must absolutely, totally have to listen to this catchy song i bet the lyrics won't get out of you head like it did to me. Happy listening everyone!! HAHAHA

DALILAH :)

Once Upon A Time~

Hi there, it's Jing here again.
 Let me enlighten you with a slight history of Oz.

Long long ago, before year 1700, Australia has two main indigenous group- Aboriginals and Torrent Straits Islanders. Australia was discovered by the famous Greek mathematician, geographer and scholar, Ptolemy.
 So this is how Ptolemy looks like for those of u who've not seen him

And so, revolution took place and soon the land down under appeared with a huge estimated population of 22 million~~!
And do you know how Australia's name was formed?
It is from a latin, australis, which means South :-)

Map depicting the Southern Land, whee~!~

Wait, that's not it! Did u know that Australia's former Prime Minister, Bob Hawke held a Guinness Wold Record?!

Bob Hawke, guess what?!~!

Could u have guessed it from the picture? Yeah, it was actually before he became the prime minister, he skulled 2.5 pints of beer in 11 seconds. There, you have it!

Another funny story about Australia's Prime Minister is that, there was this unusual incident where Harold Holt, went for a swim at Cheviot Beach near Portsea in 1967.

Harold Holt was never seen again! O>O

 Want more humour?
Australia is home to over 750 different reptile species, this includes Brown Snake, Tiger Snake and Taipan.

     

 

And capital city, before i forget. What was it again? Sydney? Nah... Melbourne, no! It's Canberra folks!!

Well Sydney and Melbourne wanted to be the Capital City, and due to their fail attempt, Canberra was built in the middle of both cities.

Canberra Star Ball

Before I sign off, just one more fact.  hehe XP

Currently, Australia ranks top 1 as the most OBESE country. So beware, if u ever go to Australia, watch out on your calories! Till then, thanks for reading :)

Australian's main dish is err..

What is Australia's national dish? I guess that’s the question all of u are thinking especially those foodies like I am, hee. Yea, frankly Australian themselves have no idea what’s their national dish because their culture have the mixture of the cultures in the United Kingdom.

They even  launch a major national poll asking people to vote for their favourite national dish. Some views i search from google from MasterChef judge Matt Preston didn't nominate a dish but said a barbecue was "how we express our Australianness".  Some say that a barbecue was "the perfect reflection of their climate and very laid back way of life", salt and pepper squid had been adopted with "zeal" in restaurants and cafes.

It's a classic example of Australians eating lighter and with Asian flavours filtering into mainstream dining. Served with a salad, it's become a more diminutive replacement for fish and chips and a meal that is perfect for al fresco dining or being by the beach, which is also very Aussie.

But  some Australian thinks that Spaghetti Bolognese or know as  Spag Bol is the number one dish cooked by Australians therefore it’s considered as the national dish. Some thinks that  a Pavlova a typically garnished with strawberries, passionfruit, kiwifruit and cream. But if we look back at the history of this dish it is name after Pavlova is a meringue-based dessert named after the Russian ballet dancer Anna Pavlova. I mean Russia ? haha. I guess after this we can invent a dissert and name it Crystal since she loves ballet so much too ( okey that is some quick facts, tehehe  :p )

                   *Ehh, i just peep through an awesome blog here! and i know i smell food somewhere*

As a conclusion Australian has no specific signature dish due to the fact that their culture is mostly adapted from the people in the UK. But have no fear I am in for more scoops of more of the unique and famous dishes in Australia so that u’ll be prepared when  you reach the awesome land of Ozzz, *PEACE OUT!

Hugs & kisses from yours truly,

 DALILAH

The Orange

Hullo everyone~! Jing's posting here.

Have you guys heard of the Sydney Opera House? :P Well, I'm sure most of us or perhaps anyone reading this would have some rough idea of the Sydney Opera House. How can we ever miss this incredible architecture designed by a mathematician when we say Australia? >.<

But, seriously, if you're still clueless now, let me show you how the icon at the Sydney Harbour looks like!

The Sydney Opera House close to the Sydney Harbour Bridge

We are very interested in this great architecture as its history goes all the way back to year 1957. Hmm.. does the year ring a bell in your head? *Merdeka year for M'sia* hehe -.-
This layout were modified from the initial sketches of a mathematician by the name of Jorn Utzon. And how was he inspired? Here comes the interesting part!

