Willis's Walkabouts Newsletter 100, February 2019 — Last Chance!
If you've ever used a virtual assistant like Alexa or Siri, you really ought to look at both links in the 'Virtual Assistant' section of Amazing Tech. This is only the beginning. A bit frightening?
For those, and only those, who are patient enough to wade through long articles, the two I'd most recommend are
- The Insect Apocalypse Is Here *
Maybe we are getting very close to tipping point that will change all life on Earth. -
Letter From a Birmingham Museum
It says a lot about how we are led to believe particular things.
And yes, this is your last chance to book many of our 2019 trips.
If you are viewing this on a mobile, the newsletter and many of the links should work better in a horizontal format.
Restricted content. Articles marked * or ** are on restricted websites Click for more info.
.
In this issue
- Willis's Walkabouts January-April 2019
- Women in Society
- Willis's Walkabouts May
- Smartphones
- Willis's Walkabouts June Onwards
- Your Health
- WW Overseas — Last Chance
- Photos — A Tip and A Problem
- Amazing Tech
- Travel Tips
- Environmentally Friendly?
- Points to Ponder
- Hot Times
- Photos, Videos & Just For Fun
- News About this Newsletter
Willis's Walkabouts January-April 2019
Gudjewg — The Wet Season
Those who took part in our special New Year trip really enjoyed it. I really enjoyed letting another guide do all the work. It was fairly dry for the first few days but we had a good storm on the final afternoon.
We only have one wet season trip still available this year.
- Kimberley Coast: Faraway Bay to Drysdale River: 27 March - 6 April
One of the most spectacular trips we offer; fly in with a normal plane, fly out on an amphibious one.
Special offer. Our charter aircraft are full. Even at full price, one more booking will cost us money. But if two book, we'll give a 10% discount to both, discount price $3325. If you are a single person who is interested, let us know and we'll see if we get the next one. No other discounts apply with this offer.
Guide: Cassie Newnes
April — Banggerreng — The Knock 'Em Down Storm Season
The following trips are still available. The first two each still need two more bookings to guarantee departure. Our 10% advance purchase discount is still available on both.
- Bungle Bungles: 17-27 April
This is section two of our original Bungles-Osmond trip. Section one won't run this year.
Special offer. We can give a free ride from Darwin to Kununurra before the trip begins and a free ride back after the trip ends. If you are coming from anywhre other than Perth, that will save you hundreds of dollars.
A family including a ten year old boy has booked the Bungles section of this trip.
Probable guide: Cassie Newnes. Cassie is planning to bring her children (ages 9 & 11) along as well. If you'd like to show your children this magnificent area, this would be an ideal time to do so.
No children? If you don't mind walking with children, the waterholes and swims will be much better than later in the year. - New trip. Kakadu Easter Special: 18-25 April
This is a special trip created for two people who wanted a trip on these dates. It combines a night at Cooinda and a Yellow Waters cruise with some truly spectacular scenery among one of the greatest concentrations of Aboriginal rock art in the park. - Carr Boyd Explorer: 21 April - 4 May
Boats, helicopters and incredible gorges we don't visit on any of our other trips.
We cannot take a booking for fewer than four people but we still can take a list of interested people to see if we can make up the numbers.
Women in Society
A collection of articles to show how our society is changing.
- Female Ranchers Are Reclaiming the American West *
"As men leave animal agriculture for less gritty work, more ranches are being led by women — with new ideas about technology, ecology and the land." - It's not just America. In Australia, What does a farmer look like? There's a good chance she's a woman"
"According to research by the Department of Transport and Regional Services, women represent 49 per cent of real farm income in Australia." I suspect the share is growing. - The Real Naked Selfies Are Coming *
"Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez's was fake, but young politicians' nudes will surface sooner or later. Let's get over them now." "A 2014 survey conducted by Cosmopolitian.com found that 89 percent of the survey respondents had snapped a naked selfie; the previous year, a study out of Purdue University reported that 46 percent of its college age participants had sent someone a naked photo of themselves."
How long before we get a nude photo of a potential president or prime minister? Does it matter? - The Relentlessness of Modern Parenting" *
It's not just women, but women bear more of the burden.
