Stockton's Bill Snow has long held a belief that the main reason Newcastle streets flood during heavy rain is that the drains are not properly cleaned.
Bill sent us this photo as exhibit A to help make his case.
It shows the intersection of Birdwood Street and Rosann Close, New Lambton.
"The question I ask is how much soil is down this drain to support the growth of this shrub?" Bill said.
"During long dry periods I believe that occasional showers wash soil and leaves into the drains, but with insufficient power to flush them."
This, he believes, gradually builds up "with the rotting of the leaves".
The drain plant [or should we say tree] has been removed since Bill snapped the photo.
Nonetheless, his photo is a crucial piece of evidence in the great Newcastle flood/drain debate.
Feel free to send more evidence our way at topics@newcastleherald.com.au.
Economic Sense
This from Wallsend's Col Parkins: "This email was sent to me the other day and it really does make sense in every way".
It's a tale about a bank CEO who states: "A cyclist is a disaster for a country's economy. He does not buy a car and does not take a car loan. Does not buy car insurance. Does not buy fuel. Does not send his car for servicing and repairs. Does not use paid parking. Does not become obese. And he stays well.
"Healthy people are not needed for an economy. They do not buy drugs. They do not go to hospitals and doctors. They add nothing to a country's GDP. [They do buy Lycra, though]
"On the contrary, every new McDonald's outlet creates at least 30 jobs: 10 cardiologists, 10 dentists, 10 weight-loss experts, aside from people working in McDonald's outlets. Walking is even worse. Those people do not even buy a bicycle."
Dance of the Planets
The Moon has been dancing with Jupiter and Saturn. So says Col Maybury, president of the Astronomical Society of the Hunter.
As the moon passed the planets, Col's friend - Professor Ricardo Vaz Tolentino - photographed it from his rooftop observatory in Belo Horizonte in midland Brazil.
"The moon is a mere 380,000 kilometres from Earth and the planet Jupiter 640 million kilometres away, while Saturn is a staggering 1.4 billion kilometres from our home planet," Col said.
Col said the moon had been "peppered by millions of crashing asteroids and comets through the ages".
"Two of the more prominent and spectacular craters are Copernicus, just above and left of centre, and Tycho immediately below it," he said.
"Many of the craters on the moon were a result of the Late Heavy Bombardment or lunar cataclysm that occurred approximately 3.8 billion to 4.1 billion years ago."
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