FDA approves first home-test kit for HIV

Washington: The Food and Drug Administration has approved the first over-the-counter HIV test, allowing Americans to test themselves for the virus that causes AIDS in the privacy of their homes. The OraQuick test detects the presence of HIV in saliva collected using a mouth swab. The test is designed to return a result within 20 to 40 minutes.

Government officials estimate one-fifth, or about 240,000 people, of the 1.2 million HIV carriers in the US are not aware they are infected. Testing is one of the chief means of slowing new infections, which have held steady at about 50,000 per year for two decades. 

FDA officials said the test is aimed at people who might not otherwise get tested.

"The availability of a home-use HIV test kit provides another option for individuals to get tested so that they can seek medical care, if appropriate," said Dr Karen Midthun, director of the FDA's Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research.

FDA stressed in its approval announcement that the test is not 100 per cent accurate. A trial conducted by Orasure showed the home test only correctly detected HIV in those carrying the virus 92 per cent of the time. That means that the test could miss one person for every 12 HIV-infected people who use the kit.

The test was accurate 99 per cent in ruling out HIV in patients not carrying the virus. That means the test would incorrectly identify one patient as having HIV for every 5,000 HIV-negative people tested.

The FDA previously approved several HIV test kits designed to be used at home, although those kits — which usually require a blood sample — must be sent to a laboratory to be developed. While it's not clear why the test appears less accurate in consumer trials, company researchers said they expected the test's specificity to drop when used by consumers versus professionals.

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DNSChanger Virus last chance to remove before web access is cut

Thousands could lose internet access when FBI cuts off temporary servers

The good news is if you're among the 7,000 Canadian PC or Mac users — or the tens of thousands more worldwide —still believed to have machines infected with the nasty DNSChanger virus, you can spare yourself the misery of being cut off from email, Twitter, Facebook and other online distractions by performing a simple test.

The FBI is snipping a cyber safety net on Monday that kept thousands of computer users online after their internet connections were hijacked by a piece of malware called DNSChanger, meaning those users could be disconnected from the web if they still haven't removed the virus by July 9

Google, Facebook and the FBI have all issued repeated alerts over the past year about the estimated 650,000 computers worldwide that fell victim to the DNSChanger trojan, but they and media outlets made one last public appeal this week warning of the looming July 9 deadline.

That's when the FBI will shut down the temporary DNS servers it set up to keep the virus-infected computers connected to the internet after it broke up a criminal operation that had rerouted the machines through a system of false DNS servers, manipulating users' web searches in order to direct them to fraudulent websites.

The websites promoted fake products and allowed the cybercriminals to earn money off the sale of these products and advertising. 

It's always advisable to consult a reputable computer professional for help before taking any drastic steps to repair a machine infected with a computer virus.

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WARNING on Monday July 09, 2012 INTERNET BLACK OUT

The FBI statement, which includes advice on how to check for and remove the malware, can be found on its website.  Reports around the web suggest that while the FBI originally set up a ‘safety net’ to prevent the impact of the malware, they’ve now shut down this system.  Infected machines are therefore at risk.

'Internet blackout' set for 9 July: FBI to 'pull plug' on 350,000 virus-infected machines - cutting off Web for users in U.S. and UK.Machines infected with virus being 'kept alive' by FBI.

Operation costing so much FBI will 'pull plug' on 9 July

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NEW YORK (CNNMoney) — Hundreds of thousands of Internet users whose computers are infected with a particularly nasty virus will be unable to access the Web starting on Monday. The Federal Bureau of Investigation will shut down Internet servers that it temporarily set up to support those affected by malicious software, called DNSChanger. Turning off those servers will knock all those still infected offline. Over the past five years, a group of six Estonian cybercriminals infected about 4 million computers around the world with DNSChanger. The malware redirected infected users’ Web searches to spoofed sites with malicious advertisements.

“For computer users, a few mouse clicks could mean the difference between staying online and losing Internet connections this summer.

Unknown to most of them, their problem began when international hackers ran an online advertising scam to take control of infected computers around the world. In a highly unusual response, the FBI set up a safety net months ago using government computers to prevent Internet disruptions for those infected users. But that system is to be shut down.