Raising children has become significantly more time-consuming and expensive, amid a sense that opportunity has grown more elusive.
"There's this sense that something is wrong with you if you aren't with your children every second when you're not at work." It's not true in many countries, but Australia is one of those mentioned. It's not healthy for parents or kids. - The Costs of Motherhood Are Rising, and Catching Women Off Guard *
College-educated women in particular underestimate the demands of parenthood and the difficulties of combining working and parenting, new research shows. - How Feminist Dystopian Fiction Is Channeling Women's Anger and Anxiety *
"A growing canon of female-centered science fiction looks at questions of gender inequality, misogyny and institutionalized sexism."
That got me thinking about other literature. I've always enjoyed science fiction. In some sci-fi, going back at least as far as the 1960s, women have been the main characters. Another case of sci-fi leading the way? - Let Women Be Warriors *
"It's time to stop questioning whether women should be in combat units."
"The question, then, is not whether women can be effective combat troops but whether a hypermasculine military culture can adjust. The potential benefits of having women in combat units argue for making that happen."
The article gives some good examples how a mixed unit can and does do things better than an all male one. - How 'Baby, It's Cold Outside' Went From Parlor Act to Problematic *
"Radio stations are pulling the standard from holiday playlists. Cable channels are debating it. And William Shatner is very worked up."
Interesting comment on our times. I remember two of my high school class performing the song in a school show in the early 1960s. No one thought anything of it at the time.
Willis's Walkabouts May
One of my old advertising slogans was, "If you're only going to come north once, make it May." Why?
May is the month when the weather begins to turn cool. Most of the land is still green and the water is only beginning to slow down. Better still, this May, we have something extra special, our third trip to Gregory this century.
- Kakadu Circle No. 1: 5-26 May.
If I were told I could only do one more trip in Kakadu, this would be it. None of those who have done it can understand why it isn't more popular than the shorter Kakadu Circles 2 & 3. We've got bookings, but not yet enough to guarantee departure.
Kakadu Circle No. 1: New trip notes - King George: 5-18 May
Definite departure - only 3 places left. Probable guide: Cassie Newnes. - Kimberley Highlights No. 1: 12 May - 8 June
Five sections, any of which can be done on its own. - Gregory Explorer: 19 May - 1 June
Definite departure. Gregory is the second largest park in the NT. Parts of the park are fairly well known among four wheel drivers. Less known is the fact that it contains some amazing bushwalking country.
It's been years since this trip has run. I'm really excited that it's going again.
Smartphones
In Search of Lost Screen Time
The mind boggles. In Search of Lost Screen Time *
Imagine what we could do with our money, and hours, if we set our phones aside for a year.
- "In 2018 those 253 million Americans spent $1,380 and 1,460 hours on their smartphone and other mobile devices. That's 91 waking days; cumulatively, that adds up to 370 billion waking American hours and $349 billion."
- "A recent study of romantic relationships among college students in the journal Psychology of Popular Media Culture found that "smartphone dependency is significantly linked to relationship uncertainty" and that "partners' perceived smartphone dependency predicts less relationship satisfaction."
- "According to another recent study, more than 29 percent of Americans would rather give up sex for three months than give up their smartphone for a single week."
- "A recent study found that children between 7 months and 24 months old experienced higher levels of distress and were less likely to investigate their surroundings when their parents were on their mobile devices. Secure attachment begins in infancy when children take visual cues of attachment from their parents' gaze. Every moment you look at your infant instead of your phone is an investment in the future."
Steve Jobs Never Wanted Us to Use Our iPhones Like This *
"The devices have become our constant companions. This was not the plan."
This goes well with the first story, definitely worth the read. It offers some suggestions for returning to the original vision.
A Few More
-
It's not us, it's you: How to break up with Apple without losing everything
"Owning Apple products and embracing its ecosystem for photo sharing, messaging and health data has proven to streamline everyday tasks. But with Apple's latest iPhone models surging to almost $2400, and MacBook Pros starting from $3500, users are turning to cheaper Android phones and Microsoft products to break free from the Apple ecosystem."
