china – Stilgherrian

21 April 202521 April 2025

The 9pm Triple Mammal Chinese Spy Ship Panic with Snarky Platypus

On a bright blue sea against a bright blue sky is a modern bright blue ship with white superstructure. The bow is high and rugged-looking. The stern has cranes and such. — *Chinese marine research vessel Tan Suo Yi Hao*. (Photo: Institute of Deep-sea Science and Engineering) *Inset: A platypus, but not that one. (Taronga Conservation Society Australia / Chris Wheeler)*

The summer series is dragging on, and there’s still so many things on our minds. So joining me for a bonus episode is my good friend Snarky Platypus.

02 March 202509 March 2025

Weekly Wrap 770: Stress, little productivity, and a photo from two years ago

The view from the left-hand window of an airliner over the eastern beaches of Sydney. About two-thirds of the way up the view is Sydney Harbour in all its crinkly glory. Along the lower parts of the image are the beaches, with Bondi uppermost. Near the top of the image a bank of white fluffy clouds obscure the North Shore. And at the very top right, the aircraft’s wing.

Oh dear. My week of Monday 24 February to Sunday 2 March 2025 was another unproductive week, making February overall an unproductive month. Remedial action will be needed. For a start, I’m now declaring March to be part of summer.

05 January 202506 January 2025

Bingo Card 2025: Which of these things will happen?

Snarky Platypus and I have created this bingo card for 2025 listing 25 distinctly possible things. We also list the suggestions which didn’t make it.

01 August 202408 August 2024

The 9pm Geography of Cybercrime with Dr Miranda Bruce

Dr Miranda Bruce is ready to wrangle the cybercrime data. (Main photo: John Carroll/UNSW Canberra at ADFA; background image: Benjamas/Rawpixel; digital composition: Stilgherrian.)

Have you ever been a victim of cybercrime? I know I have. I bet you have too. So let’s talk about that now with Dr Miranda Bruce from UNSW Canberra, because she’s been working on the World Cybercrime Index.

08 July 202424 July 2024

The 9pm Half-time Bingo Card Update 2024 with Snarky Platypus

Main image by Rudonni via Pixabay. Foreground bingo card originally by Milton Bradley Company, photo by Abby Hendrickson under under a CC-BY 2.0 Generic license. Platypus inset photo by Taronga Conservation Society Australia / Chris Wheeler. Digital composition by Stilgherrian.

Back at the start of the year, my good friend Snarky Platypus and I created some bingo cards for 2024. Two sets of 25 things that might happen. Well, we’re half-way through the year, so let’s see how we went.

16 June 202408 July 2024

Weekly Wrap 733: My tardy transition from autumn to winter

A view downhill in the evening towards a Victorian-era railway station, or at least its equipment hut. The platform is lit up with an orange tinge, but the sky is grey, and snow is scattered along the track.

My week of Monday 10 to Sunday 16 June 2024 saw me finally wrap up my podcast’s autumn series and kick off the winter crowdfunder. This reminded me of snow, so I’m including some snow from three years ago.