The Sydney Morning Herald from Sydney, New South Wales, Australia • Page 14

FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 11, 1983 Simultaneous disarmament lefs shake on it, Japanese form of poetry known as Haiku. This is the entire contents of a news cable that arrived yesterday: "SNOW. Nov 10. Hobart Unseasonally cold weather brought snow to Mount Wellington yesterday and thoughts of a white Christmas to the city below. Ends." March of science What relief.

An international team of astronomers using observations from the Siding Spring Observa- tory in northern NSW has concluded that the universe will not end with a bang, but will go on and on for ever like Senator Shirley Walters. Until now the popular theory has been that the force of gravity would stop the expansion of the universe eventually and it would fall back in on itself with a big bang not dissimilar to the one heard when the universe started. Dr Bruce Peterson, a senior research fellow at the Australian National University and a member of the astronomy team, said yesterday the universe did not have enough matter for gravity to overcome the force of expansion generated by the initial Big Bang. That's the good news. The bad news is that the stars will go out one by one as they use up their nuclear fuel (unless we stop uranium mining now?) and eventually the universe will be "a light-less void with a uniform temperature just above absolute zero' (unless we vote Liberal).

kas, followed by two coffees. Tests showed that the coffee did nothing to improve decision-making or reaction times, and in some cases black coffee slowed reaction times even further. Dr Obourne says the common belief that coffee helps people to sober up may be because "the coffee drinker is shocked by the heat and bitter taste into thinking that he is sobering up." camps." Senator Button said he knew nothing about the matter and "I am not going to make hypothetical judgments about hypothetical situations." (We would also ask you to refrain from saying that if they took out the component parts, the Lada would be bare.) Opportunities. Ah, it does this column's heart good to see people maintaining the rage after all these years. Here's a roundup of November 11 fun: The Republican of the Year will be named tonight at a public meeting organised by Citizens For Democracy at Turner Hall, Institute of Technology, Broadway, from 7.30 pm.

David Combe and Patrick White will also speak on the need for a new Constitution. A vigil for peace will start at 8 pm for women who want to express their support for the women picketing Pine Gap today. Then tomorrow from 1 1 am there will be a rally and concert and the building of a giant cardboard model of Pine Gap. A concert in honour of anyone who has ever been sacked will be held at the Trade Union Club from 9 pm with Do Re Mi, Naughty Rhythms, Sea Monsters and mystery guests. The Wimmin's Comic Book Collective has been given a grant by the Australia Council to produce a comic book of words and drawings by ladies.

You have to do your comic on A4 paper and send it to them with 100 photocopies. Phone Betsy on 660 8357 (a Glebe number) for more info. The Dinosaurs from China at the Australian Museum in College Street arc being sent back home next week, so they are Remains To Be Seen Until Sunday-Disarmament in Europe by both sides will be discussed without too much pessimism we hope at a seminar organised by a group called People for Nuclear Disarmament (formerly called AICD) from 10 am tomorrow at the Graphic Arts Club, Chippendale. The speakers will include an English peace activist named Peter Jones (not the one who was the voice of the Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy) and Laurie Carmichael. "Environmental performance in Saturn's Rings" sounds like something Debbie and Tim might dream up, but actually it's an evening of fireworks, music, giant puppets, dancers, a circus and a headless horseman.

It's being staged in an abandoned building nicknamed Saturn's Rings in Badgelly Road, Claymore (near Campbelltown) on Sunday from 6.30 pm. The problems associated with the successful integration of handicapped children into normal schools will be discussed tomorrow at a seminar at the Sebel Town House, Elizabeth Bay. Speakers will include Ron Mulock, the NSW Education Minister, Betty Archdale, from the Whatever Happened To Department, and James Ward, Professor of Education at Mac-quarie University. Myths A research project by Dr David Obourne, a lecturer in psychology at University College, Swansea, England, has shown that coffee docs not help drinkers sober up and can make their condition worse. Dr Obourne did more than 100 hours of laboratory tests on eight volunteers who took a mixture of drinks equal to four vod What they did in Macquarie Street This column remarked yesterday that Neville Wran has been dropping broad hints that Lin Gordon, the Minister for Lands and Local Government, should resign from Cabinet to make way for a younger man.

It is no secret that Mr Gordon has not taken kindly to this suggestion. So we were interested to see that the following invitation was sent out from Mr Gordon's office to various notables yesterday: "The Hon Lin Gordon, MP for Murrumbidgee and Minister for Local Government and Lands, in association with the Murrumbidgee Labor Electorate Council invites to dinner to meet The Hon Neville Wran, QC, MP, Premier of NSW. and Ministers of the NSW Cabinet at the All Servicemen's Club, Yanko, Monday 14 November. 7 for 7.30." If we were Mr Wran we would not touch a bite at that dinner. Fortunately the Riverina area doesn't produce a chardonnay, so Mr Wran won't be tempted to put himself at risk with the wine.