The FBI is encouraging users to visit a website run by its security partner, http://www.dcwg.org, that will let them know if they’re infected and explain how to fix the problem. After July 9, infected users won’t be able to connect to the Internet.”

This virus is relatively asymptomatic when in your system; it doesn’t crash your computer and it doesn’t invade your files. What this virus does is send users to illegal websites, all with just the click of a button. The FBI was made aware of the virus some time ago, and because of the large number of infected computers — over 350,000 — the government organization set up alternative servers so that users could continue to access the Internet .without interruption. The endeavor was so costly, however, that on July 9^th, 2012, the servers will be shut down. Anyone with the DNSChanger virus will not be allowed internet access. Unfortunately, most of the affected machines are owned by private individuals.

Most people know when their computers are at risk. If you are frequently redirected to websites that you have no interest in or don’t match your search criteria, there is a good chance you have a malicious form of software on your system.  With this particular virus, taking the machine to a computer programmer to have the Trojan removed might be your only option.

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Rapa Nui the Easter Island

Easter Island, also known as Rapa Nui, is remotely located 2,000 miles off the coast of Tahiti. The original settlers of the island were Polynesians who migrated to the far-off land between 400 and 600 BC. They built many shrines and statues, called moai, from stones quarried throughout the island including a volcano site. Researchers still question exactly how the large stones were moved.

Is a Polynesian island in the southeastern Pacific Ocean, at the southeasternmost point of the Polynesian Triangle. A special territory of Chile that was annexed in 1888, Easter Island is famous for its 887 extant monumental statues, called moai, created by the early Rapanui people. It is aWorld Heritage Site (as determined by UNESCO) with much of the island protected within Rapa Nui National Park. In recent times the island has served as a warning of the cultural and environmental dangers of overexploitation. Ethnographers and archaeologists also blame diseases carried by European colonizers and slave raiding of the 1860s for devastating the local peoples. The name "Easter Island" was given by the island's first recorded European visitor, the Dutch explorer Jacob Roggeveen, who encountered it on Easter Sunday 1722, while searching for Davis or David's island. Roggeveen named it Paasch-Eyland(18th century Dutch for "Easter Island").The island's official Spanish name,Isla de Pascua, also means "Easter Island".

The current Polynesian name of the island, Rapa Nui, "Big Rapa", was coined after the slave raids of the early 1860s, and refers to the island's topographic resemblance to the island of Rapa in the Bass Islands of the Austral Islands group. However Thor Heyerdahl argued that Rapa was the original name of Easter Island, and that Rapa Iti was named by refugees from there. The phrase Te pito o te henua has been said to be the original name of the island since Alphonse Pinart gave it the romantic translation "the Navel of the World" in his Voyage à l'Île de Pâques, published in 1877.

The history of Easter Island is rich and controversial. Its inhabitants have endured famines, epidemics, civil war, slave raids, colonialism, and near deforestation; its population declined precipitously more than once.Estimated dates of initial settlement of Easter Island have ranged from 300 to 1200 CE, approximately coinciding with the arrival of the first settlers in Hawaii. Rectifications in radiocarbon dating have changed almost all of the previously posited early settlement dates in Polynesia. Rapa Nui has more recently been considered to have been settled in the narrower range of 700 to 1100 CE. An ongoing study by archaeologists Terry Hunt and Carl Lipo suggests a still-later date: "Radiocarbon dates for the earliest stratigraphic layers at Anakena, Easter Island, and analysis of previous radiocarbon dates imply that the island was colonized late, about 1200 CE. Significant ecological impacts and major cultural investments in monumental architecture and statuary thus began soon after initial settlement.

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Super Trees In Singapore soon to Light Up

The Supertree Grove is illuminated during the Gardens by the Bay, Light and Sound show on July 2, 2012 in Singapore. The free nightly light and sound display which sees the massive man made Supertrees lit up with spotlights and neon lights officially opened tonight in the 54 hectare south section of the Gardens by the Bay. The Gardens by the Bay was opened on June 29 and features over 220,000 plants, the vertical gradens of the Supertrees,

Beginning June 29th, visitors to Singapore will be able to add one more attraction to their already long list of things to see - The 133-acre Bay South Garden. Located in the city's swanky Marina Bay, the eco-park is the first of three attractions under the Garden by the Bay project, a 250-acre (the size of 190 football fields) green initiative embarked on by Singapore's government in 2006.

