A Sunday morning walk at Cutrock Lisarow - New South Wales

Cutrock

Trigger plant

Eucalyptus in flower

Autumn fungus

Bridget the labrador

Morning shadows

01-05-11 - May Day celebrated by workers around the world

Sydney – Hyde Park - Construction Forestry Mining Energy Union at start of the march!

London – Trafalgar Square gathering at end of May Day rally!

Istanbul – Taksim Square - May Day rally!

International Workers’ Memorial Day 28-04-11

In a world where, on occasion, death, injury, and illness at work are hidden away and taken for granted, Workers' Memorial Day is an opportunity to highlight the preventable nature of most workplace accidents and ill health and to promote campaigns and union organisation in the fight for improvements in workplace safety.

The slogan for the day is Remember the dead - Fight like hell for the living!

The Putty Road and Wiseman’s Ferry – New South Wales

Wild campsite! - Colo River off the Putty Road

Misty Morning over the Colo River

Gentle horse near the Colo River

Strange spider

Autumn fungus

Wiseman Ferry crossing on the small ferry

Kookaburra feathers left by feral cat?

A glimpse in Dharug National Park

Pretty compost toilet in Dharug National Park

Dharug National Park is over 14000 Ha and takes it name from the Dharuk People. Hundreds of sacred sites such as engravings, painting, hand stencils and middens are in this special area. As with so many First peoples the Dharuk Nation were pushed out of this area by early settlers.

The Blue Mountains at Katoomba - New South Wales

Fossil Rock Lookout This vista encompasses all that I love about the Blue Mountains.

Flat Rock Lookout

Autumn Fungi on our bushwalk

Shrub near Orama Lane Katoomba

Australian Artists

Artwork by Del Kathryn Barton for Art & Australia’s edition of ‘ The Nightingale and the Rose ‘ by Oscar Wilde

This artist uses vivid colour acrylics applied with brushes, toothpicks for fine dots, and drawing office pens.

Margaret Olley 2011 by artist Ben Quilty

This artist is this years winner of The Archibald Prize – Australia

When Ben Quilty first asked legendary painter Margaret Olley to sit for him she said no.

Quilty met Olley when she was a guest judge for the 2002 Brett Whiteley Travelling Art Scholarship, which he won. ‘She’s been a friend and great supporter of my work ever since,’ he says.

Born in Lismore in 1923, Olley was awarded the Order of Australia in 1991 for service as an artist and to the promotion of art. In 1996, she was awarded the Companion of the Order of Australia.

‘She’s such an inspiration,’ says Quilty. ‘She was a feminist ahead of her time. She’s vigorously passionate about social and political issues, as well as art, and is enormously compassionate. Margaret has such an infectious attitude to both life and death. Recently, I was amazed at how many new works she had on the go. She said to me, “I’m like an old tree dying and setting forth flowers as fast as it can, while it still can.”

As for the bright palette: ‘You just need to walk into her home, which is also her studio, to see that you couldn’t use anything but striking colour. It’s full of translucent works-in-progress, beautiful drawings, sculptures and flowers, so I wanted the portrait to reflect that.’

Postcard commemorating the Vostok Project in the 1960’s

50 years ago, Yuri Gagarin became the first man in space, but the unsung hero of the Soviet Union's triumph at that time, was a brilliant scientist and rocket genius - Sergei Korolev

The flight of Vostok 1 – was a defining moment of the 20th century and opened up the prospect of interplanetary travel for our species.

Say no to Nuclear Power ! We know that no matter what measures are taken in these latest designs – the inherent danger to us all, is in the disposal and storage of radioactive waste. There is an amazing safe alternative - the Thorium based molten salt reactor!

“The reactor has an amazing safety feature,” said Kirk Sorensen, a former NASA engineer at Teledyne Brown and a thorium expert.

“If it begins to overheat, a little plug melts and the salts drain into a pan. There is no need for computers, or the sort of electrical pumps that were crippled by the tsunami. The reactor saves itself,” he said.

“They operate at atmospheric pressure so you don't have the sort of hydrogen explosions we've seen in Japan. One of these reactors would have come through the tsunami just fine. There would have been no radiation release.”

Thorium is a silvery metal named after the Norse god of thunder. The metal has its own “issues” but no thorium reactor could easily spin out of control in the manner of Three Mile Island, Chernobyl, or now Fukushima.

Thorium is as common as lead. America has buried tons as a by-product of rare earth metals mining. Norway has so much that Oslo is planning a post-oil era where thorium might drive the country's next great phase of wealth. Even Britain has seams in Wales and in the granite cliffs of Cornwall. Almost all the mineral is usable as fuel, compared to 0.7 per cent of uranium. There is enough to power civilization for thousands of years.

A Native Fuchsia of Australia

Native Fuchsia (Epacris longiflora) One of several ‘native fuchsias’ in Australia, all unrelated to the South American fuchsias. However, this Epacris longiflora must be one of the most beautiful!

Walk to Leura Cascades - Blue Mountains NSW

Mountain Devil (Lambertia Formosa)

Blue Mountain Lookout on the way to Leura Cascades

Looking down on Leura Cascades

A section of Leura Cascades

Bush Peas or Eggs and Bacon (Pultenaea)

Hairpin Banksia (Banksia Spinulosa)

Neat garden container made of timber wedges!

A rare, yet beautiful sight of the tiger in its homeland – India

The elusive Indian Tiger

In the last few months leaders of 13 countries - including India, Russia and China - have come together to affirm their commitment to save tigers from extinction.

There are only 1200 tigers in the wild in India and only a few thousand in the world.

A national survey in Britain by the RSPB, records a rise in the populations of small birds, including long-tailed tits, goldcrests and coal tits.

Welcome to BBC’s Springwatch 2011 April 22nd ! First presented by Bill Oddie in 2005 and now has children and adults all over the UK participating, by sending in their home videos and pics each spring.