Mr Smart is a well-qualified Australian geologist with overseas geological experience in Canada, USA, UK, Irish Republic, NZ and Indonesia. His lectures are both entertaining and informative and big screens bring the spectacular images in his naturalist presentations to life. He has no difficulty capturing audiences’ interest with his lively style and natural passion for his subject.

Gained BSc Hons (geol) degree from Qld University in 1969 and his geological experience includes underground at Mt Isa and exploration experience in remote Australia, leading a team of 16 geoscientists and support staff in Arnhem Land. His Grad Dip Sc Ed and Dip Teach qualifications together with his extensive teaching experience in all levels of education, tertiary, technical , secondary, primary and community education, have made him ideally qualified for cruise speaking.

Following his successful career as a geologist he began lecturing at Canberra Institute of Technology and in 1992 was appointed Head of Resource Sciences Department with ~40 staff.

Since retiring in 1999, he has remained very active as a volunteer lecturer with U3A, conducting “Fun with Geoscience”, “Topical Issues in Geology” and World’s Greatest Geological Wonders” courses for retirees. He also led a group of 30 volunteers in establishing award winning geotourism attractions, including the first and only Guided Fossil Walk" in Australia and a "Geological Time Walk”, one of only 7 in the world.

He was head hunted by NSW Parks and Wildlife in 2011 for a specialist Discovery Ranger position (casual). In this role, he continues to conduct walks in NP’s for tourists, university and special interest groups.

Phil was one of the nominees for “Australian of the Year” 2018 in recognition of his services to the community.

A note about the relevance of my lecture topics

It may not always be obvious to guests, but the wonderful natural landscape features that add so much to their enjoyment of destinations are almost entirely due to geological events/processes. My background in geology enables me to prepare entertaining and informative lectures that are relevant to almost all cruise destinations for itineraries reaching all over the globe. Following my lectures on many ships I have been complimented by guests with no scientific background, for making technical subjects so easy to understand.

On cruises where the number of sea days doesn’t permit separate presentations for each destination, I cover the landscapes and geology of the next several destinations in one 45-minute presentation. This approach has proved very popular with guests as it enables them to gain a better understanding of processes and events that formed the landscapes prior to their arrival at each cruise destination.

I've divided my listed Naturalist/Geology talks into several different cruise regions. I’ve delivered more than 80 of these lectures at least once on cruise ships. Since no lecture is ever perfect, I always attempt to update and improve lectures where I have an opportunity to deliver them again.

Sail Away and other Bridge commentaries I've given in fjords on several cruises in NZ and Norway proved very popular with guests listening on outside decks and/or in comfortable viewing lounges.

Since 2017, I have supplemented some of my lectures with 30-minute "hands-on" 3-D map sessions for 40-80 guests using colourful geological maps and digital bathymetric images of the seafloor (3-D stereo glasses provided). These sessions have proved so popular that CDs have asked me to repeat them 2 or 3 times to cater for other guests.

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LECTURE TOPICS BY REGION:

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North Atlantic: UK; Norway; Iceland; and Greenland

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1. Scotland has its own San Andreas Fault
Explains how ancient continental collisions resulted in major faults shaping mainland Scotland. Faulting extended to, and impacted on, the Orkneys and Shetland Isles.

2. Break-up of a supercontinent - birth of the Atlantic Ocean
Outlines how/when supercontinent, Pangaea, broke up forming a new ocean and explores ongoing changes to the Atlantic and their global impacts

3. Spectacular Glaciers and Fiords of Norway
Illustrates the beauty of Norway’s glaciers and fjords. Explains how snow becomes glacial ice and how/when glaciers formed some of the world’s most magnificent coastal features in Norway

4. Norway’s Land of Fire and Ice – Svalbard Archipelago
Reveals Svalbard’s diverse features – Norway’s biggest glaciers; most northerly hot springs; chain of marine volcanoes and abundance of Arctic wildlife

5. Norway’s Active and Dormant Volcanoes
Outlines the nature and eruptive history of Norway’s only active volcano. Explains the nature of volcanic activity on 2 remote islands which are part of Norway’s Antarctic Territories.

