The Open Desk

Margie Beilharz

Freelance editor and writer in science, environment, education, health

Category: Uncategorised

  • Editors Victoria September 2015 newsletter: a peek into textbook editing

    I’ve just sent out the Editors Victoria September newsletter to members. And it’s online for all to see. This month we get a peek into text book editing with Sandra Duncanson, former teacher and now Senior Editor at Insight Publications, who has just released her first text book, English Year 10. And we see all…

  • Advocating for environmental education

    Advocating for environmental education

    I was excited to get my hands on the July issue of Eingana – the journal of Environment Education Victoria – it was my first issue as copyeditor, and the journal featured a new design to go with the organisation’s new name. This issue brings together education and advocacy, summed up nicely by EEV Vice President…

  • Victorian editors: the August 2015 newsletter is out

    All things editing: professional development (Redact registration is now open), accreditation news, reviews (PerfectIt and Nick Hudson’s Modern Australian Usage); debate (the future of Australia’s editing societies), Dear Ed dishes advice on the dreaded three o’clock snooze) and hamsters.I sent the August Editors Victoria newsletter out today and it’s also online.But – you won’t find the hamster…

  • A feast of editing

    I’ve just sent out the May newsletter for Editors Victoria. In it you’ll find: which of the National Literary Awards is of special interest to editors (Editors Victoria Distinguished Editor Susan Keogh has just won it) food for thought for members – should the state and territory societies all come together under the IPEd umbrella? (IPEd is Australia’s Institute of…

  • 400 ppm carbon dioxide: we’ve reached it

    … which is not good news Shared on my Facebook page.  

  • FameLab Australia

    If you’re a young researcher passionate about science, want to up your presentation and media skills and fancy a trip to the UK’s leading science festival… read on. Applications for FameLab Australia 2015 are open Tuesday 27 January – Friday 27 February 2015. http://au.live.solas.britishcouncil.net/programmes/science/famelab. [Update – old link removed]

  • Photonics, music, discovery: creativity in science

    Photonics, music, discovery: creativity in science

    Just in case you still think that creative people do arts and the sciences are for people who are good at knowing stuff but lack imagination, have a look at this RiAus interview with physicist (and cellist) Tanya Monro. Apart from being the only person (perhaps apart from Ian Thorpe) who I’ve heard attribute their…

  • Freelancers thank the bustling times

    In the Guardian’s list of “authorisms”: The top 10 words invented by writers Freelance: i) One who sells services to employers without a long-term commitment to any of them. ii) An uncommitted independent, as in politics or social life. The word is not recorded before Sir Walter Scott introduced it in Ivanhoe, which (among other…

  • Making molecules crystal clear

    Crystallography is one of those mysterious scientific techniques you hear about – and 2014 has been the International Year of Crystallography. But what is it really? CSIRO have posted a great explanation of how we can bounce X-rays off crystals to see the structure of the component molecules when they are too small to be…

  • Redesign

    I hope you like the new design. I’ve changed to a new WordPress theme called Editor – it seemed appropriate, and I like the look of it.