Reminiscence of John Batman’s house above the Yarra Falls. A group of Aboriginal people camp at the lower right side near the river. Artist: WFE Liardet, 1875. Watercolour, pen, pencil and ink.
Courtesy State Library of Victoria.
Eliza Batman has remained largely a footnote to her husband, whose dark deeds in the war over land are now well-known. How should we remember her today?
The Hoddle Grid that dictates the flow of vehicles and people in central Melbourne has had its day. It can be remade to reduce the dominance of cars and create a liveable city for the 21st century.
Foods stir up river sediments and can spread contaminants across the floodplain. It’s a risk in areas with a history of industrial pollution, like Maribyrnong, but EPA test results are reassuring.
After Anita Lane died, former collaborator Nick Cave said she “despised the concept of the muse but was everybody’s”. Meera Atkinson highlights her achievements – with help from those who knew her.
A survey of more than 2,000 people as Melbourne reopened after COVID lockdowns shows the pandemic and digital technology have made the city less a place of work, more a place to visit now and then.
Streetscenes, Melbourne, 1950.
Mark Strizic/State Library of Victoria
Jay Carmichael’s novel explores how Australian same-sex attracted men lived during the repressive period after the end of the second world war. But does it impose present concerns on the past?
An early poster for Monkey Grip, starring Noni Hazelhurst and Colin Friels.
MIFF
Lead levels in backyard hen eggs are often much higher than in eggs bought in the shops. A new study of soil lead, chickens and eggs locates the high-risk areas in our biggest cities.
In a country that has largely avoided political and cultural hyper-partisanship, the Barassi Line is perhaps our strongest sociographic dividing characteristic, and certainly novel globally.
A largely hidden fault beneath the Victorian Alps has triggered a magnitude 5.8 quake that was felt as far afield as Sydney, Adelaide and Launceston. Here’s what we know so far.
Set at a long, beery election night party, David Williamson’s classic play is laced with unfinished sexual encounters, fist fights and drunken accusations. It feels remarkably fresh today.
Tolerating political protest is an essential part of democratic life. But when the protests pose a genuine risk of harm to the community, that’s when they are no longer ethically justified.
We can do better than building a village of glorified dongas. Smart quarantine can be much higher-tech, and more adaptable for future uses once the pandemic is over.
A smart light pole in the UK can also recognise faces and numberplates and detect speeding.
Nazlika/Wikimedia Commons
Smart street furniture can do a lot of things at once. Some of these functions offer the public clear benefits, but the data collection and surveillance capabilities raise a number of concerns.
We can learn from how the Howard Springs quarantine facility in the Northern Territory works when planning Victoria’s new hub.
Glenn Campbell/AAP Image