6. Scottish Glaciers and Remarkable Glacial Landforms
Reveals evidence of where the last Ice Age left its mark across much of Scotland. Explains that glaciers survived in the Cairngorm Mountains long after the ice sheet vanished, only disappearing after the Little Ice Age (1650-1790)

7. So how old are the Rocks in Norway?
Explains that most of the rocks in Norway are known to be very old as a result of isotopic dating. Provides a simple Introduction to various modern isotopic methods used to determine the age of rocks. Also explains how recently developed refinements yield very precise ages

8. Lake Orcadie - a 380 million year old lake with an amazing diversity of fish life
Describes the history of the vast fresh water lake that covered the Orkneys, northern Scotland and part of Greenland. Explains how the fossils found in this ancient lake played a vital role in our understanding of vertebrate evolution.

9. Where does the Oil and Gas under the North Sea come from?
Describes the tiny living creatures that form hydrocarbons. Outlines the sequence of geological events that produced the vast oil and gas resources of the North Sea. Discusses the likely future for oil and gas production from the North and Norwegian Seas

10. Iceland’s Geysers and other Geothermal Activity
Describes the historic use of geothermal emissions and the history of its use in Iceland. Explains the source of the Earth's geothermal heat. Describes the geysers and other types of geothermal emissions in Iceland. Outlines the current diverse uses of geothermal water and steam including its important use as a power source.

11. Iceland’s active and dormant volcanoes
Explains why Iceland has a variety of different types of volcanoes, some explosive and others quiet. Reveals the locations of Iceland’s 30 active volcanoes and explains that some are known to lie under the ice sheet. Outlines the eruption histories of some major volcanoes. Discusses the two sources of Icelandic vulcanism, the Icelandic ‘hot spot’ and the Mid Atlantic Ridge.

12. Iceland’s waterfalls – Two of them in the world’s top 10 Waterfalls list
Explains the aging process for rivers and the conditions that cause waterfalls to form. Shows how, in Iceland, high mountains, large glaciers and freeze/thaw cycles with abundant precipitation meet the essential conditions. Describes a variety of Iceland's 1000s of waterfalls and discusses the locations of many.

13. Greenland’s magnificent glaciers
Explains the terminology used for different types of glaciers. Shows the extent and thickness of Greenland’s ice sheet and the location of the many outlet glaciers around its periphery. Discuss the impacts of the possible melting of the Greenland Ice Sheet.

14. Greenland has some of the Earth’s oldest rocks but how do we know?
Shows images of some of Greenland’s oldest rocks and describe their complex history. Provides a simple introduction to modern isotopic methods used to determine the age of these rocks. Also explains how recent refinements in technique yield very precise ages.

15. Giants Causeway- How and when was it formed?
Explains how lava cools to produce spectacular geometrically perfect polygonal columns. Reveals the basalt columns formed part of the vast lava plateau (formed 60 million years ago) which also yielded columns on west coast of Scotland. Explains how continental break-up caused the present distribution of these columns

16. Faroe Islands – landscapes and origins
Outlines events which formed the Faroe Islands 58 million years ago. Explains how the volcanic rocks that form the islands were erupted from volcanoes when Greenland split from Europe. Describes how plate movement since then has moved the islands ~500km from the active volcanic region.

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North Pacific – Alaska; Russia; and Japan

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17. The iconic classic volcanic cone of Fujiyama and Japan’s active volcanoes
Explains the terms active, dormant and extinct. Reveals the structure and eruption history of Fujiyama which last erupted in 1708 and is now considered dormant. Describes the structure and eruption histories of some of Japan's 50 active volcanoes that are currently being monitored.

18. Japan’s most spectacular waterfalls and lakes
Explains the aging process for rivers and outlines the requirements for waterfalls to form along a water course. Illustrates how these essential conditions for waterfall formation are met throughout Japan. Explains roles played by rainfall and various types of volcanic rock in giving Japan so many waterfalls.