Click the link above for a step-by-step guide to make the transition easier. - Fork Over Passwords or Pay the Price, New Zealand Tells Travelers *
"Customs officials will now require people entering the country to open phones and other devices for inspection if asked." -
Did Australia Poke a Hole in Your Phone's Security? *
A law passed last month allows the authorities to compel tech companies to build tools to bypass their products' encryption. It has global implications.- Sarah Moran, the chief executive of Girl Geek Academy, which teaches young women to code, said she had planned to begin tech start-ups in Australia until the law passed.
- "I was looking to found two tech companies, but why would you build tech here now? she asked. "I don’t think the government understands how drastically it impacts not just the tech that's built here but also the enthusiasm and entrepreneurial investment that Australians will be willing to make."
- France Bans Smartphones in Schools Through 9th Grade. Will It Help Students? *
The government hopes the move will get students to pay more attention in class and talk more to each other. But some doubt whether the ban can be enforced. - How Teens and Parents Navigate Screen Time and Device Distractions
"56% of teens associate the absence of their cellphone with at least one of these three emotions: loneliness, being upset or feeling anxious."
The story is from America, but it must be similar here.
Willis's Walkabouts June Onwards
The following trips already have bookings. Our maximum 20% advance purchase discount is still available on them all.
- West Macdonnell Ranges: 9-22 June
Those who never get off the Larapinta miss some of the best bits of the West Macdonnells. - Kakadu Highlights No. 5: 23 June - 6 July
Two sections, either of which can be done on its own. - Prince Regent Nature Reserve: 23 June - 14 July
This walk is so spectacular and demand so high that we are offering two overlapping trips this year.
Guide Cassie Newnes will bring her partner and children (all experienced walkers) on one of them. If you have children who are EXPERIENCED bushwalkers, this could be a once in a lifetime opportunity.
Both groups are definite departures. - Drysdale River No. 2: 30 June - 13 July
We use a float plane to get access to one of the remotest national parks in Australia.
Cassie's NVC Retreats
We gave a description of these special trips in our last newsletter. Both now have bookings.
Special note. We are unlikely to offer these trips in 2020. Get in this year if you are interested.
Charnley River
Last year's Charnley trip had more water than any of the previous ones. That made it a bit harder, harder but more spectacular. Richard Lukasz, one of the participants, has created a great Charnley video. If you want to understand what the trip is really like, it's ten minutes well spent.
Your Health
-
What a French Doctor's Office Taught Me About Health Care *
"I moved to Europe because I couldn't afford to be a cancer patient in America. I'd rather have been able to stay home."
Can't happen here in Australia? I know people who go overseas for major dental treatment because they can't afford it in Australia. Maybe that's just the beginning. - The fibre of our wellbeing: The surprising truth about gut health
It refers to a CSIRO study. The link in the article takes you to the CSIRO site where they will try and sell you something. - New Year Resolutions
A new Scientist guide to the resolutions that are really worth the effort.
"Being a better you needn't be as hard as you think. From more sleep, to snacking smarter and ditching the gym — we put 10 New Year's resolutions to the test" - In Screening for Suicide Risk, Facebook Takes On Tricky Public Health Role *
"Some doctors warn that Facebook is becoming an arbiter of users' mental distress without proving that its efforts are accurate, effective or safe."
Has several good links at the end.
WW Overseas — Last Chance
It might seem a bit ridiculous to be saying "last chance" this far before departure, but the reality is that if we don't organise things way in advance they won't happen. We currently have bookings on three overseas trips.
- South Africa and Namibia: 5-6 Weeks in August-September
Wildflowers, wild animals and rock art, click the link above for details.
We can't even fix an exact date until we have the bookings we need to run it as some people may be more flexible than others and changing by a day here or there might me get in somewhere we wouldn't otherwise.
If we don't have the bookings we need to run the trip by mid March, it will be cancelled.
Probable guide: Russell Willis - Japan - Hokkaido: 29 September - 12 October
Guide: Rod Costigan. Rod has made several visits to Japan and has made this a trip we can be proud of. - Patagonia: 4 Weeks in December-January
We need a Spanish speaking guide on this one. This will be one of our easiest-ever Patagonia trips. Those who express an interest early on can help finalise the itinerary.
