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Christchurch Branch Newsletter – December 2012

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Next Meeting – Annual General Meeting 28 February 2013

The first meeting of the year always includes the branch’s Annual General Meeting. This is an opportunity to become more involved by joining the committee or taking on a key role. We are all committed to the NZCFS and together we can continue to work to achieve the aims of our organisation. Please give some thought between now and then as to how you think you can become involved; the committee is always looking for new blood and ideas!

Speaker: Phil Rolston – Food and Food Security in China

Following our Annual General meeting, we are in for a real treat with our first speaker for 2013.

Dr Phil Rolston is a senior grassland scientist with AgResearch at Lincoln, and has made more than 55 visits to China since 1983.

These projects have focused on rural development in poorer rural communities, often with ethnic minorities and often undertaken with a range of aid agencies. In recent times the focus has moved to training agriculture technicians and University students and staff and livestock raising agri-business companies.

From the starvation and famine years of the 1960’s China has built a largely self sufficient food production base. But this is under pressure as population increases, protein consumption increases, cities and infra-structure expand and land is lost to environmental degradation. This very interesting talk will examine the role of food in the social life of China and issues of future food security.


The English Plural According to ….

 

We’ll begin with a box, and the plural is boxes,

But the plural of ox becomes oxen, not oxes;

One fowl is a goose, but two are called geese,

Yet the plural of moose should never be meese;

You may find a lone mouse or a nest full of mice,

Yet the plural of house is houses, not hice.

 

If the plural of man is always called men,

Why shouldn’t the plural of pan be called pen ?

If I speak of my foot and show you my feet,

And I give you a boot, would a pair be called beet ?

If one is a tooth and a whole set are teeth,

Why shouldn’t the plural of booth be called beeth ?

 

 

Then one may be that, & three would be those,

Yet hat in the plural would never be hose;

And the plural of cat is cats, not cose.

We speak of a brother & also of brethren,

But though we say mother, we never say methren.

Then the masculine pronouns are he, his & him,

But imagine the feminine: she, shis & shim !

George Carlin was an American stand-up comedian, social critic and satirist; a very funny man. There will be more of this poem in the February newsletter.