19. Japanese earthquakes and tsunamis
Outlines how Japan’s geographic location on the “Pacific Ring of Fire” has resulted in Japan's history of major earthquakes. Explains the scales used to measure earthquake strength. Explain, with the aid of models, the factors that determine if an earthquake will produce a tsunami.

20. Kamchatka Peninsula – volcanic geothermal wonderland
Explains the geothermal source of hot springs and spectacular geyser eruptions. Describes the vast snowfields feeding magnificent glaciers on the slopes of active volcanoes. Describes the peninsula's mountain lakes; picturesque coastal fiords and fauna and flora.

21. Getting to the Bottom of Deep Ocean Trenches – more is known about the surface of the moon
Defines “deep ocean trench”. Describes their structure and gives the location of the world’s 20 ocean trenches. Uses models to explain how they formed. Describes some of the very unusual marine life forms discovered in these virtually unexplored parts of our oceans.

22. Alaska’s glaciers and fiords
Illustrates the beauty of Alaska’s glaciers and describes the different types of glacier. Explains how and when Alaska’s magnificent glaciers formed the numerous spectacular fiords that make Alaska’s coastline so impressive.

23. Alaska has high mountain ranges and earthquakes
Explains the series of tectonic events that gave Alaska so many tall mountain ranges. Explains other ways in which mountains are formed. Uses models to explain how plate movements that formed the mountains also cause so many earthquakes in Alaska including the second biggest earthquake ever recorded.

24. Explosive Alaskan Volcanoes
Explains why some eruptions are explosive and others are quiet and reveals how volcanic eruption strength is measured. Describes eruptions of some of Alaska’s volcanoes and describes an eruption of one of the Katmai cluster of 8 volcanoes considered the biggest eruption of c.20th

25. Gold, Gold, Gold in the Klondike
Describes the 1896 discovery; gold rush; the prospectors’ hardships; and current gold mining in the Klondike. Outlines the geological origin of the rich Klondike goldfield and the role of the unglaciated land in the formation of the alluvial gold and nuggets.

26. The migration of the First Nation people to North America - How and when
Describes North America's isolation from other landmasses for millions of years. Outlines how human ancestors evolved in Africa and describes migrations out of Africa. Explains the role of land bridges for human migration during the last Ice Age.

27. Extinction of the Arctic megafauna during the last Ice Age in Alaska
Describes the ecosystems in which the Arctic megafauna roamed Alaska. Outlines the fossil evidence for iconic megafauna species such as woolly mammoth, steppe bison and cave lion. Outlines the history of major climate and sea level fluctuations during the Last Ice Age and discusses theories on the extinction of the megafauna.

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South America

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28. Chile’s spectacular glaciers, fiords and lakes
Illustrates the beauty of Chile’s glaciers and fiords. Describes how snow crystals become glacial ice. Explains when and how glaciation gave Chile some of the southern hemisphere’s most magnificent coastal features and mountain lakes

29. Rise of the Andes – the world’s longest and 2nd highest mountain range
Outlines nature and extent of the Andes - South America’s most magnificent attraction. Describes tectonic forces that uplifted this huge range producing such dramatically different landscapes. Explains how the mountains also host some of the world’s largest mineral deposits

30. Chile’s awesome volcanoes
Explains why some volcanoes are dangerously explosive while others erupt quietly. Describes Chile’s explosive volcanic activity – 15 major eruptions in the past 20 years. Uses images and models to explain the tectonic forces that formed Chile’s 90 active volcanoes

31. Chile has a history of megathrust earthquakes and destructive tsunamis
Outlines the history of Chile’s big earthquakes and tsunamis. Explains the cause of megathrust earthquakes and defines the term ‘tsunami’. Discusses the public perception that earthquake and consequently tsunami risk is increasing.