Vanuatu 3SSvJ What they did in Canberra To forestall criticisms that it is suffering from excess modesty, the Federal Government has printed 10,000 copies of a 58-page book called Record of Government, March September 1983. It contains a description by each minister of his or her achievements. We see, for example, that Barry Jones, Minister for Science, includes: "The Government has agreed to provide 75 per cent of the $2 million needed to develop the implant hearing prosthesis (bionic car) and bring it into commercial production." Arthur Gietzclt, Minister for Veterans' Affairs, lists that "no new commercial manufacturers will participate in the Government's Repatriation Free Limb Scheme; this means substantial cost savings for the Commonwealth." Paul Keating, the Treasurer, lists among his achievements the six-monthly indexing of the excise on alcohol, cigarettes and petrol. The books will be sent to all Federal politicians, unions, major companies, media and "those who request it." The cost was $11,200, plus postage. And the ever vigilant Brian Harradine, independent senator from Tasmania, has discovered that cars produced in Soviet prison camps are being sold in Australia.

Before you start making jokes about Gulag being quite a catchy name for a car. we should say that the name of the car is the Lada. We've never heard of the car, but Senator Harradine asked the Minister for Industry and Commerce, John Button, what he was going to do about a report that "component parts of this vehicle are manufactured in Soviet prison time corpse. She then does a neat transformation from hack to sleuth, and shows the professionals a thing br two about tracking down killers. Opealag of the Sydney Eater-taiaaeat Centre (Rpt), 9 at 8.30 pm: For the benefit of those of us who have driven past the darkened Entertainment Centre at night and wondered whether or not it had been opened, Channel 9 is rerunning the opening ceremony.

Movie: Battle Beyond The Stars, 10 at 7.30 pa: A kind of Star Wars on the cheap with a tug of the filmic forelocks in the direction of The Seven Samuari. Stars Richard Thomas and Robert Vaughn. Movie: Siagla' la The Rata, 7 at 8.30 pm: Channel 7 is evidently scarcely able to hide his contempt for the Nixon Administration. The mind's eye drifts back to a lazy focus on the events of November II, 1975, and the so-called coup d'etat which brought the nation to a silence more deafening than the three minutes we usually allow for the Melbourne Cup. Scenario by Larry Buttrose, recreates the events in a fictionalfactual way.

12.45 pa, 2BL, Cricket: Australia's seven million cricket experts turn their attention towards the hallowed turf of an arena known as the WACA for descriptions of play in the first cricket Test between Pakistan and Australia. People not disposed to primitive exhortations of gladiatorial combat or thinly disguised racist trumpeting should The end of the universe Encore Encore Art Once in a rare while newspaper stories can approach poetry, and indeed, that brief and delicate Cricket: Flirt Tot, Australia Pakistoi, 9 at 12.56 pa: The spotlight is on Kim Hughes once again at the start of a new series against Pakistan. Can he or can't he lead Australia to a scries win? No doubt that's what Rod will be asking Greg who will be asking Dennis as the latter runs in to send down the first ball of the series just on 1 pm. The commentary is being presented by Richie Benaud, Ian Chappell and Tony Greig with his ground moisture machine. What this line-up desperately needs is an injection of glamour, or at least somebody who can provide a few laughs.

Thriller: The Chelsea Murders, 2 at 9 pm: Mary Mooney, a part-time journalist, nearly becomes a full- TALK 10.30 aa, 2FC, As The Hour draws near when Gough Whitlam impersonators trundle out their renditions of his famous speech on the steps of Parliament House, those with longer memories recall two world wars and the 1 1th hour of the 1 1th day of the 1 1th month. John Warnock reads from the letters of 23-year-old John Dillon Stoddart, who was killed at Pozieres in July 1916. At 11 am, two minutes' silence something radio stations generally avoid like the plague Reveille and the Last Post 11 am, 2JJJ-FM, Doctor Kit-singer revealed the other day that Washington was pretty glad to see the dismissal of the Whitlam Government and that Gough had been rl AM EC 4SB 3 quite confident of taking out this final week of the ratings and has put up the shutters for another year. How else to explain the exhumation of this number that's been collecting dust in the film library for the past 30 years? In case you don't remember, it stars Gene Kelly and Debbie Reynolds who sing Singin' In The Rain and other touching tunes. Marie: The Good, The Bad And The Ugly, 10 at 9.45 pa: This one made quite a killing at the box office when released in 1966.

Clint Eastwood, Lee Van Cleef and Eli Wallach are all searching for a cash box containing $200,000, which in those pre-inflation days was quite a bit of money. Richard Colaman avoid commercial television at all costs during the season. The radio may be slow but it still has manners. Television does everything in slow motion anyway and leaves nothing to the imagination. The senses of the commentators and real knowledge of the game have been sacrificed to computerised statistics, multi-angled razzle-dazzle, odious perving on bikini-clad hopefuls, and the antics of streakers, punch-up artists and potbellied dubbos who use the game as an excuse to engage in loutish excesses.

I believe hungry lions are to be introduced to the outfield during slow scoring periods. Parliament will intrude from time to time for those who do like the sound of a brawl. Doug Anderson The curious blend of French, English and Vanuatu influences that have been at work on the islands of Vanuatu have created a mouth-watering hotpot of taste sensation. From inexpensive cafes to haute cuisine, die best eating in the South Pacific is just a few hours away. Fly there direct with Air Vanuatu, on one of our three flights a week.

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