While it promises many wonderful attractions, the most anticipated one is the Gold and Silver Gardens - A series of the 18 gigantic super-trees that were inspired by the tallest and most dominant rainforest trees.While made from metal, the trees that range from 80-164 feet in height, are as eco-friendly as their greener counterparts. Their large canopies do not only collect rain water, but also, absorb heat and provide shade, helping the over 200,000 species of flowers and ferns planted around and below them, flourish. Thanks to their built-in photovoltaic solar cells that capture the sun's energy, they also provide enough green energy to power the park lights and water pumps.

Even better is the fact the some of the giant trees are linked together to form a 420-foot long skywalk, enabling visitors to stroll around and enjoy the view from the top. For those that wish to linger a little longer, there is even a restaurant!. Home to over 450 million residents, Singapore boasts of one of the highest population densities in the world. While beautiful, the popular tourist destination is largely an urban sprawl - Something, the government is now trying to change with this $700 million USD initiative. Their mission is to transform Singapore from a 'City Garden' to a City In A Garden'. If the other two green initiatives are as cool, we have no doubt they will succeed. Besides these gorgeous 'trees', the Bay South Garden is also home to The Flower Dome, a giant conservatory filled with some of the world's most exotic flower species, The Dragonfly Lake that is filled with various species of fish and plants and many other eco-friendly attractions.

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Mayan Temple

According to the Mesoamerican Long Count Calendar, made famous by the ancient Mayan people, December 2012 marks the ending of the current baktun cycle. This little bit of information has many archeologists spooked. Some believe the Mayans were warning of a coming apocalypse, while others insist it's simply a mathematical misconception.

The Pyramid of Kukulkan, a temple built to honor the feathered serpent god, still stands in Chichen Itza.

The first temples of the Maya arose more than 2,000 years ago. Their word for these stone pyramids was the same as their word for mountain, and the massive stepped temples at times reached more than 200 feet high. It was long thought that the ancient stone pyramid temples of the Maya were built by their royalty. The fact that different groups had the will and the power to build temples suggests "the Maya could choose which temples to worship in and support; they had a voice in who succeeded politically," said researcher Lisa Lucero, an archaeologist at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign."Human sacrifice did occur at temples, but only rarely, unlike the Aztec, who sacrificed daily in the belief the sun would not rise otherwise," Lucero said, speaking of the Maya during the Classic Period, from 250 A.D. to 900 A.D. "Only a few powerful Maya kings performed human sacrifice, and they did it to kill rulers from elsewhere.

Mysteriously, there are six temples all close together in Yalbac, ranging from 25 to 50 feet high. "Why did they need six? Did they have one for different days of the week? Different gods? Different seasons?" Lucero wondered. Lucero and her colleagues investigated temples in Yalbac, a Mayan center in the steaming jungles of central Belize. "We were surrounded by howler monkeys, toucans, spider monkeys, orchids, spiders, scorpions and snakes," she recalled. "Killer bees are now in the area, and a hive can just appear one day. I ran immediately when I saw one, and I was still stung four times."

Upon investigating each temple — which date from the Late Classic period of Mayan history , about 550 to 850 A.D. — she noted their construction and materials could differ from each other quite significantly. Two higher quality temples used larger outermost stones and more mortar to fill the insides of the pyramids. "These essentially cost more money, and may have been royal," Lucero said. "But the other temples may not have been built by royalty at all."

Each temple might have served a different god, such as the rain god Chak, or the sun god or maize god. The building of each temple might also serve as a record of ancient power struggles. When a new ruler comes to power, they might build their own place, or if the rulers did not predict the best time to plant crops, others might suggest, 'Come to my temple, the ruler has clearly failed,'. 

Lucero and her colleagues detailed their findings in the latest issue of the journal Latin American Antiquity.