According to history, John Utzon was sitting on his bench one evening, peeling the oranges. He soon discovered that the peels were of different sizes of triangles and that these triangles could be stacked on atop the other. (we'll go into the details later in this post. sorry for keeping you dumbfounded -.-)

He then meddled with the orange's peels till he managed to join the segments together to form a 3-dimensional design. Jorn Utzon proposed the radical idea of huge shell-shaped structures extruding outwards.  Thus, he came up with the outstanding roofs called shells, which lies on top of the podium and the wings.

Wooden model of the Sydney Opera House

And thus, in the year 1959, the construction began. The construction process was not a smooth sail due to the over mounting cost which was 14 times the original budget. Jorn Utzon was also forced to leave Australia and leave this project. Till today, he never got to see it completed.

The Sydney Opera House was formally completed in the year 1973 and officiated by Elizabeth II, Queen of Australia. Jorn Utzon was never mentioned nor was he invited to the ceremony.

As I have mentioned earlier, if you can still remember, the Sydney Opera House consists of podium and the roofs (shells). The shells, I believe, is one of the most captivating rooftops we've seen in the world. It's no wonder that in the year 2007, it was made a UNESCO World Heritage site.

As we can see, the shells are made out of spheres. The sketches of Jorn Utzon were done in parabolic surface, ellipsoid schemes and circular arc. Using the same radius for all the shells, ridges are made and the circular arcs are carved in wood.

In a parabolic scheme, all the shells belong to a single sphere and hence have the same radius of curvature

 Each shell is made of a series of segments called "ribs"

These ribs are conceived using triangular shapes and parallel lines.

Ribs in triangular shapes and parallel lines

The Sydney Opera House consists of two halls; the major and the minor. From the outside, these halls sit on the podium facing the north wing.

Also, since all the podiums are elevated, it resembles a sail sitting on the waters of Sydney.

North Elevation

South Elevation

East Elevation

West Elevation

Construction works were divided into three stages namely the podium, the roof which are made up of concrete shells and finally the crafting of the interiors.
The podium gives the impression of a strong base from the exterior, but on the inside, it fills many rooms and corridors where dancers, actors, musicians and artists share the space for rehearsals and meetings.
Back in 1949, Utzon was awarded a study trip to the America. He visited several architects in the north of the States including Mies Van de Rohe, Frank Lloyd Wright and Eero Saarinen. He then travelled to the South of America to explore the Chichen Itza in the Yucatan, Mexico. The remarkable platforms of the ancient Yucatan left an extremely deep impression on Utzon. He looked at how these platforms elevated the people in the past from their daily life where beneath the sky, they could commune with their God. This idea is elementally expressed in the Sydney Opera House. Its long pathway of stairs eventually leads up to a plateau where the people can commune with the arts.
The structure of the canopy elevated and transported away people from their everyday life.

Structure of the canopy which is at the end of the stairs leading to a plateau of theater. 

One of the most amazing feature of the podium is the concourse beam. The beams not only support the strong weight of the roof, at the same time it embellishes the interior design of the concourse area.

The concourse beams with no horizontal planes

The construction of the roofs had 2 major problems which arise from Utzon's sketches of the roofs. Firstly, despite the significant changes in the proposals from 1957 to 1959, each shell remains unique, precluding prefabrication of the form which had effects on the ease of construction and cost. Almost all buildings apply the principles of prefabrication. Fabrication is done in factories so that construction consists of standardized parts. Utzon however remained positive that the shell structure with a smooth finish like an egg would be possible despite the unique form of each shell. 

The first problem led to another; whether to approach the roof as a 'Shell' or a 'Rib' structure? 

Eventually, the roofs undergo an evolution of sketches by lead engineers over a period of 4 years. There schemes are first in parabolic and eventually turning into an ellipsoid scheme. 

The early parabolic scheme

The ellipsoid scheme in June 1961

Finally, Utzon resolved the burden when he successfully made the ribs out of only one wooden block of sphere. For further details, you can have a look at the video at the end of this post!

After the completion of the roof, glass panes were fitted onto the roofs and finally the Sydney Opera House is what we see now!

