Most face-to-face events and all online events conducted by the Royal Society of NSW are recorded and made available for subsequent viewing on our YouTube channel: youtube.com/royalsocnsw. 

On Wednesday, 5 April renowned geophysicist, Professor Dietmar Müller FAA FAGU of the University of Sydney, spoke at the 1312th Ordinary General meeting of the Society and delivered the (delayed) 2019 Clarke Memorial Lecture. In this excellent lecture, which is now available on YouTube, Professor Müller spoke on the topic of “Reconstructing ancient oceans, sea-level fluctuations, the deep carbon cycle, and biodiversity“, taking his audience on a journey through geological time, and reconstructing the ancient oceans that have little resemblance to the oceans we know today. In his lecture, he discussed an ocean evolution model over 550 million years, validated with fossil data, and demonstrated that modern ocean biodiversity, which is at its highest level ever, was achieved through long-term stability of the location of so-called biodiversity hotspots. These are regions of especially high numbers of species located in warm, shallow, nutrient-rich waters. This study also emphasised that, if current trends continue, projected diversity loss can take millions of years to recover, arguably beyond our own existence as a species.

Later in the month, on 20 April, Professor Sharynne McLeod FRSN FASSA, an eminent speech pathologist from Charles Sturt University deliver the first Western NSW Branch presentation of 2023 on the topic of “Children should be seen AND heard: the importance of communication so children can thrive“.  In her lecture, which is now available on YouTube, Sharynne McLeod argued powerfully that communication is a human right for everyone — including children, explaining the long-term negative impact of preschool children’s speech and language competency on their subsequent literacy, numeracy, and socialisation. With long waiting lists for speech pathology, Professor McLeod discussed policy solutions for interdisciplinary, cross-sectoral change that are needed to enable Australia’s children to be seen AND heard so they can thrive.