• Top 10 Ancient Capitals
• History's Most Overlooked Mysteries
• Evidence May Back Human Sacrifice Claims

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The "MS Turanor" is the first solar-powered vessel

The "MS Turanor" is the first solar powered boat to sail around the world. The circumnavigation took 585 days to complete. 

The boat's top speed is 7.5 knots - about that of an oil tanker, The "Turanor" set five Guinness World Records during its voyage. 

For 585 days, Swiss adventurer Raphael Domjan braved storms, pirates and cloudy skies in an attempt to circumnavigate the globe on a boat propelled by nothing but sun beams. The boat, christened "Turanor" after a word meaning "power of the sun" in JRR Tolkein's "Lord of the Rings" trilogy, is Domjan's brainchild. As heavy as a whale and 30 meters long, it's adorned with enough photovoltaic panels to cover two tennis courts.

After eight years of fundraising, 64,000 hours of construction, and 19 months at sea, the "Turanor" made history on May 6, when it cruised into Port Hercules, Monaco, completing the first ever round-the-world journey by a solar-powered vessel.From the coast of Miami to the shores of Mumbai, Domjan and his four-man crew visited 28 countries on a voyage designed to showcase the practical applications of solar energy.

"The aim of this journey was to show the world that this technology is not science fiction, it is very real and it can help us change how we do things now rather than in the future," said Domjan

Everywhere we went people would flock around the boat. They had never seen such a strange design before," he added."I remember sitting on my grandfather's knee listening to him reading 'Around the world in 80 days' by Jules Verne. It made me want to go out and explore just like Phileas Fogg," recalled Domjan. "Normally ships speed up to 15 or 20 knots when crossing this area but we couldn't go faster than five knots," said Domjan. Indeed, one of "Turanor's" comparative limitations is its snail-like pace. It has a maximum speed less than that of a large oil-tanker, just 7.5 knots (14 kilometers an hour).

It would have certainly made a rare and impressive bounty. The $16 million vessel not only boasts 536 square-meters of shiny photovoltaic panels, but also the world's largest rechargeable lithium battery -- capable of storing enough power to allow the "Turanor" to travel for five full days without sunlight.

The ship's captain has reason to be proud. Having completed the 50,000 kilometer journey, the "Turanor" returns with five Guinness World Records to its name: Longest solar journey; first solar circumnavigation; fastest solar crossing of the South China Sea; fastest solar crossing of the Atlantic and - no surprises here -- a record for the world's largest solar-powered boat.

"I really hope our journey will make people realize the sheer power of solar energy and that it can be used efficiently for long-haul travel,

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Meet the family: At home with mum, baby, dog, cat and... two Siberian tiger cubs

The Shar Pei dog called Cleopatra has been breast-feeding and cleaning the Siberian cubs as if they were her own

It's an unusual family arrangement, but it looks like it works.Here are some heart-warming photos featuring mum, baby, dogs, cats and... tiger cubs.Last month the Mirror reported on how the two cubs, named Clyopa and Plyusha, had been adopted by a new mum.

Siberian tiger cub Plyusha and Shar Pei puppy.

Siberian tiger cub Plyusha and Shar Pei puppy. Fighter play in the house of Yekaterina Khodakova, whose Shar Pei dog Cleopatra is breastfeeding Plyusha and her sibling Clyopa in the Black Sea resort of Sochi. The wrinkled, sandy-coloured Shar Pei dog called Cleopatra has been breast-feeding and cleaning the Siberian cubs as if they were her own.They also curl up and go to sleep together. The natural habitat of the Siberian tiger is under threat with the wild population declining. Most Siberian tigers, like this one pictured at the Siberian Tiger Park in Harbin, China, live in captivity

Siberian tiger cub Clyopa plays with cat Masyanya in the house of Yekaterina Khodakova, whose Shar Pei dog Cleopatra is breastfeeding Clyopa and her sibling Plyusha in the Black Sea resort of Sochi.

As well as being fed by Cleopatra, Plyusha and Clyopa are also being given goats milk.

Kudlayeva said that the cubs pose no danger to the dog even though they are already showing their claws and hissing.