Probable guide: Russell Willis
In addition to the above, we are offering the following.
- New Caledonia: 2 or 3 weeks in September-October
We need a French speaking guide on this trip so we need to know way in advance so we can organise it. - Madagascar: 4 weeks in September
Maximum of only nine plus our guide. We've run this trip three times. No one else offers anything like it.
As with New Caledonia, we need a French speaking guide, probably Sébastien Heritier
Check out some of the info on our website to find out more.
• Video. Madagascar - Part 1 — highlights from the first three days of our trip.
• Video. Madagascar - Part 2 — 5 day trek in Isalo National Park
• The notes refer to our 2018 trip. 2019 will be much the same. - Japan - Honshu: 20 October - 2 November
Guide: Rod Costigan. This would follow on from the Hokkaido trip so the two could be combined. - Northeast South Africa: Kruger & More: 4 Weeks in October-November
This is very much a first draft. Those who express an interest early on can help finalise the itinerary.
We also hope to offer
Vanuatu in August-September. The link describes the last trip we offered. If you think you might be interested in a trip like that, please let us know. There is so much work involved, that we won't even begin until we know there are at least a few people who might be interested.
Photos — A Tip and A Problem
Saving What You Have
How to Rescue, Repair and Revive Old Family Photos *
If the march of time is eroding your personal picture archive, give your beloved images new life.
Losing Your Memories
How Google Photos Became a Perfect Jukebox for Our Memories *
- Google Photos, introduced in 2015, has become one of the most emotionally resonant pieces of technology today. It is also shaping our narratives along the way.
- "And yet as much as I can't quit Photos, I'm also vaguely terrified by what it promises about the future.
- There's a raft of social science research that shows our memories are profoundly altered by pictures.
- One study has shown that mindlessly taking photos reduces our ability to recall events in the world around us.
- Photos also shape our sense of selves, even to the point of creating new memories — a false photo can convince you that something happened to you even if it never did."
After reading the article above, I can understand why some of our clients choose not to bring cameras.
Amazing Tech
Virtual Assistants
- Video.
Google's AI Assistant Can Now Make Real Phone Calls
Once you've looked at that, you really ought to look at the next one. -
'Alexa, call my lawyer!' Are you legally liable if someone makes a purchase using your virtual assistant?
"When an African grey parrot named Rocco made purchases via his owner's Amazon Alexa voice assistant, it raised questions about who was legally responsible for footing the bill."
Nudge
-
Firm Led by Google Veterans Uses A.I. to 'Nudge' Workers Toward Happiness *
Humu, a Silicon Valley start-up, applies data-driven lessons in human resources to the goal of improving employee satisfaction. - The Power of Nudges, for Good and Bad *
This has some excellent examples of businesses nudging you to spend more. "Many companies are nudging purely for their own profit and not in customers' best interests."
It's Coming
- CES 2019: It's the Year of Virtual Assistants and 5G *
A visual tour of the world's most important tech conference offers a window into the year's trends, including next-generation wireless networks and the invasion of A.I. -
5G Is Coming This Year. Here's What You Need to Know. *
"The transition to new fifth-generation cellular networks, known as 5G, will affect how you use smartphones and many other devices. Let's talk about the essentials." - The 2018 Good Tech Awards *
"Scandals and wrongdoing in tech rightly get a lot of attention, but there's good — yes, really — happening elsewhere." - How an Unlikely Family History Website Transformed Cold Case Investigations *
Fifteen murder and sexual assault cases have been solved since April with a single genealogy website. This is how GEDmatch went from a casual side project to a revolutionary tool. - The first "social network" of brains lets three people transmit thoughts to each other's heads.
Drones
-
Need a Quick Inspection of a 58-Story Tower? Send a Drone *
With their low cost and ease of handling, drones are saving money and time on big construction projects. They could also save lives. - With Drone Deliveries on the Horizon, Europe Moves to Set Ground Rules *
A former military airfield in Belgium will be used to test technology and help regulators set rules for delivery by unmanned flying devices.