32. The Diverse Origins of South America’s wonderfully unique Fauna and Flora
Outlines the break-up of Gondwana from 180Ma. Describes how break-up led to flora and fauna evolving independently on the South American fragment of Gondwana. Also explains the other more recent influences on South American flora and fauna

33. Earth’s biggest river of all time, the mighty Amazon, and its geological origin
Describes the features of the Amazon basin and its unique river. Describes the special factors that enabled this massive river system to develop. Explains why there are no rocks in the basin and how the biggest rainforest in the world can grow in such poor soil.

34. Incomparable Iguasu Falls and South America’s other magnificent waterfalls

Explains how and where waterfalls form and illustrates the transient nature of waterfalls and rapids on watercourses. Uses a selection of South America’s impressive waterfalls to explain when and how each formed.

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Pacific Islands

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34. The South West Pacific’s Explosive Volcanic Eruptions
Briefly explains the term “Pacific Ring of Fire” and what causes so many explosive eruptions from these volcanoes. Describes eruptions in Tonga and other SW Pacific island nations in the Ring. Reveals why the volcanoes are so explosive and far more dangerous than those in Hawaii.

35. WHY do island Nations, Samoa and Tonga, have very different eruption histories?
Reveals the close proximity of the Tongan and Samoan volcanic island chains. Describes the shield volcanoes that have formed the islands of Samoa. Uses images of some of Tonga’s recent explosive activity, including underwater eruptions forming new islands. Explains why Samoan volcanoes are no longer active.

36. Gold and Diamonds on the seafloor – and they’re not the only minerals!
Outlines more than 50 years of off-shore diamond mining. Reveals how the existence of deposits of gold, and other metals in deeper water on the Pacific seafloor has been known for almost 50 years. Explains how/why these deposits are attracting the serious interest of many countries. Discuss environmental consequences of future deep sea mining.

37. Bora Bora and other South Pacific Coral Atolls
Outlines c. 19th work of Charles Darwin in the South Pacific determining how atolls formed and eventually disappeared. Explains the life cycle of an atoll using examples of atolls visited on the cruise. Explains why coral atolls teem with marine life yet volcanic islands forming guyots have no coral reef.

38. Spectacular Waterfalls on South Pacific Islands
Explains the aging process for rivers and outline the essentials for waterfalls to form. Shows how these conditions are met on many South Pacific islands. Reveals how rock types, altitude and rainfall have vital roles in forming waterfalls on South Pacific islands. Describes the features of many French Polynesian waterfalls.

39. Easter Island and its chain of seamount volcanoes.
Uses the Hawaiian model to demonstrate how the chain of Easter island volcanoes formed over a mantle ‘hot spot’. Describes the age of islands in the chain and explains how long the hot spot has been active. Discusses the famous moai statues carved out of local basalt by the Rapa Nui.

40. The elbow bend in the Pitcairn Island chain
Describes the Pitcairn Islands, outlining the location and extent of the Pitcairn Island chain. Describes the volcanoes that formed the islands. Shows that the island chain is bent like several other Pacific island chains and discusses likely causes for bends in Pacific Island chains.

41. Pacific Atolls and their origins
Explains how atolls form out in the middle of the Pacific far from any continental land mass. Describes the life cycle of an atoll. Some Pacific Atolls, e.g.Bikini and Muraroa, have had a traumatic past as test sites for nuclear bombs. What impact has it had?

42. Tsunamis in the Pacific
Defines and explains the term ‘tsunami’ and outlines all major events that cause tsunamis. Explains why only some big undersea earthquakes cause tsunamis. Explain why even the biggest most destructive tsunamis would not affect cruise ships and their guests.

43. Hawaiian Volcanic Island Chain – The story of a “Hot Spot”
Outlines the hot spot volcano concept. Describes with seafloor maps the 6000km long Hawaiian chain created from a single hot spot that’s persisted for 80 million years. Reveals other hot spot chains on land and in the oceans. Estimates the number of currently active hot spots.

