SCIENCE CONGRESS.

Hokitika Guardian, 15 September 1924, Page 4

SCIENCE CONGRESS.

DISI INcn-TIFI) C ATI! FI! INC. SYDNEY. Sept. -J7. The ( * it" re-'. of t lie Am t rula: inn A in iat ion lor l In- \*l\ a nconi'-nt el Science, e 1 1 iI ll lie ..p-ted m \d la'do. ha. drawn together a de I ingui dc-tl gathering ol men ol science, including on.- of the greatest brains that Australia has produced-- Proles-or Craft* ii Elliot Smith, now of the chair of anatomy at lit.- London I’niversity, and accepted as the greatest living ■ l ... I ♦ i I . i

UMtholity' MM Egyptology. I . 1)1 0SSOI' Smith is ;i native <>l' Now Smith Wmlms. ;iii.l conns nf ,-i di->liill'llis.!if<l I'iiniily. his brother. .Mr S. 11. Smith, being tln* Director dI Education in Xi■ u Smith Wales. Till* ii|n-iiiny; addresses ;1 1 ( In* t'ouorc-s oj vo j>iihii isi • i.l si 111 ii* import - nut discussions mill papers 11 pi ill prnb--1 Icms m|' thi> ilny. In assninitig tin' pri*sii|i*iii-y Sir .1 <>lin .Mnmi-li, who rnso tn tin l coin in:t lit I m!' tlm Aiistralimi oversea forces during tlm war, ami wliii has siiii-i* i'll ginccrcd tin* great Aliirui-ll electrii ily srhi'iim in Vie--1 tiria {l Im greatest undertaking of iis k■ ml in Australia, anil relying lnr its si hi i ii* nl supply tipiin tlm rich de-po-its nl' brown coal 1 1ni in 1 in tlm! Sltil.*. ileal! in a masterly ii'.animr with the prnhleni nf the Inture supply of power throughout the worhl. Naturally lie dealt in particular with Australia, anil emphasised the nilwisdom of looking entirely to Water siuirees lor the generation of the imnieitsi' (|iiantities ul power that would he repaired for tlm population of tlm { 'ommoiiwealth. lie showed how a reliahle estimate of the pot ell t i:i I water power ol the world had revealed Iha 1 it did not exceed .UKI million horsepower, or ahotlt one-third of one horse-power per head of the world’s present population, and Imw Australia’s share of this, excluding Tasmania, had been completely assessed at not more than one million horse-power, I which, with t!ie present population ol rouiidlv six million, gave- a result

which was about half of the average water hnrsc-power per capita of the world’s available supply. Australia, he -aid, must look principally to fuel resources in order to meet the all-itli-portaut demands for energy that were developing. There were very definite limitations to which - the potential energy of the rain and snow fall upon the highlands could be harnessed either at aIL or at such a reasonable cost that the resulting energy could compete commercially against fuel supply. These limitations were especially severe m continental Australia. Our continental stream How conditions bore no analogy to the Croat Lakes scheme in Tasmania, otto the extensive hydraulic resources of New Zealand, or to the huge hydroschemes associated with the falls of Niagara. 'I hat was why the energetic

advocacy by a section of country interests of the development of hydroelectric scheiiM-s in Victoria in preference to heat power stations based upon the State's very extensive brown coal deposits were d.aimed to failure. Sir John Monash referred to the disappointing results that had attended ellort- to produce electricity ec inomieally bv the utilisation of the power of tin* tides. The problem, he pointed out, involved not merely the provision of apparatus which would utilise the potential energy ol tidal waters so ato produce mechanical motion, but also the provision of extensive works to impound the high waters. I hat. on investigation. proved so co-tly. that under modern conditions ot power generation by other available means, there seemed little hope of any great commercial advantage from the use of the tides.