The Downside
- Wielding Rocks and Knives, Arizonans Attack Self-Driving Cars *
Some residents have responded to Waymo's autonomous vehicle project by slashing tires, pelting vans with rocks and even drawing a gun on a vehicle. - Is Tech Too Easy to Use? *
The tech industry's obsession with 'frictionless' design has been the source of innumerable problems.
"it's worth asking: Could some of our biggest technological challenges be solved by making things slightly less simple?"
"there are both philosophical and practical reasons to ask whether certain technologies should be a little less optimized for convenience. We wouldn't trust a doctor who made speed a priority over safety. Why would we trust an app that does?"
Travel Tips
Hiking in Europe
- Hiking in Switzerland
- Hiking the Lofoten Islands
An amazing and spectacular part of Norway.
Baggage
How to keep carry-on under 7kgs
With more airlines weighing carry on baggage, these are good tips.
Booking Sites
Dick Smith Says Foreign Booking Sites 'Leech' Off Australians
"Smith said that a contract made between the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) and the two biggest travel agencies is making it impossible for small accommodation businesses to advertise for cheaper."
A good reason to try going directly to a place rather than using a site like Trivago.
For Bushwalkers
How to turn your old kitchen range is a dehydrator
Tipping
-
Tipping for Dummies
Only in America. If you are planning to visit America, you should read this. Thankfully, it's different in most of the world. -
Tipping in Australia: A Complete Guide
If you are coming to Australia, this is as good an explanation as I've found. Nothing like America. - Tipping Etiquette Across the World
One of the better sites discussing tipping customs.
Environmentally Friendly?
- Here's how many times you actually need to reuse your shopping bags
The answer is surprising. - Almost every brand of tuna on supermarket shelves shows why modern slavery laws are needed
Just one brand of tinned tuna in Australian supermarkets is able to confidently claim slavery was not involved in its supply.
Apocalypse Now
The Insect Apocalypse Is Here *
What does it mean for the rest of life on Earth?
"the overall abundance of flying insects in German nature reserves had decreased by 75 percent over just 27 years. If you looked at midsummer population peaks, the drop was 82 percent."
It's a long article but well worth reading.
Live in WA?
If you live in WA, you might want to get involved in the Clean State campaign to cut pollution.
Points to Ponder
What Really Matters
Sometimes we forget the things that really matter. Wisdom can be found in strange places.
How Plato Foresaw Facebook's Folly *
"Technology promises to make easy things that, by their intrinsic nature, have to be hard."
"The story of the wildly exaggerated promises and damaging unintended consequences of technology isn't exactly a new one. The real marvel is that it constantly seems to surprise us. Why?"
How to Survive the Next Era of Tech *
"The tech industry in 2018 is far more consequential than it was in 2014, when I started this job. It's bigger, more pervasive and in every way more dangerous. It is also less amenable to outside pressure: The companies that run the show are more powerful than ever, and in many cases governments — especially in the United States — have proved ineffective at curbing their excesses."
Well thought out article, lots to think about.
Letter From a Birmingham Museum
• "Narratives and the Common Knowledge Game drive us to control OURSELVES.
• The goal of Narrative creation by status quo Missionaries like politicians and oligarchs is rarely to change your mind. It's rarely to try and switch you from one side to the other side. It's rarely to get you to vote FOR them or to buy FROM them. Because you already do.
• The goal of most Narrative creation is to take you off the board.
• The goal of most Narrative creation is to convince you to sit down and shut up.
• The Man is very, very skilled at defining your choices in ways that don't seem at all like they've been defined for you. In ways that seem like common sense. In ways that seem like common decency. In ways that make you believe that YOU are the bad guy if you question the Narrative.
It's a bit long. It's thought provoking. It's one of the best pieces I've read about our society.
Hot Times
Polar Vortex
- Brace for the Polar Vortex: It May Be Visiting More Often *
A researcher says that as the climate changes, "winter is shortening, but you're getting these more intensive periods in that shorter winter." - 'Life-threatening' cold snap hits US
Down Under
According to New Scientistto the end of January, no weather station anywhere in the world had recorded an all-time coldest temperature. 33 weather stations, most of which were in Australia, had recorded all time highs, including the hottest night ever in Australia.
