Out of the blue

Thanks to the National Library of Australia for hosting an excellent event yesterday to coincide with its Cook and the Pacific exhibition. I was absolutely delighted to be there, talking about Cook’s second voyage and his legacy of maritime exploration and science in the Southern Ocean. After four days of 40+ degrees C during the … More Keeping cool at the NLA

While oral histories have been used as a source of information about marine species and ecosystems in the past, this article explores how oral histories of fishers and divers can be read as narratives about human relationships with marine environments and animals. We propose that in listening closely to people who have long and intimate … More Marine oral history: a new genre?

I’m enjoying the process of researching a new book on Australians in Antarctica for the National Library of Australia. Whenever I get the chance, I spend time in the Petherick Reading Room surrounded by books, and occasionally taking time out to delve into the Special Collections materials. How lucky am I! On another note, I’m … More Australians in Antarctica…and other adventures

I was honoured and delighted to present a keynote address at the Oceans Institute’s Annual Postgraduate Symposium at the University of Western Australia on 2 November 2018. The symposium covered a full day and involved some 18 presentations from Marine Ecology and Marine Engineering PhD students, almost all of whom are undertaking their research in … More Keynote at Oceans Institute, UWA

Thanks to Bron Burton of Melbourne community radio Triple R for a great interview on Sunday morning, and for making a copy of Wild Sea available as a giveaway to listeners.

Thanks to Dr Paul Humphries for his great review of Wild Sea for the October 2018 edition of Australian Book Review. Paul lectures in ecology and animal diversity and studies the ecology of rivers at Charles Sturt University. He has published many scientific papers, book chapters, history of science, and opinion pieces. He is co-editor of … More Australian Book Review

‘In her new book, Wild Sea: A History of the Southern Ocean (NewSouth Publishing, 2018), historian Joy McCann explores the history of the vast Southern Ocean, from icy Antarctica to the southern coastlines of Australia, South America, and South Africa.  From the journals of navigators centuries ago to scientific instruments today, the ocean has been more than just a scientific … More New Books Network podcast