44. Volcanoes of the Big Island
Outlines the 5 major volcanoes that form the Big Island. Explains why Mauna Kea is the tallest mountain in the world and describes its structure and eruption history. Describes the spectacular volcanic activity on the Big Island in 2018. Discusses Mauna Loa, the largest active shield volcano on earth; Kilauea volcano whose lava flows enter the sea; and the active Loihi submarine volcano

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Pacific Coast of United States

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45. Why are there so many earthquakes on the world’s most famous fault – San Andreas Fault?
Shows how the San Andreas Fault system forms part of a major plate boundary and reveals when it first became active. Explains how the earthquakes are caused, often with movement along more than one fault. Uses models to show the different types of movement on other major fault planes.

46. The Mountain Ranges of America’s western states
Describes the nature and location of mountain ranges in western USA. Explains current ideas on how the Rocky Mountains formed during 3 periods of intense tectonic activity from 170 million years ending only 40 million years ago. Explains the volcanic origin of Cascade Range

47. What is a ‘Supervolcano’?
Defines the term ‘supervolcano’ and explains VEI for eruptions. Describes the VEI = 8 eruptions of Yellowstone; Toba; and Taupo supervolcanoes. Discusses evidence of recent subsurface activity above the Yellowstone hot spot and the possibility of a future eruption.

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Mediterranean Sea

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48. Santorini – Its explosive eruption history and its mythology
Shows how movement of tectonic plates in the Mediterranean has formed Santorini. Describes the volcano’s structure and outlines its violent eruption history. Outlines how Santorini has been used to help explain biblical and historic events

49. Greece’s incredible Blue Caves and its other wonderful limestone caves
Describes the Blue Caves which feature on the list of the world’s most beautiful attractions. Explains how and when the Greek limestone caves were formed. Explain why Greece and Greek islands have so many caves dotting their shores

50. Landscapes and Geology of Destinations – Part I
Barcelona; Marseilles; Monte Carlo; Livorno (Pisa and Florence)
Explains how and when geological events formed spectacular natural landscape features at coastal destinations in Spain; Monaco; France; and Italy. Also describes other major geological events that have affected each region.

51. Landscapes and geology of destinations, Part II – Strait of Messina; Kerkira (Corfu); Dubrovnik; Split
Explains how and when spectacular natural landscape features at coastal destinations in Greece ,Croatia and the Strait of Messina were formed. Also describes other major geological events that have affected each region.

52. The Rise of the European Alps
Describes the plate collision that forced the crust to deform, pushing up this massive mountain range. Explains how fossil shells are found 3000m above sea level. Describes the various earth processes that formed the world’s other major mountain ranges.

53. Why is there a Mediterranean Earthquake Belt?
Outline the history of major earthquakes that have affected countries to the north of the Mediterranean. Explains the nature of the earth movements that cause earthquakes. Dispels the myth that earthquakes are becoming more frequent.

54. The explosive power of Vesuvius and Italy’s other active and dormant volcanoes
Explains why some eruptions are quiet and others explosive. Describes the structure and nature of Italy’s 3 active volcanoes which are the only active volcanoes in mainland Europe. Examines their eruption histories and describes some famous eruptions.

55. Geothermal features in Tuscany and other Italian geothermal regions
Explains the term “geothermal” and the origin of geothermal heat. Describes the location and nature of the geothermal regions in Italy and illustrates the geothermal features that attract tourists to Tuscany. Outlines the use of geothermal heat as a power source in Italy.

56. The amazing story of the Venetian Lagoon and its recent history
Outlines the Venetian basin’s origin ~115Ky.a when sea level was very low, and filling of the lagoon 6-7Ky.a. Describes the city’s precarious position, built on 118 islands in the lagoon, and the human interventions that have ensured Venice's survival.

57. The magnificent Italian Dolomites
Explains the term “dolomite”. Describes the nature and extent of the Dolomite Mountains and explains how this massive mountain range was formed. Describes how these huge deposits of dolomite had their origin in tropical coral reefs more than 200 million years ago.

58. Birth and recent geological history of the Mediterranean Sea
Describe the nature and extent of the Mediterranean which was one of the world’s last seas to fill. Explain the chain of events resulting in its birth and its subsequent fluctuations in sea level. Discuss the impacts of the Mediterranean’s connection with other bodies of water.