Siberian tiger cub Clyopa plays with 18-month-old Gleb, son of Yekaterina Khodakova, whose Shar Pei dog Cleopatra is breastfeeding Clyopa and her sibling Plyusha

‘They aren't aggressive and they depend on her for feeding,’ she said.

Fewer than 400 Siberian tigers - also known as Ussuri, Amur or Manchurian tigers - have survived in the wild, most of them in Russia's Far East.

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3 Universities in the Philippines Best English Teaching among the World

Ateneo De Manila University

In a statement sent to the Philippine Daily Inquirer, QS said the country¿s ¿specialist strength¿ in the English language was affirmed in results of its latest World University Rankings by Subject, an index that rates universities across 29 disciplines.

Manila (Philippine Daily Inquirer/ANN) - Three Philippine Universities are among the top 50 universities in the world when it comes to teaching English according to a new survey by the London-based research and ratings firm Quacquarelli Symonds (QS). 

Ateneo de Manila University posted the highest rating of all Philippine schools, ranking 24th in English language and literature. University of the Philippines ranked 32 while De La Salle University ranked 44th.

World-renowned universities in the United Kingdom and the United States took the top five spots (in this order): Cambridge, Harvard, Oxford, Yale and University of California Berkeley.

English is widely used in the Philippines in business, government, media, pop culture and daily life, with the language integrated in basic education. Proficiency in the language is also known to have helped the country become a top location for international business process outsourcing firms looking to hire qualified non-native English speakers.

The specialist strengths of Philippine universities in English language and literature are clearly shown in these rankings. The country should be proud of their achievements," Ben Sowter, QS research chief, said in the statement sent to the Inquirer.

The Philippines rated in only one other discipline, with UP placing within the 101-150 bracket in Geography.The ranking, the “largest of its kind to date,” rated some 600 universities from 27 countries, with scoring based on some 50,000 responses from employers and members of the academe, QS said.

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Molly, American Bulldog Adopts Litter of Orphaned Kitten

Mooly American Bulldog

Molly, a two-year old American Bulldog, is one busy pooch. She gave birth to a litter of puppies only six weeks ago, and now she has a bunch of hungry kittens to look after too.According to the Dothan Eagle, when mother cat "Kitty Kitty" was hit by a car, Molly allowed her four orphaned kittens to nurse. Both dog and cat were raised by Elbert Bristow, 84, of Columbia, Alabama.

They gave birth only a day apart. "I've had dogs all my life. I've trained bird dogs and coon dogs," Bristow told the Eagle, "but this is the first time I've ever had a dog take a litter of kittens."

Bristow says the kittens, which include one orange, one white, one grey and white, and one with Siamese-type markings, follow Molly around just like she was their mom. She spends 5 to 10 minutes with them at a time, and lies down and lets them eat. Bristow keeps the puppies separated on another part of his property.

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America Wacky's Fair Foods:

Mealworm-Covered Caramel Apples 

Arizona: Mealworm-Covered Caramel Apples 

Along with deep-fried crickets, the Arizona Exposition & State Fair's Chef du' Jour booth sold caramel apples dipped in mealworms last year.

Cotton candy, corn dogs and candy apples once ruled the midway at the local fair, but visitors now want food that's exotic—as long as it's on a stick, or more importantly, fried. From health–defying anomalies like fried dough injected with Pepsi to squirm–inducing chocolate–dipped scorpions, the new sideshow is food.

North Carolina: Kool-Aid Pickles

kool-Aid pickles

Also known as Koolickles, pickles soaked in the sugary kids' beverage are a Southern tradition — and a sweet-and-sour snack at North Carolina's annual state fair.

Forget funnel cakes. These days state fairs are serving up plates full of wacky food that some people consider strangely delicious. Check out these weird bites you can get at state fairs across the country.

Kool-Aid Pickles are delicious! Also called Koolickles, they are eaten all over the south, but they are particularly popular in the Mississippi Delta area. Just like one might expect, Kool-Aid Pickles offer a sweet and sour taste sensation. Follow these directions to learn how to make a Kool-Aid Pickle.