As for the conclusion, the Sydney Opera House is the hard work and perseverance of many citizens which contributed to this modern architecture. Despite the lack of safety precautions back in the 1960-s, only one death was recorded on the construction site. The quest of an ideal and the faith of attainment is one of the oldest kinds of human story. Before I round up this post, I quote:

"Such a building will be the Sydney Opera House and it will stand not merely as an outstanding architecture or even as a world famous opera house, but as a shrine in which the great artists of the world may be seen and heard and our own artists may display the flowering of Australian culture"

JJ Cahill

Premier of New South Wales

And! Finally, enjoy this great animation! Till then >.<

KOALAS : the Teddies of Oz

by Jasmine
When I was a bright-eyed, somewhat completely innocent little girl, my father went to Australia and came back home bearing stuffed toy koalas -- three of them, one for each little girl in the family. He brought home one for my mother, too: a mommy koala, dressed in orange coveralls and standing upright. It was my very first face-to-facethe strange little native creature of Australia that was known as a 'koala'.

For years afterwards, all that ignoramus of a little girl knew of koalas was that they were grey (because the stuffed toy koala I had was gray in color) , had painful gripping claws (because the dolls had them too), and bright, round, curious little eyes (because most cartoons would portray them like that). Oh, and they were bear-like.

Hence the name, koala bear.

All in all, hear me describing a koala and you'd imagine it as something like this:

Sounds like my koala could look like this.

Which, by the way, is a fairly accurate representation considering the little girl I was when describing this animal. Can you not hear my younger self's repeated squeals of  "CUTE" overriding every part of the image?

Only today, though, specially for this blog on Australia (read more about why Australia of all places here), did I bother to open my dusty encyclopedia and find out more about these furry little grey creatures.

And guess what? They're not koala bears after all -- only we outsiders call them that, due to the ingenious observation that these koalas closely resembled bears. So much that we might consider them cousins -- except, (trumpets play here please) their closest cousins are actually the wombat.

With that, I settled down to see what else was could astound me about koalas. The facts below have a prerequisite of being labelled at least 'rather intriguing, I never knew that' to 'completely unexpected, what a shocker!', so don't stop reading here; trust me, you will be surprised.

1. Koalas are like kangaroos.

Koala: Er, say what?
Kangaroo: Come again?

....as in, they have something in common with one another. And no, it's not that they're both native Australian animals.

Both koalas and kangaroos have pouches in which they carry their younglings.( The term used is 'marsupial'). It can be said that the baby koala is practically born twice -- the main characteristic of marsupials is that the young ones are born immature, barely more than an embryo, and are placed into the mother's protective pouch during development that takes place after their birth. These baby koalas have to make the climb up its mother's body into the pouch by themselves, so they're also born with strong, gripping claws to help them accomplish this vital survival task.

That also explains why my stuffed koala plushie had them, even if it was a just a baby.

Oh, yeah -- and like the kangaroos, baby koalas are also called 'joeys'.

2. Koala = literally, does not drink

The root word behind 'koala' implies the truth behind a koala's diet : it mainly eats -- mostly eucalyptus leaves only, though -- and barely drinks. Hence the word 'koobor', the Australian Aborigines' term for the little creature, meaning 'does not drink.'. The koalas, in fact, only drink when the eucalyptus greens they chew doesn't hydrate them enough, or when they're ill -- kind of like when I only eat rice porridge / bubur if I'm sick, I..suppose? 

There's actually a legend behind the tale, with many different versions, but the one I heard was that once, a terrible drought swept through the Aborigines' land, and a koala came to them for help. The ancient Aborigines refused to give the koala any water, and so it cried. In super-abbreviated storytelling, it then stole their water skins, feared being killed, stored the water inside a eucalyptus and took refuge there. Since then, the koala's habitat was the eucalyptus, and it would only ever drink what water it had hidden in the eucalyptus.

...poor legendary koala.

3. Koalas have a lot in common with babies. Human ones.

They're very picky eaters, for one thing. The koala only eats about thirty-five of the six hundred species of the eucalyptus. An extra, apparently trivial (to the koalas, at least) side-note, the koala's resident food source is mostly poisonous and hard to chew. The koalas of course have special features for overcoming this.

When they're still in the mother's pouch, the baby koala drinks nothing but milk.

They also sleep. A lot. About 18 hours per day on average. Kind of like your younger siblings(or you) when they were still babies, don't you think?