- So far 2019 has set 33 records for heat, but none for cold
- Australia swelters in record temperatures with warmest ever night
Arctic, Oceans and Economics
- Warming in Arctic Raises Fears of a 'Rapid Unraveling' of the Region *
The Arctic has been warmer in the last five years than at any time since records began in 1900, a report from a United States scientific agency found. - Glaciers Are Retreating. Millions Rely on Their Water. *
Glaciers are crucial sources of water for people and crops in Central Asia. But global warming is causing glaciers there and around the world to shrink every year. -
Climate Change's Giant Impact on the Economy: 4 Key Issues *
Many of the big economic questions in coming decades will come down to just how extreme the weather will be, and how to value the future versus the present. - Ocean Warming Is Accelerating Faster Than Thought, New Research Finds *
An analysis concluded that Earth's oceans are heating up 40 percent faster on average than a United Nations panel estimated five years ago, a finding with dire implications for climate change. - The Planet Has Seen Sudden Warming Before. It Wiped Out Almost Everything. *
In some ways, the planet's worst mass extinction — 250 million years ago, at the end of the Permian Period — may parallel climate change today.
Photos, Videos & Just for Fun
Video
- 4 K Wild Botswana
Amazing drone footage, only 3 minutes. Highly recommended. - Tasmania's deep-sea coral reef: The marvel you never knew existed
Click the link in the article to see a great 3 min video clip. - Willis's Walkabouts Charnley-Bachsten 2018, by Richard Lukasz.
If you didn't click the link earlier in this newsletter, ten minutes here will tell you more about the trip than any words I could ever write.
News About This Newsletter
Restricted websites. The NY Times and Bloomberg Business Week both allow non-subscribers to look at ten free articles each month. I've got more links than that in this newsletter so I've marked them with a red asterisk (*) so that you can choose which are of most interest to you. The Washington Post and The Economist both have limits but I'm not sure what the current limits is so I've marked Washington Post and Economist articles with a double red asterisk (**).
Next Newsletter — ???. On 15 February, I begin a two month overseas trip. Not sure when I'll be able to do the next one.
As always, I've already got a few things ready. Hopefully, I can get a bit of feedback about some of the things in this newsletter to include in the next one. As I've often said, Suggestions welcome.
Sending the newsletter
While I now send most of the newsletters using MailChimp, I still send about 200 newsletters using a program which is hosted on the same server that hosts our website. (MailChimp Free only allows 2000. The commercial version costs too much for an extra 200 people.) In both cases, the newsletters are sent from walkabout@bushwalkingholidays.com.au. This is the contact address on our website. If you would like to continue to receive these newsletters, please include this address in your "friends list" so that it isn't blocked.
For some reason, some servers block the newsletters no matter what you try and do. I send these in small groups from my normal email. It's not a simple problem. If anyone thinks they might have an idea how to overcome the problem, I'd love to hear from you.
Emails sent to walkabout@bushwalkingholidays.com.au are currently automatically forwarded to rrwillis at internode.on.net. If you want to send an email to that address, replace the word "at" with the symbol @. I am trying not to put that address any place where it can be harvested by spam bots.
We don't want to add to the mass of email spam. If you don't want our newsletter, please send us an email and let us know. We'll then delete your name from our newsletter list.
Our email address is walkabout@bushwalkingholidays.com.au.
Note. Both MailChimp and the other program we use to send some of these newsletters have an automatic delete at the bottom. Clicking that link will delete you from the mailing list on the server but it will not delete you from our main database. One of the programs will not allow the auto delete to send me an email notifying me that a deletion has been made. If you want to be sure that you are removed from all further mailings, please send an email to walkabout@bushwalkingholidays.com.au
If you know someone you think would enjoy this newsletter, please forward it to them. The more people who get it, the more likely it is that I'll be able to run the trips which might interest you.
Merry Christmas and Happy New Year, to you all!!
Russell Willis