59. Landscapes and Geology of Destinations – Part III; Koper; Zadar; Dubrovnik; and Kotor
Explains how and when geological events formed spectacular natural landscape features at coastal destinations in Croatia; Slovenia; and Montenegro. Also describes other significant geological events that have affected each region.

60. Athens – a survivor in one of the most tectonically active regions in Europe
Reveals that the Attic Peninsula, is on the front line where African and Eurasian Plates have been colliding for the past 30 million years. Explains that Athens location in this tectonically active region has proved both blessing and curse.

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Australia; New Zealand; and Indonesia

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61. The first migrations to Australia – via land bridges
Shows how Australia’s been isolated from all other landmasses for millions of years. Outlines the major sea level fluctuations during the last Ice Age that caused land bridges to form enabling human migrations. Explains how C14 dating has determined the timing of the arrivals of 2 migration waves of the first Australians and their dispersal throughout the continent.

62. The Nullarbor Plain - an amazing scientific resource
Outlines the geological history of the biggest karst landscape in the world and describes the many geological features, including 300 limestone caves,that make it unique. Describes how megafauna and plant fossils confirm that lush rainforest extended oven the Plain before Australia dried out. Reveals why the Nullarbor is one of the best meteorite localities in the world.

63. The Great Barrier Reef – largest organic structure on Earth
Describes when and how the first reefs formed and the special conditions that enabled the massive reef to grow. Outlines the diverse types of plant and animal life that populate the reef to-day. Outlines threats to the Reef and discusses its survival into the future.

64. Landscapes of the Wet Tropics World Heritage Rainforest region of North Queensland
Outlines how monsoonal rainfall has enabled geological processes to form spectacular landscapes in North Queensland. Describes some of Australia's most recent volcanic activity on the Atherton Tableland and illustrates a selection of the impressive volcanic landforms. Describes how volcanic soils in the tropical rainforests support a diverse endemic flora and an amazingly unique fauna.

65. Fraser Island and the other spectacular Sand Islands of South East Queensland
Describes how and when these sand islands formed. Illustrates the diverse pristine habitats and many wonderfully unique features, including magnificent perched lakes, on the world’s biggest sand island. Explains how Fraser Island was saved from the potentially destructive activities of rainforest logging and heavy mineral sand mining.

66. The World Heritage-listed, Ningaloo Reef
Explains when and how the 280km long fringe reef formed on the West Australian coast. Outlines the set of conditions that have enabled the reef to survive and grow and illustrates the reef’s diverse flora and fauna

67. Kakadu - the geological origin of its landscapes and diverse habitats
Describes the climate and geological events that produced Kakadu's wonderful landscapes that led to its world heritage listing. Outlines the major events in Kakadu’s geological past that created habitats for its rich fauna and flora.

68. Indonesia – Land of Active Volcanoes
Explains how volcanoes that form this island archipelago have produced some of the world’s biggest and most destructive eruptions. Describes the Krakatoa eruption of 1883 and the development and recent activity of Anak Krakatoa. Shows how recent eruptions from some of Indonesia’s 128 active volcanoes have disrupted air travel.

69. The Wallace Line – and its significance as a faunal boundary
Outlines contributions to evolutionary theory of Alfred Russel Wallace, a contemporary of Charles Darwin. Explains how his research on the region led, in 1859, to his recognition of the Wallace Line, which cuts the archipelago between Bali and Lombok. Plate tectonics has confirmed its significance and its relevance to-day.

70. Break-up of a supercontinent - Birth of “Zealandia” and the Tasman Sea
Explains when and how Gondwana broke up creating the Tasman Sea. Examines a parallel modern-day example of a continent breaking up. Discusses the claim that “Zealandia”, is the 8th continent. Illustrates examples of relic Gondwana fauna and flora

71. New Zealand’s Spectacular Sounds and Fiords
Defines the historic and current use of the terms “fiord” and “sound”. Reveals how and when these spectacular coastal features were formed in NZ. Reveals the rates of retreat of some NZ glaciers. Explains why fiords are relatively common in the northern hemisphere, yet are only found in Chile, Antarctica and NZ in the southern hemisphere.