They like to stay up late, though. What I meant by that is that they're largely nocturnal.

4. Koalas do camouflage.

..It's nothing chameleon-like, but their ash-gray fur coat is apparently quite hard to see on the ground!

Their fur has doubles up as a raincoat that helps to keep water out as well as the heat in. You can tell the males apart from the females by a distinct brown streak across their chest, which is actually some kind of scent-gland.

The most important sense for koalas is the sense of smell, which is used to mark their territories as well as various other activities predictably done by any other animal.

5. The threats to koalas are dogs, cars, and humans.

Actually, there's nothing surprising there. Maybe the first two -- I can see newspapers with blaring headlines of "man's best friend, killer of koalas?!" and "the four-wheeled machine, convicted of the murder of the huggable four-legged creature" but really, what's more realistic is the long list of articles that mention how the all-too-human activity of land-clearing is causing the loss of habitat and by extension the large losses of life among the cute koalas. What will be said about it? What can be done about it? 

The truly disturbing thing is that koalas also die from disease. And not just from any disease, but from cancer, the prime example being leukemia.

Can we take over now?

On that note, I shall now rest and let the cuteness of koalas dominate the end of this post. The little girl in me is still staring at the stuffed toy koala from the past, lip trembling and all, but at least I'm no longer thinking, "Whaaa-aaaaat is that thing?!! I know nothing about it!"

And neither are you, I would hope. 

C'mere, joeys :3 

*Jasmine is now busy being assaulted by the weird cuteness of koalas and is no longer available*

FAQs

What's this about?
The Whizzes Of Oz is basically a blog about Australia -- the people, the cuisine, culture, entertainment et cetera. Note that it hasn't achieved the impossible feat of being exhaustive :)
What is posted here is purely about the five aspects that the five of us chose to post about that we think will either be relevant to us or helpful or otherwise interesting for the future time that we'll spend in the Land Down Under.


Why Australia? And why blog about it?
Because we wanted to oogle at pictures of koalas.

Nope, that wasn't the real reason, but by the way, we do.

It started as a project for our Computer Technology classes. Our lecturer wanted everyone to form groups and make a blog, and since we're all AUSMAT students bound for Australia, we figured that the topic should be relevant to our future, so that it would be sure to rouse the entire class' interest -- and what was more relevant than the shining land of Australia itself? The icing on the cake is that it would actually be useful to us future students of Australia's best universities (hopefully!).

P.S: This actually counts for our final grades, so feel free to fire those suggestions and critiques away! Our imaginary kangaroos eagerly welcome you. :D

Who are you guys? And why are you taking Computer Studies under AUSMAT?
We are a group of three rather starkly different, extremely unique but (thank God) highly team-spirited girls who are doing AUSMAT at INTEC Education College, some because we chose to, others because we have to, but all because we want to continue our degrees at the wondrous land of Oz.

Computer Studies, rather wisely (in Jasmine's opinion) is a prerequisite subject -- a ticket to us actually getting there. Hi Miss Hanin!


So what reason do I have to read this blog? Am I one of your target groups?
Our primary target group is Miss Hanin, as she is the one who will give us marks to actually get to Aussie. Joking, only joking!

All levity aside though, we did begin this blog hoping to know more about Australia. Some of us knew nothing about Oz before coming here and starting classes (other than the world-famous kangaroos and koalas, of course. Lila even has a stuffed koala acting as her handphone pouch). We wanted to help our classmates (hi batch AUSMAT 28, Adelaide of INTEC!) out too -- and what better way to write about Australia where the students will be forced to pay attention in class?

So for the stray reader, if you're like us students under sponsorship, heading to Aussie but knowing next to nothing about it, or if you have ever wanted to know more about the Land Down Under or have a particular question you just can't get out of your head, stop by our blog and take a look! You might find something you're interested in -- and after all, students don't blog about Australia all the time...

..so when they do it, you know it'll be informative and complete ('cos it's being assessed for our exams), a good read that's not a waste of your time (cos we students don't have time to waste time :3 *snickers* ) and fresh and humorous ('cos we're young!).

And so's Miss Hanin. No, this is not for brownie points, she is. Although being told that they appear young never hurt anyone.

So, as the Ozzies say it. g'dday, mate!!!