 

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Presidential Vacation Homes

Whether it’s “the Summer White House,” “the Winter White House,” a beach house or a fishing camp, presidents need to get away, too.If a current or former president stays at a friend’s estate even for only one night, the visit bestows bragging rights to the place, and plaques can be ordered stating a president slept here. 

The Summer White House

Some Houses have more than one well-traveled president’s name in their pedigree. A few of the following homes also have hosted other dignitaries, movie stars, and at least one of the mansions has appeared in several movies. Apparently, the presidential association is good for real estate prices, too. The prices of the following homes (with most images provided by Realtor.com) range from $1.675 million to $95 million.

Barack Obama, 44^th president of the United States, made it official on Monday, April 4, that he planned to live at 1600 Pennsylvania Ave. for four more years.Obama presented himself as the candidate of change in 2007 and worked to lure Democrats with ads that promised heady possibilities: “We Can End a War," "We Can Save the Planet," "We Can Change the World."The 2012 announcement was more tempered and reflected a candidate who has the bruising experience that comes from occupying the Oval Office.

 "Hope' and 'Change' meet reality" Obama said..

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Penny Palfrey a Swimmer challenge: Cross 103 miles of shark-infested water

The 49-year-old mother of three and grandmother of two jumped into the sea shortly after sunrise at 7.03 am local time from the Hemingway International Yacht Club in western Havana, headed for Florida's Key West. The swim is expected to take between 40 and 50 hour. Diving into the clear blue water off Havana Friday, Penny Palfrey began her quest to swim from Cuba to the United States. The Australian-British dual citizen is swimming without a shark cage, snorkel, flippers or wet suit. Palfrey estimated the journey would cover 103 miles (166 kilometers), much of it through shark infested waters."I am excited, a little nervous," she told reporters Friday while slathering one last coat of thick sunblock on herself. "I got about six hours of sleep last night, which is pretty good for the night before. The swimmer arrived at the dock under a clear sky wearing a blue bathing suit, gray cap and goggles, her face, legs and arms lathered with sunscreen. She waved an Australian flag.

Swimming strong. Great conditions. Some jellies, but not bad," Palfrey's support team tweeted after she covered 2.06 nautical miles (3.81 kilometres) in her first hour."Cuba fading on horizon. Looking good," her team said in another tweet.Palfrey is seeking to accomplish the feat in a "call for friendly relations between the peoples of the United States and Cuba," according to the Cuban foreign ministry.

Penny Palfrey

Even though she has completed long-distance swims of the English channel and a round-trip crossing of the Strait of Gibraltar, the waters between Cuba and the United States present unique hazards, she said."Each swim comes with its own challenges, this is a really big challenge; 103 miles is further than I have ever swum before," Palfrey said. "I expect it to be very challenging but I am very excited."

Her resume contains a long list of marathon swims, including twice across the English Channel, a round trip in the Strait of Gibraltar and three swims around Manhattan Island.She decided to take on the Florida Straits after flying over on her way back from the record-breaking Cayman swim.Palfrey had planned to make her attempt a few days ago, but had to wait for Tropical Storm Debby to stop churning in the Gulf of Mexico off northwestern Florida.

Palfrey, who was born in Britain and moved to Australia at age 19, is among the most accomplished open-water swimmers in the world and has successfully completed swims in the Caribbean and Pacific without a shark cage. 

Two years ago, she crossed the Strait of Gibraltar between Spain and Morocco in three hours and three minutes, setting a new record for women.Her latest attempt was in September, when she quit her swim two thirds of the way into the crossing after suffering dangerous jellyfish stings. She plans to try again this summer. 

If successful, Palfrey, 49, would surpass the record that she set in 2011 for the longest unassisted swim. Palfrey swam over 67 miles from Little Grand Cayman island to Big Grand Cayman island.

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6 amazing Aussie caves in Australia: AWESOME underground

Some of the world's best subterranean wonders are here in Australia, right beneath our feet

From show caves for tour groups to a taste of white-knuckle, hard-hat adventure, we plunge underground to visit half a dozen of Australia’s most amazing cave locations.

Margaret Cave.

In 1899, Western Australia’s Margaret River area wasn’t like the landscape of wineries and chocolate factories we see today. Not by a stretch.It was rough country and, while looking for wild horses, Edward Dawson discovered a hole leading into a massive cave.