72. New Zealand’s Explosive Volcanoes
Describes how millions of years of volcanic activity has been an essential building block of New Zealand’s North Island. Discusses NZ’s 8 active volcanoes and describes NZ’s recent volcanic activity. Uses models to explain why New Zealand has so many explosive and quiet volcanoes.
Describes the chain of submarine volcanoes to NZ's north east that will eventually add to the New Zealand landmass.

73. Spectacular Geysers of Rotorua and Geothermal features of other New Zealand regions
Outlines the nature and location of geothermal fields on both North and South Islands and explains the origin of NZ’s geothermal heat. Describes and illustrates the mechanisms that produce Rotorua’s attractions and those in other geothermal fields. Reveals increasing use of geothermal energy as a power source in NZ.

74. The very big NZ Earthquake in November 2016 that barely made the news
Explains why New Zealand (The Shaky Isles) has so many large earthquakes. Describes the cause of the 2016 Kaikoura M7.8 earthquake and graphically illustrates the unprecedented damage it caused. Addresses the popular misconception that “big damaging earthquakes are becoming more frequent in NZ”

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Purely enrichment topics - Gemstones and Minerals

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75. Crystals and Gemstones
Explains the origin of the term ‘Crystal’. Describes the various natural processes that enable crystals to form. Explores the internal structure of crystals to reveal why they exhibit so many different geometric forms. Examines the claim that ‘crystals have special powers’. Outlines the characteristics that make crystals suitable for fashioning into gemstones and discusses other natural and synthetic materials used as gems.

76. The Amazing World of Minerals
Uses colourful images to explain the range of physical and chemical properties of minerals. Reveals why colour, can be very misleading and is of only limited use. Reveals, with the aid of models how internal structures give minerals an amazing array of physical properties that make them so useful to mankind.

77. Precious Opal – the truly Australian gemstone
Outlines the history of man’s fascination with Opal. Describes where opal deposits are found in Australia and the conditions under which opal is formed. Explains why the most common form of opal is grey/blue common ‘potch’ and describes the process and special conditions that give rise to the play of colours in precious opal. Explains how lapidarists fashion opal to make the most out of various forms of rough.

78. Diamond - King of the mineral kingdom
Describes the nature of the 2 chief pure carbon minerals – graphite and diamond. Explains with models why graphite is so different from diamond and reveals how and where diamonds are formed and discusses diamond imitations. Outlines the natural occurrence, prospecting, mining and recovery techniques for diamonds.

79. Brazil’s beautiful gemstones (and other precious minerals)
Showcases many of the gem and precious metals mined in Brazil’s Minas Gerais for hundreds of years. Discusses the physical properties of these gem minerals that make them so desirable. Outlines the natural processes that formed the gemstones and precious metals in Brazil.

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Miscellaneous Enrichment Topics

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80. Landscapes and Geology of Destinations
Lectures of this type cover the events that have formed spectacular landscape features at 3, 4 or even 5 destinations in 45 minutes. Talks can be tailored for all cruise ship itineraries as geological events have played major roles in forming all natural landscape features.

81. Extinction of the Dinosaurs and other Mass Extinctions on Planet Earth.
Explains the term ‘mass extinction’. Describes the best-known extinction event, the extinction of the dinosaurs, and the timing of Earth’s other major mass extinctions. Discusses the likely causes of each extinction event and the slow recovery of life forms afterwards.

82. History of the Geological Time Scale leading to current methods of Determining the age of the Earth
Describes how the current Time Scale originated long before geological time could be measured. Explains how geochronologists measure the immensity of geological time using isotopes. Describes the precision that is possible with recent refinements to dating methods.

83. Evidence of Climate Change and Sea Level fluctuations in the geological record
Discusses the topical issue of Global climate change. Outlines what can be learned from ice core measurements and Sea Level fluctuations throughout Geological Time and, in particular, during the Last Ice Age? Describes the events that caused Sea Levels to rise and fall in the past and addresses the current problem.

