Guest Speaker:
Ian Thompson
Join us in Gordon Library Meeting Room 1
at 2 pm on Saturday 18 October 2025 for
Saturday 18 October 2025 will be our Annual General Meeting, after which Ian Thompson presents More Australian Inventions – Part 3.
Every day, throughout the world, over a billion people rely heavily on Australian inventions. Every time they drive a car, fly, eat or communicate, there’s a good chance it’s due to Aussies.
We all know some of the great and iconic inventions by Australians – the Victa lawnmower, the Hills Hoist, the wine cask bladder, Vegemite... but our guest speaker, Ian Thompson, knows a whole lot more. Ian will take us through the people and science behind some more iconic inventions and innovations – because there’s so much more than clotheslines and lawnmowers!
If you caught Ian’s first two very popular talks, you’ll know how informative and entertaining they were – and if you didn’t, then catch up with this one!
In Part 3 of this series, we look further into the stories behind some Australian discoveries and inventions from the 19th century colonial era through to our present time, including areas of medicine and public health, sport, agriculture, electronics and more, including several from our very own CSIRO. Plus, we mustn't forget the origin of our favourite chocolate delight, the Freddo Frog!
About Ian Thompson
After graduating in Applied Chemistry (UTS) in 1969, Ian first worked for two years in the pharmaceutical industry as a Quality Control Chemist. He then worked for over 14 years as a Chemist in the chemical manufacturing industry, with a focus on developing products for the control of insects and other pests on agricultural crops and farm animals.
For the next 25 years, and before full-time retirement in 2008, Ian then worked as a Research Scientist and Entomologist in curbing urban insect pests that invade the home, and in particular insects that are vectors of disease and unease. With a passion for Science, Ian now presents a wide range of general science and other topics for non-profit organisations such as U3A, Probus, historical societies, garden clubs and the like.
Note: our Research Room will also be open prior to our General Meetings on Saturday 18 October and Saturday 15 November 2025, from 11.30 am to 1.30 pm, to assist you with any research queries you may have. Additionally, if you have any photographs you would like to digitise, feel free to bring them in (as well as a USB stick) and we will be pleased to scan them for you.
As always, please keep an eye on our Events page in case of any last-minute changes.
Our meeting venue is Gordon Library Meeting Room 1, in the Old Gordon Public School, which adjoins the Gordon Library, 799 Pacific Highway, Gordon (corner Pacific Highway and Park Avenue).
It’s just a 5-minute walk from Gordon Station.
For a map and parking information, see our Contact page.