Our guide explains the physical features of Ngilgi Cave and also how opera diva Dame Nellie Melba’s grand piano was lowered into it so she could perform in the Amphitheatre.A huge calcite column known as the Suspended Table is reflected in the beautiful underground lake, making this seem like wonderland at 62 meters down.Nearby Jewel Cave has 700 meters of stairs and walkways through several caverns. A large chamber of stalactites, stalagmites, helictites and shawls has features with crazy names like turkey, broccoli and frozen waterfall.

kelly hill caves

This is one of the few dry limestone caves in Australia, created differently from normal solution caves, with direct rainfall being responsible for speleothem formation -- the technical term for stalactites and so on. Just off the South Australian coast, sports wildlife, lighthouses, seascapes, food and wine. 

It is also home to Kelly Hill Caves.There are all the usual formations, including good examples of shawls, but I’m most impressed by the small, intricately beautiful helictites with stony hooks on the end.Kangaroo Island, just off the South Australian coast, sports wildlife, lighthouses, seascapes, food and wine. It is also home to Kelly Hill Caves

capricorn cave

Just a glance at Naracoorte’s World Heritage listing is enough to grasp that the South-Australian cave system is one of unusual quality.

“The Pleistocene fossil vertebrate deposits of Victoria Fossil Cave at Naracoorte,” it says, “are considered to be ... Australia's largest and best preserved and one of the richest deposits in the world.”Here, a guide explains the accumulation of bones in the caves, excavation techniques and research.

There’s a chance to see complete skeletons of megafauna specieslike the marsupial lion and sthenurine kangaroo.

The Wonambi Fossil Centre contains fossil displays and a walk-through diorama with life-sized models of extinct animals that broaden our understanding of what life was like here 200,000 years ago.

Yarrangobilly caves

“It makes bubbles,” the child replies eagerly.“Yes. Because the gas comes out,” the guide explains.

Our short geology lesson about solutional caves explains how rainwater mixes with carbon dioxide, seeps down from above and dissolves the rocks because of gas in the carbonated water.

Dripping from the roof of the cave, it forms stalactites, while droplets landing on the floor grow into stalagmites.Yarrangobilly Caves are off the Snowy Mountains Highway south of Tumut in New South Wales. Created from 440-million-year-old limestone, they were discovered in 1834 by a stockman.Only six of the 300 caves are open to the public and, of those, two host regular tours.

Jenolan caves

In 1872 this became illegal thanks to local politician John Lucas, after whom one of the caves was named.

Today there’s greater awareness. As Jenolan Caves’ former general manager, Andrew Fletcher, explained when reopening the Temple of Baal cave in 2006 (it first opened to the public in 1907).

“The combination of LED track lighting and HID spotlighting ... produces only one-third of the heat of the old system,” he said. “Which is great news for the cave’s fragile environment.”

Synchronized music and sound effects have been added, creating an evocative display of that cave’s formations like the beautiful nine-meter-long Angel’s Wing shawl, one of the largest cave shawls in the world.

The Lucas, Orient, River and Ribbon Caves have all been similarly revamped, creating a stunning show cave experience for Jenolan’s 250,000 annual visitors.  

Situated north of Rockhampton in Queensland, Capricorn Caves have been a tourist attraction since their discovery by Norwegian John Olsen in 1882.

This system of aboveground caves inside a limestone ridge can be experienced in different ways.

There’s a tour of the Cathedral Cave, with an optional ending through the narrow Zig Zag Passage, where visitors emerge into daylight on a swinging bridge in the rain forest.

For an educational perspective, the Geotour examines significant marine fossils encrusted on the walls and the threatened ferntectaria devexa, for which the caves are one of only two known habitats in Australia. But for something to get the adrenalin pumping, Wild Caving Adventures see participants squeezing their way through the wonderfully named Fat Man’s Misery, a 30-centimeter-diameter hole, or crawling like commandos before finally emerging on top of the ridge.

To orient yourself as we cave-hop around the country, click here to open an interactive map of the sites featured in a new window

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