84. Rare Earth Elements - Play a big part in daily life, but what are they?
Describes the rare earth elements and explains that they are neither rare nor “earths”. Explains what makes some of them very valuable. Outlines their properties and impressive list of current major uses which is still growing. Discusses potential uses in our increasingly high tech world.

85. The Amazing World of Microfossils
Outlines the various types of organisms that form microfossils. Employs scanning electron microscope images of a spectacular array of animal and plant microfossils. Describes the environments in which they lived and explains what makes them such useful indicators of past climates and environments. Outlines their use in exploration for oil and gas.

Although I was also booked on 7 Viking cruises in 2020; 5 in 2021; and 2 in 2022 plus a 14-night cruise leg on The World in Jan-Feb 2022, all of these bookings had to be cancelled due to the pandemic.
Regent Seven Seas Explorer Tokyo to Tokyo 11 nights 20th Oct 2023
Regent Seven Seas Explorer Tokyo to Tokyo 11 nights 9th Oct 2023
Viking Mars Auckland to Sydney 14 nights 10th Jan 2023
Viking Mars Sydney to Auckland 14 nights 27th Dec 2022
The World Cairns to Sydney 9 nights 13th Jan 2020
Viking Orion Auckland to Sydney 14 nights 10th Jan 2020
Viking Orion Sydney to Auckland 14 nights 27th Dec 2019
Oceania Marina Copenhagen to Amsterdam 15nights 3rd Sept 2019
Oceania Nautica Sthampton to Sthampton 20nights 4th Aug 2019
Oceania Regatta Papaette to San Diego 16nights 16th March 2019
Oceania Regatta Sydney to Papaette 16nights 1st March 2019
Oceania Regatta Sydney to Auckland 17nights 13th Jan 2019
Oceania Regatta Benoa to Sydney 17nights 28th Dec 2018
Viking Sky SK180721 Bergen to Greenwich 14nights 21st July 2018
Viking Sky SK180707 Greenwich to Bergen 14nights 7th July 2018
Oceania Insignia INS180528 Papeete to Honolulu 10nights 29th May 2018
Oceania Insignia INS180509 Sydney via NZ to Tahiti 20nights 9th May 2018.
Ponant L'Austral Sydney to Fremantle 14nights 30th Jan 2018
Ponant L'Austral Darwin to Sydney 14nights 20th Feb 2018
Sea Princess Brisbane - NZ - Brisbane 14nights 3rd Dec 2017
RCCL Radiance of Seas Sydney - NZ to Auckland 13nights 28th Mar 2017
Celebrity Solstice Sydney-Gt Barrier Reef-Syd 12nights 13th Mar 2017
Celebrity Solstice Syd - Gt Barrier Reef-Syd 14nights 3rd November 2016
Azamara Quest Sydney to Benoa Bali 17nights Feb 2016
Azamara Quest Auckland to Sydney 13nights Feb 2016
RCCL Legend of the Seas Fremantle to Singapore 14nights 27th Sept 2015
RCCL Rhapsody of Seas Sydney to Singapore 16nights 17th April 2015

In all, I have lectured on 36 cruises since 2012 and, since 2018 have only lectured on 5.5-star and 6.0-star ships

Faye and I have a current Annual Emergency Health and Travel Insurance policy

Additional Qualifications

• Diploma of the Gemmological Association of Australia
• First Aid Certificate

Significant Awards and Nominations

• Churchill Fellowship (1978) - 4 months study of technical geoscience education and employment in Canada and the UK
• ACT Chief Minister’s Achievement Award (1994) - for taking the initiative, beyond my regular duties as Head of Resource Science at CIT,
and finding work experience placements for final year students and full-time employment for 100s of graduate geoscience diploma students
• Received nomination for Australian of the Year in 2018

Memberships of Professional Bodies

• Retired Fellow of the Geological Society of Australia
• Fellow of the Gemmological Association of Australia
• Founder and President of the Gondwana Coast Fossil Walk Inc.

The following recent Cruise History has been recorded for this candidate.